When Alison Lester was six years old, she was given a book called
How to Draw Horses. She had a very old Shetland pony, who was so
quiet that Alison could dress her in shirts and cardigans. The
drawing book showed her how to draw a horse and bring it to life
with shading and detail. Alison spent hours under the plum tree in
the front yard, drawing horses with chalk on an old blackboard
easel. It was the beginning of her life of drawing. She says she
wasn't always a good drawer, but that didn't stop her from doing
it.
Alison grew up on a farm by the sea, and first rode a horse as a
baby in her father's arms. Her picture books mix imaginary worlds
with everyday life, encouraging children to believe in themselves
and celebrate the differences that make them special. Alison is
involved in many community art projects and spends part of every
year travelling to remote Indigenous communities, using her books
to help children and adults write and draw about their own
lives.
In 2012, Alison became Australia's first Children's Book Laureate,
a position she shared with Boori Monty Pryor. In 2016, she was
awarded the Dromkeen Medal for her outstanding achievement in the
creation of Australian children's and young adult literature, and
in 2018 she became the first children's book writer to win the
Melbourne Prize for Literature, for her outstanding contribution to
Australian literature and cultural and intellectual life.
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