Queensland literary awards: ‘stunning’ debut inspired by segregated shantytown wins top prize
News Source
•Thu, 08 Oct 2026 10:30:16 GMT
📰 What Happened
Author Lenora Thaker has won the $30,000 top prize at the Queensland literary awards. Her debut novel, The Pearl of Tagai Town, won the Queensland premier's award for a work of state significance. The book was inspired by her ancestors' lives in an unmapped shantytown called Cairns-Malay Town. Judges praised it as 'a stunning debut novel'. They noted its vivid sense of place and rich characters. The winners were announced at Brisbane Powerhouse as part of the Brisbane writers festival.
🔍 The Backstory
Cairns-Malay Town was a segregated settlement in far north Queensland. From the late 1800s to the late 1950s it housed Indigenous, Chinese, Indian, Japanese, Malaysian and Sri Lankan residents kept apart from the white population. Lenora Thaker is a Meriam and Wagedagam author. Her book brings this little-known history to life. It blends English with Ailan languages.
🎯 Why It Matters
Books like this keep important local history alive. They help readers understand communities that were once pushed to the edges of Australian life.
Author Lenora Thaker has won the $30,000 top prize at the Queensland literary awards. Her debut novel, The Pearl of Tagai Town, won the Queensland premier's award for a work of state significance. The book was inspired by her ancestors' lives in an unmapped shantytown called Cairns-Malay Town. Judges praised it as 'a stunning debut novel'. They noted its vivid sense of place and rich characters. The winners were announced at Brisbane Powerhouse as part of the Brisbane writers festival.
Cairns-Malay Town was a segregated settlement in far north Queensland. From the late 1800s to the late 1950s it housed Indigenous, Chinese, Indian, Japanese, Malaysian and Sri Lankan residents kept apart from the white population. Lenora Thaker is a Meriam and Wagedagam author. Her book brings this little-known history to life. It blends English with Ailan languages.
Books like this keep important local history alive. They help readers understand communities that were once pushed to the edges of Australian life.