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Alice is a Melbourne writer and lawyer. She was born in Footscray, and grew up in Braybrook, attending local primary and secondary schools in the Western suburbs, including Tottenham North Primary School, Footscray Girls Secondary College, Christ the King College Braybrook and Penleigh and Essendon Grammar School.
Alice's first novel, UNPOLISHED GEM (published by Black Inc. 2006) became the bestselling book at the Melbourne Writer's Festival, won the Australian Book Industry Award’s Newcomer of the Year Award in 2007, and was short-listed for numerous other state and national awards, including the Premier’s Literary Awards in several states. |
"This story does not begin on a boat," are the opening lines of the book, and so begins the quintessentially Australian setting of Unpolished Gem in Footscray Market, "a market filled with fat pigs and thin people." Armed with an ocker accent, Alice dives headfirst into schooling, romance and the getting of wisdom. Meanwhile, her mother becomes an Aussie Battler - an outworker, that is, her father starts up a chain of electrical appliance stores, and her grandmother blesses Father Government every day for giving old people money.
Alice’s second book Growing Up Asian In Australia, is a collection of edited stories about identity and belonging from Asian-Australian contributors including Shaun Tan, Kylie Kwong, Tom Cho, Tony Ayres, Annette Shun Wah, Hoa Pham and Jenny Kee.
Both books are studied as set texts at many secondary and tertiary schools around the nation, under contexts from migration, family issues, identity and belonging, to refugee issues, vocing minorities, and the use of humour in language.
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As a frequent contributor to The Monthly magazine and The Age and The Australian newspapers, Alice has also had stories published in The Good Weekend, MEANJIN and The Best Australian Stories.
In 2008, Alice was the Asialink literature resident to Peking University, China: and in 2009, Alice was the Australian representative at the Iowa International Writer’s Program, USA. Currently, Alice is the Writer in Residence at Ormond College, the University of Melbourne.
Alice has worked extensively with students at all levels and ages – from primary schools in Brunswick to youth prisons in Wagga Wagga, from university students in China in to seniors writing memoirs in Sitka, Alaska. |
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In particular, Alice has a deep passion and empathy for youth issues and the aged – two most marginalised yet insightful groups in society - and she believes in the power of good humour (and not-so-good puns) to help surmount adversity.
Download specific information about Alice's presentation topics (PDF, 60kb)
Visit Alice's own website to find teacher's notes, videos and more
Check out Alice's profile at her publishers website, Black Inc Books
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"One of the best insights into writing, identity and concepts of belonging you could ask for."
"Teachers felt she was a great speaker, would make a great teacher and wanted her to meet their class and to use her text in their class."
"Alice was a phenomenal teller of stories, she both informed and entertained - a moving presentation, provided good insight into ‘belonging’ and a new perspective."
"Fantastically genuine, warm and inspiring. I loved her fresh and open-minded ideas about writing."
"Thoroughly enjoyable. Alice answered questions directly and thoughtfully. Some clever ideas for extending students creative writing skills as well."
– These are comments from various conference attendees, about Alice's Keynote speech for the 2009 Teaching HSC English Conference held at the Universtiy of Sydney, February 2009.
"We gave Alice a brief and some basic information and she was able to weave a story around our event. I was very impressed with her presentation. Attendees at the event responded warmly and enthusiastically to Alica as a person and a storyteller."
– Lyn McFarland, Moreland City Council, September 2008
“There is something striking on every page of Unpolished Gem.”
– Helen Garner
“Unpolished Gem is virtuoso storytelling.”
– The Australian
“A triumph! Touching and poignant and remarkable!”
– John Safran, JJJ. |
