Colin Thiele
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 An artist's impression of Colin Milton Thiele AC in 2004 |
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| Born: | 16 November 1920 Eudunda, SA, Australia |
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| Died: | 4 September 2006 Brisbane, Qld, Australia |
| Occupation: | Children's Novelist Educational Writer Verse Writer |
| Nationality: | Australia |
| Writing period: | 1946 - 2003 |
| Genres: | Children's books Australian Life Stories |
| Subjects: | Australian Biographies |
Colin Milton Thiele AC (16 November 1920 – 4 September 2006) was an Australian author and educator. He was renowned for his award-winning children's fiction, most notably for the novel Storm Boy.
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[edit] Biography
See Colin Thiele Bibliography for full listing of his works.
Thiele was born in Eudunda in South Australia. He was educated at several country schools including Kapunda High School before studying at the University of Adelaide, graduating from the university in 1941. He served with the Australian Army[1] and RAAF attaining the rank of corporal[2] during World War II and later taught in high schools and colleges.
Thiele wrote more than 100 books, which often described life in rural Australia, particularly the Coorong region of coastal South Australia. Several of his books have been made into movies or television series, including Sun on the Stubble, The Fire in the Stone, Blue Fin and Storm Boy.
In 1977 he was made a Companion of the Order of Australia (the highest level of the award) for his services to literature and education.
Thiele had suffered from severe arthritis since 1955 [3] and in his later years left South Australia to settle in warmer conditions near Dayboro, Queensland.
Can I Call You Colin, an authorised biography by Stephany Evans Steggall was released in March 2004.
On 4 September 2006, Thiele died from heart failure in a Brisbane hospital aged 85.[4]
He was survived by his wife, Rhonda, two children, seven grandchildren and one great-grandchild. The Thiele Library at the Magill campus of the University of South Australia is named after him, an honour which predates his death by many years.
[edit] References
- ^ WW2 Nominal Roll - Army. Commonwealth of Australia (2002). Retrieved on September 5, 2006.
- ^ WW2 Nominal Roll - RAAF. Commonwealth of Australia (2002). Retrieved on September 5, 2006.
- ^ Nicholas Tucker (2006-09-06). Colin Thiele Obituary. The Independent. Retrieved on September 8, 2006.
- ^ Chris Brice (2006-09-04). Colin Thiele dies after illness. NEWS.com.au. Retrieved on September 4, 2006.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Colin Thiele at the Internet Movie Database
- University of South Australia. Colin Thiele Research Collection
- Colin Thiele's Home Page
- Verity Edwards and Michelle Wiese Bockmann (2006-09-05). Storm Boy author dies at 85. The Australian. Retrieved on September 5, 2006.
- 'Storm Boy' author Thiele dies. ABC News Online (2006-09-04). Retrieved on September 4, 2006.
