Ursula Dubosarsky

Ursula Dubosarsky (born Ursula Coleman, Sydney, 1961) is an Australian writer of fiction and non-fiction for children and young adults, whose work is characterised by a child's vision and voice of both clarity and ambiguity. She has won nine national literary prizes, including five New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards, more than any other writer in the Awards' 30-year history.

Contents

• Ursula dubosarsky interview too many elephants in this house 2012
• Hsc creative writing interview with author ursula dubosarsky
• Awards
• Theatrical productions
• References

She is the author of illustrated books and novels, and also three works of non-fiction about the English language, grammar and etymology for children, featuring a character known as "The Word Spy". These "Word Spy" books, illustrated by Tohby Riddle, have won the New South Wales Premier's Literary Award, the Children's Book Council of Australia Junior Judges' Award and Book of the Year Award. In the United States and Canada "The Word Spy" is published under the title "The Word Snoop."

Her novel "The Red Shoe" is included in 1001 Children's Books You Must Read Before You Grow Up and is one of 200 significant works of Australian literature in the Copyright Agency's Reading Australia program.

Three of her books have been adapted for theatre - "The Red Shoe", "The Terrible Plop" and "Too Many Elephants In This House".

In 2014, the annual Christmas Windows of the department store David Jones were based on her story "Reindeer's Christmas Surprise."

She is the third child of Peter Coleman and Verna Susannah Coleman. Her name was suggested by the character of Ursula Brangwen in the 1915 novel The Rainbow by D.H. Lawrence. She attended SCEGGS Darlinghurst and Sydney University and later Macquarie University. She is an Honorary Associate in the Department of English at Macquarie University and has taught courses in children's literature at Sydney University and the University of Technology, Sydney.

Awards

International

Hans Christian Andersen Award Nominee 2015

Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award Nominee 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017

Luchs (Lynx ) Award for Children's Literature July 2012 for The Golden Day (in German Nicht Jetz, niemals)

International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) Honour Book List 2014 for The Golden Day

YALSA (Division of the American Library Association) Excellence in Non-fiction for Young Adults Nominee 2010 for Word Snoop

White Ravens International Catalogue 2007 for The Red Shoe and 1996 for The First Book of Samuel

Australian

2013 – Inducted into Speech Pathology Australia's Hall of Fame for her contribution to children's literature

2011 – Children's Book of the Year Award for The Return of the Word Spy with illustrator Tohby Riddle

2009 – New South Wales Premier's Literary Award, Patricia Wrightson Prize for Young People's Literature for The Word Spy with illustrator Tohby Riddle

2009 – Junior Judges Project, Children's Book Council of Australia, Winner for The Word Spy with illustrator Tohby Riddle

2009 – KOALA Kids Own Australian Literature Award, Picture Book Winner for Rex with illustrator David Mackintosh

2007 – New South Wales Premier's Literary Award, Ethel Turner Prize for Young People's Literature for The Red Shoe

2006 – Queensland Premier's Literary Award, Young Adult Book Award for The Red Shoe

2006 – New South Wales Premier's Literary Award, Ethel Turner Prize for Young People's Literature for Theodora's Gift

2006 – Victorian Premier's Literary Award, Prize for Young Adult Literature for Theodora's Gift

2001 – Adelaide Festival Literary Award, Award for Children's Literature for Abyssinia

1995 – New South Wales Premier's Literary Award, Ethnic Affairs Commission Award for The First Book of Samuel

1994 – New South Wales Premier's Literary Award, Ethel Turner Prize for Children's literature for The White Guinea Pig

1994 – Victorian Premier's Literary Award, Alan Garner Prize for Children's Literature for The White Guinea Pig

Theatrical productions

Too Many Elephants In This House was staged by the NIDA, the National Institute of Dramatic Art.

The Red Shoe was staged by the Jigsaw Theatre.

Plop!, a musical version of The Terrible Plop was staged by the Windmill Theatre in Adelaide, Brisbane and Canberra, Sydney, regional Victoria, Queensland and Darwin. Plop! had season in the United States in 2012, including three weeks at the New Victory Theater in New York.