# Natalie Jane Prior

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Australian writer

Natalie Jane Prior Born November 1963 (age 62) Brisbane, Australia Nationality Australian Genre Children's literature, young adult fiction Website www.nataliejaneprior.com

- [Children and Young Adult Literature portal](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Children_and_Young_Adult_Literature)

**Natalie Jane Prior** is an Australian writer of [children's literature](/source/Children's_literature) and [young adult fiction](/source/Young_adult_fiction).

## Biography

Prior was born in 1963 in [Brisbane](/source/Brisbane), [Australia](/source/Australia), where she also currently lives with her husband and daughter.[1] She is best known for her internationally successful children's fantasy series, *Lily Quench*, which has been published in more than twenty countries. Her first fiction book, *The Amazing Adventures of Amabel*, was published in 1990.[2] She is also the author of *The Minivers* series and many other books including the picture book *PomPom*, illustrated by long-time collaborator, [Cheryl Orsini](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Cheryl_Orsini&action=edit&redlink=1), and three picture books about *The Paw*, illustrated by [Terry Denton](/source/Terry_Denton). Her most recent book is *The Fairy Dancers*, also illustrated by Cheryl Orsini.[2] Prior's work has been a finalist at the [Children's Book Council of Australia Awards](/source/List_of_CBCA_Awards) as well as being honoured and named as notable.[2] Her book, *[Fireworks and Darkness](/source/Fireworks_and_Darkness)*, won the 2003 [Davitt Awards](/source/Davitt_Awards) for best young-adult novel and *Lily Quench and the Lighthouse of Skellig Mor* won the 2003 [Aurealis Award for best children's short fiction](/source/Aurealis_Award_for_best_children's_short_fiction).[3][4] She has also been nominated for an [Aurealis Award](/source/Aurealis_Award) on three other occasions for best short fiction, long fiction and young-adult novel.[5]

## Bibliography

### Novels

- *The Amazing Adventures of Amabel* (1990)

- *Amabel Abroad* (1992)

- *Tasha's Witch* (1995)

- *Yesterday's Heroes* (1995)

- *West End Shuffle* (1996)

- *London Calling* (1997)

- *The Loft* (1997)

- *Squish* (2002)

***Lily Quench***

Main article: [Lily Quench](/source/Lily_Quench)

- *Lily Quench and the Dragon of Ashby* (1999)

- *Lily Quench and the Black Mountains* (2001)

- *Lily Quench and the Treasure of Mote Ely* (2002)

- *Lily Quench and the Lighthouse of Skellig Mor* (2003)

- *Lily Quench and the Magician's Pyramid* (2003)

- *Lily Quench and the Hand of Manuelo* (2004, aka *The Secret of Manuelo* in the UK)

- *Lily Quench and the Search for King Dragon* (2004)

- *Lily Quench's Companion and Guide to Dragons and the Art of Quenching* (2007)

***The Ostermark novels***

- *[Fireworks and Darkness](/source/Fireworks_and_Darkness)* (2002)

- *The Star Locket* (2006)

***The Dolls***

- *Fashion Follies* (2005)

- *Susannah's Notebook* (2005)

- *Horse Fever* (2005)

- *Kiki's Caravan* (2006)

***The Minivers***

- *Minivers on the Run* (2008)

- *Minivers Fight Back* (2009, known as *Minivers in Danger* in the UK)

- *Minivers and the Most Secret Room* (2010, known as *Minivers and the Secret Room* in the UK)

- *Minivers Forever* (2011)

### Picture books

**The Paw** (with illustrator [Terry Denton](/source/Terry_Denton))

- *The Paw* (1993)

- *The Paw in Destination: Brazil* (1995)

- *The Paw in The Purple Diamond* (1998)

- *The Paw Collection* (2007, omnibus of the three books with new b/w artwork)

**Other books**

- *Minnie Pearl and the Undersea Bazaar* (2007; illustrator [Cheryl Orsini](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Cheryl_Orsini&action=edit&redlink=1))

- *Star* (2008; illustrator [Anna Pignataro](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Anna_Pignataro&action=edit&redlink=1))

- *Sun* (2008; illustrator Anna Pignataro)

- *PomPom* (2012; illustrator Cheryl Orsini)

- *The Fairy Dancers* (2015; illustrator Cheryl Orsini)

- *Tales of Mrs Mancini* (Forthcoming November 2016; illustrator Cheryl Orsini)

- "Lucy's Book" (2017; Illustrator Cheryl Orsini)

### Non fiction

- *Bog Bodies, Mummies and Curious Corpses* (1994)

- *Mysterious Ruins, Lost Cities and Buried Treasure* (1994)

- *Dance Crazy: Star Turns from Ballet to Belly Dancing* (1995)

- *Caves, Graves, and Catacombs: Secrets from Beneath the Earth* (1996)

- *The Demidenko Diary* (1996)

- *Cleopatra: Last Queen of Egypt* (1998)

- *Nero: Evil Emperor of Rome* (1998)

- *Chewing Gum: How it Fed the Gods, Went into Space and Helped Win the War* (2000)

- *The Recorder: How it Changed the World, Saved the Universe and Topped the Charts* (2000)

- *Chocolate: How it Saved a Life, Built a City and Conquered the World* (2000)

- *The Encyclopedia of Preserved People: Pickled, Frozen, and Mummified Corpses from Around the World* (2002)

## Nominations and awards

**Aurealis Awards**

- **[Best children's long fiction](/source/Aurealis_Award_for_best_children's_long_fiction)** - 2002: Nomination: *Lily Quench and the Treasure of Mote Ely*

- **[Best children's short fiction](/source/Aurealis_Award_for_best_children's_short_fiction)** - 2003: Win: *Lily Quench and the Lighthouse of Skellig Mor* - 2003: Nomination: *Lily Quench and the Magicians' Pyramid*

- **[Best young-adult novel](/source/Aurealis_Award_for_best_young-adult_novel)** - 2002: Nomination: *Fireworks and Darkness*

**Children's Book Council of Australia Awards**

- **[Picture Book of the Year](/source/Children's_Book_of_the_Year_Award%3A_Picture_Book)** - 1994: Honour: *The Paw*

- **[Eve Pownall Award for Information Books](/source/Children's_Book_of_the_Year_Award%3A_Eve_Pownall_Award_for_Information_Books)** - 1995: Nominated: *Bog Bodies, Mummies and Curious Corpses*

**Davitt Awards**

- **[Best young-adult novel](/source/Davitt_Awards)** - 2003: Won: *Fireworks and Darkness*

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-NATTALIEJANEPRIOR_1-0)** ["About Natalie"](http://nataliejaneprior.com/about-natalie/). nataliejaneprior.com. Retrieved 30 May 2016.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-NATALIEJANEPRIOR_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-NATALIEJANEPRIOR_2-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-NATALIEJANEPRIOR_2-2) ["Natalie Jane Prior Homepage"](http://nataliejaneprior.com/). Natalie Jane Prior. Retrieved 30 May 2016.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-DAVITTAWARDS_3-0)** ["Davitt Awards 2003"](https://web.archive.org/web/20090716160324/http://home.vicnet.net.au/~sincoz/davitt/davitt2003.htm). [Davitt Awards](/source/Davitt_Awards). Archived from [the original](http://home.vicnet.net.au/~sincoz/davitt/davitt2003.htm) on 16 July 2009. Retrieved 28 April 2010.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-LOCUSAUREALIS_4-0)** ["The Locus Index to SF Awards: 2004 Aurealis Awards"](https://web.archive.org/web/20050212005021/http://locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/Aurealis2004.html#cs). [Locus Online](/source/Locus_Online). Archived from [the original](http://www.locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/Aurealis2004.html#cs) on 12 February 2005. Retrieved 28 April 2010.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-LOCUSINDEX_5-0)** ["The Locus Index to SF Awards: Index of Literary Nominees"](https://web.archive.org/web/20100428161441/http://www.locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/NomLit106.html). [Locus Online](/source/Locus_Online). Archived from [the original](http://www.locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/NomLit106.html) on 28 April 2010. Retrieved 28 April 2010.

## External links

- [Official site](https://web.archive.org/web/20090224084303/http://www.nataliejaneprior.com/Home.php)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Natalie Jane Prior](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natalie_Jane_Prior) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natalie_Jane_Prior?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.