Emily O'Grady has been named the winner of this year’s Australian/Vogel’s Literary Award for The Yellow House, a powerful novel about the legacies of violence and the possibilities of redemption.
Cub lives with her parents, older brother Cassie, and twin brother Wally on a lonely property bordering an abandoned cattle farm and knackery. Their lives are shadowed by the infamous actions of her Grandad Les, who used to live in the yellow weatherboard house next door. When Cub’s estranged aunt Helena and cousin Tilly move into the yellow house, long-ago secrets begin to bubble to the surface.
O'Grady was born in Brisbane in 1991. As the winner, she receives $20,000 in prize money and publication by Allen & Unwin. One other writer was shortlisted alongside O'Grady – Samantha-Ellen Bound for her manuscript, Johannes, which the judges praised for its strong themes.
The Vogel’s is notable for launching the careers of several prominent Australian authors, such as Tim Winton, Kate Grenville and Gillian Mears. Find out more here.
