Thomas Keneally
(*1935), Australia
Creative activities
Australian writer and playwright. He studied at St. Patrick’s College, Strathfield, where a literary prize is named after him. He later worked as a teacher in Sydney and lectured at the New York University and University of California. He gained his reputation as a historical novelist through his book Bring Larks and Heroes, which tells the story of Australia’s beginnings as an English penal colony. The novel The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith won Keneally international recognition. The story, based on true events, is about an Indigenous Australian who rebels against white racism and commits murder. The most famous work by Keneally is Schindler’s Ark, which won the Booker Prize and inspired the movie Schindler’s List. This film tells the true story of German industrialist Oskar Schindler, who saved over 1,300 Jews from the hands of the Nazis during World War II. Thomas Keneally currently lives in Sydney with his wife Judy and is still actively writing. His newest book, The Book of Science and Antiquity, is being published this year.
