Thiele, Colin (1920-2006), an Australian writer, became known particularly for his contributions to children’s literature. Thiele was active as an author, writing and editing more than 100 books, including novels, poems, textbooks, picture books, and fiction for young adults. He also edited anthologies. Most of his fiction is set in southern Australia, where his German-born ancestors settled, though his subject matter is universal. The Sun on the Stubble recalls his childhood growing up in a German farming community.
Thiele is best known for his novel Storm Boy (1963) about a boy and his pet pelican. His other books include February Dragon (1965), Blue Fin (1969), Magpie Island (1974), The SKNUKS (1979), Chadwick’s Chimney (1980), Seashores and Shadows (1985), Pinquo (1986), Jody’s Journey (1988), Stories Short and Tall (1989), Martin’s Mountain (1993), Wendy’s Whale (1999), and Swan Song (2001). His novel The Valley Between (1982) was the Australian Children’s Book of the Year.
Thiele’s radio and television plays include Burke and Wills (1949), The Shark Fishers (1954), and Edward John Eyre (1962). His books of verse for adults include Man in a Landscape (1960) and In Charcoal and Conte (1966). His Selected Verse (1940-1970) was published in 1970. Thiele wrote a number of fiction and nonfiction works for adults, notably the novel The Seed’s Inheritance (1986).
Colin Milton Thiele was born on Nov. 16, 1920, in Eudunda, South Australia, and educated at the University of Adelaide. During World War II (1939-1945), he served in the Royal Australian Air Force. Thiele then worked as a teacher, a college lecturer, and finally as the director of various colleges before he retired in 1981. He was appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia in 1977. Thiele died on Sept. 4, 2006.
