{{short description|New Zealand children's writer and illustrator}} {{for|the American civil rights and women's liberation activist (born 1943)|Chude Pam Allen}} {{Use New Zealand English|date=July 2025}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2018}} {{Infobox writer <!-- for more information see [[:Template:Infobox writer/doc]] --> | name = Pamela Allen | honorific_suffix = {{post-nominals|country=NZL|MNZM|size=100%}} {{post-nominals|country=AUS|AM|size=100%}} | image = | alt = | caption = | pseudonym = | birth_name = Pamela Kay Griffiths | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=y|1934|04|03}} | birth_place = [[Devonport, New Zealand|Devonport]], New Zealand | death_date = | death_place = | education = [[Elam School of Fine Arts]] | occupation = Writer and illustrator | period = 1980–present | genre = Children's picture books | subject = | movement = | influences = | influenced = | signature = | website = }}
'''Pamela Kay Allen''' {{post-nominals|country=NZL|MNZM}} {{post-nominals|country=AUS|AM}} (née '''Griffiths'''; born 3 April 1934) is a New Zealand children's writer and illustrator. She has published over 50 picture books since 1980. Sales of her books have exceeded five million copies.
==Early life and family== Born in the [[Auckland]] suburb of [[Devonport, New Zealand|Devonport]] in 1934 to Esma Eileen (née Griffith) and William Ewart Griffiths,<ref>{{cite news | url= http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=NZH19340405.2.2.1 | title=Births | date=5 April 1934 | work=The New Zealand Herald | access-date=17 August 2014 | page=1}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://christchurchcitylibraries.com/kids/childrensauthors/pamelaallen.asp |title=Interview with Pamela Allen |publisher=Christchurch City Libraries |access-date=17 August 2014}}</ref> Allen studied at [[St Cuthbert's College, Auckland|St Cuthbert's College]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://oldgirls.stcuthberts.school.nz/old-girls-honours.html |title=Old Girls' Honours |date=2004}}</ref> then the [[Elam School of Fine Arts]] at the [[University of Auckland]], from where she graduated with a Diploma of Fine Arts in 1955.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://shadowsoftime.co.nz/university10.html |title=NZ university graduates 1870–1961 |access-date=17 August 2014}}</ref> She then worked as a secondary school art teacher.<ref name="Dromkeen">{{cite book |editor1-last=Scobie |editor1-first=Susan |title=The Dromkeen Book of Australian Children's Illustrators |date=1997 |publisher=Scholastic Australia |isbn=1863886958 |pages=14–16}}</ref> She married sculptor [[Jim Allen (artist)|Jim Allen]] in 1964.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.penguin.co.uk/nf/Author/AuthorPage/0,,1000000511,00.html |title=Pamela Allen |publisher=Penguin Random House |access-date=17 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140819084922/http://www.penguin.co.uk/nf/Author/AuthorPage/0,,1000000511,00.html |archive-date=19 August 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref> They moved to [[Sydney]] in about 1977,<ref name="SMH">{{cite news | url=http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/art-and-design/message-in-a-bottle-20120809-23v81.html | title=Message in a bottle | date=11 August 2012 | work=The Sydney Morning Herald | access-date=17 August 2014 | first=Gabriel | last=Wilder }}</ref> and after about 30 years returned to live in Auckland, New Zealand.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/booksandarts/pamela-allen-on-writing-for-children/5066914 |title=Pamela Allen on writing for children|date=4 November 2013 |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |access-date=19 July 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://my.christchurchcitylibraries.com/new-zealand-childrens-authors/pamela-allen/ |title=Interview with Pamela Allen |year=2002 |website=christchurchcitylibraries.com/ |publisher=Christchurch City Libraries |access-date=19 July 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bookcouncil.org.nz/Writers/Profiles/Allen,%20Pamela |title=Allen Pamela |website=bookcouncil.org.nz |publisher=New Zealand Book Council |access-date=19 July 2016 |archive-date=5 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160605024517/http://www.bookcouncil.org.nz/Writers/Profiles/Allen,%20Pamela |url-status=dead }}</ref>
==Writing career== Allen published her first book, ''Mr Archimedes' Bath'', in 1980.<ref name="Dromkeen"/> Since then she has written and illustrated more than 50 picture books for children.<ref name = "smh2025"/>
She has won or been shortlisted for many awards as both a writer and illustrator. She won the [[Children's Book Council of Australia]]'s [[Children's Book of the Year Award: Picture Book|Children's Picture Book of The Year Award]] in 1983 for ''Who Sank the Boat?''<ref name="Dromkeen"/> and 1984 for ''Bertie and the Bear'',<ref name="Dromkeen"/> and has been shortlisted for the same award on five other occasions.<ref name="NZBC">{{cite web |url=http://www.bookcouncil.org.nz/writers/allenpamela.html |title=Allen, Pamela |publisher=New Zealand Book Council |access-date=17 August 2014 |archive-date=3 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303195945/http://www.bookcouncil.org.nz/writers/allenpamela.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> She twice won the Ethel Turner Prize in the [[New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards]], in 1980 for ''Mr Archimedes' Bath''<ref name="Dromkeen"/> and 1983 for ''Who Sank the Boat?''.<ref name="Storylines">{{cite web |url=http://www.storylines.org.nz/Profiles/Profiles+A-C/Pamela+Allen.html |title=Pamela Allen |publisher=Storylines Children's Literature Charitable Trust |access-date=17 August 2014 |archive-date=30 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190830000304/https://www.storylines.org.nz/Profiles/Profiles+A-C/Pamela+Allen.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>
Allen was awarded the [[International Board on Books for Young People]] honour diploma for illustration, for ''Who Sank the Boat?'', in 1984.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.qbd.com.au/author/pamela-allen/ |title=About Pamela Allen |publisher=QBD The Bookshop |access-date=17 August 2014}}</ref>
In 1986, she received the [[LIANZA|Library and Information Association of New Zealand Aotearoa]] Russell Clark Illustration Award for her illustrations in ''[[A Lion in the Night]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lianza.org.nz/lianza-russell-clark-illustration-award-recipients |title=LIANZA Russell Clark Illustration Award Recipients |website=lianza.org.nz |publisher=LIANZA |access-date=30 April 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160401024749/http://www.lianza.org.nz/lianza-russell-clark-illustration-award-recipients |archive-date=1 April 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
In 2001, ''Who Sank The Boat?'', first published in 1982, won the Gaelyn Gordon Award—given to the author of a New Zealand children's book that has been a favourite with children over a long period of time—from the New Zealand Book Council.<ref name="NZBC"/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bookcouncil.org.nz/Readers/About%20NZ%20Awards |title=Awards and grants |publisher=New Zealand Book Council |access-date=17 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140919201812/http://www.bookcouncil.org.nz/Readers/About%20NZ%20Awards |archive-date=19 September 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
Allen returned to live in Auckland and in 2004 she won the [[Margaret Mahy Medal]], New Zealand's top children's literature prize.<ref name="NZBC"/><ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=3545013 | title= Allen wins Margaret Mahy children's literature award | date=22 January 2004 | work=The New Zealand Herald | access-date=17 August 2014}}</ref> In the [[2005 New Year Honours (New Zealand)|2005 New Year Honours]], she was appointed a [[New Zealand Order of Merit|Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit]], for services to children's literature.<ref>{{cite web |date=2004-12-31 |title=New Year honours list 2005 |url=https://dpmc.govt.nz/publications/new-year-honours-list-2005 |access-date=6 March 2022 |publisher=Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet}}</ref>
Eight of her books have been adapted for the stage by [[Patch Theatre Company]] and performed at the [[Sydney Opera House]].<ref name="Humanities">{{cite web |url=http://www.humanities360.com/index.php/biography-pamela-allen-8353/ |title=Biography Pamela Allen |date=19 February 2012 |publisher=Humanities 360 |first=Julie |last=Thomas-Zucker |access-date=17 August 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140819084656/http://www.humanities360.com/index.php/biography-pamela-allen-8353/ |archive-date=19 August 2014 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>
Allen's daughter, Ruth Allen, a [[Melbourne]]-based [[Studio glass|glass sculptor]],<ref name="SMH"/><ref name="Humanities"/> was commissioned by [[Penguin Books|Penguin Australia]] in 2008 to create an artwork to celebrate sales of over five million copies of Allen's books.<ref name=":0">{{cite web |url=http://ruthallen.com.au/art/artwork/project/the-boat/ |title=The Boat |publisher=Ruth Allen Glass Sculptor |access-date=17 August 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141018062742/http://ruthallen.com.au/art/artwork/project/the-boat/ |archive-date=18 October 2014 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>
Allen was appointed a [[Order of Australia|Member of the Order of Australia]] in the [[2024 Australia Day Honours]] for her "significant service to literature as an author".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mrs Pamela Kay Allen |url=https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/3017330 |access-date=2024-01-25 |website=Australian Honours Search Facility}}</ref>
An exhibition of Allen's work titled ''The Curious World of Pamela Allen'' opened at the [[State Library of New South Wales]] in September 2025. It is scheduled to run until 2027.<ref name = "smh2025">{{cite news |last1=Power |first1=Julie |title='Not like your normal storybook': The children’s author, 91, still sparking young imaginations |url=https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/not-like-your-normal-storybook-the-children-s-author-91-still-sparking-young-imaginations-20250915-p5mv6d.html |access-date=21 September 2025 |work=The Sydney Morning Herald |date=21 September 2025 |language=en}}</ref>
== Bibliography == {{Portal |Children's literature}} *''Mr Archimedes' Bath'' (1980) *''Who Sank the Boat?'' (1982) *''Bertie and the Bear'' (1983) *''[[A Lion in the Night]]'' (1985) *''Herbert and Harry'' (1986) *''Mr McGee'' (1987) *''Fancy That!'' (1988) *''I Wish I Had A Pirate Suit'' (1989) *''My Cat Maisie'' (1990) *''Black Dog'' (1991) *''[[Belinda (Allen book)|Belinda]]'' (1992) *''Mr McGee Goes to Sea'' (1992) *''Mr McGee and the Blackberry Jam'' (1993) *''Alexander's Outing'' (1993) *''[[Clippity-Clop]]'' (1994) *''Waddle Giggle Gargle'' (1996) *''The Bear's Lunch'' (1997) *''Mr McGee and the Biting Flea'' (1998) *''Mr McGee and the Perfect Nest'' (1999) *''The Pear in the Pear Tree'' (1999) *''Inside Mary Elizabeth's House'' (2000) *''Can You Keep a Secret?'' (2000) *''Brown Bread and Honey'' (2001) *''The Potato People'' (2001) *''Daisy All-Sorts'' (2002) *''[[Cuthbert's Babies]]'' (2003) *''Grandpa and Thomas'' (2003) *''Mr McGee and the Big Bag of Bread'' (2004) *''Where's the Gold?'' (2005) *''Grandpa and Thomas and the Green Umbrella'' (2006) *''Share Said the Rooster'' (2006) *''Shhh! Little Mouse'' (2007) *''My First 123'' (2007) *''Is Your Grandmother a Goanna?'' (2007) *''My First ABC'' (2008) *''Felix'' (2008) *''The Toymaker and the Bird'' (2009) *''Hetty's Day Out'' (2010) *''Nana’s Colours'' (2011) *''My Buggy Book of Animals'' (2011) *''The Little Old Man Who Looked Up at the Moon'' (2012) *''Mr McGee and the Elephants'' (2012) *''Bertie'' (2013) *''Fat Ferdie'' (2013) *''One Sunday'' (2014) *''The Man With Messy Hair'' (2015) *''The Big Fish'' (2016) *''A Bag and A Bird'' (2017) *''Mr McGee and His Hat'' (2024) *''Cock-a-Doodle-Doo!'' (2025)
==References== {{Reflist}}
== Further reading ==
* {{Cite journal |last=Morley |first=Sarah |date=Spring 2020 |title=Mr Archimedes MOVES IN |url=https://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/sites/default/files/5570_slmagspring20_web_new.pdf |journal=SL Magazine |publisher=State Library of New South Wales |volume=13 |issue=3 |pages=48–51}}
== External links ==
* [https://collection.sl.nsw.gov.au/record/nQRe4ed1 Pamela Allen pictorial material and papers], 1974-2016, manuscripts, audio cassettes, video recordings, etchings and illustrations, State Library of New South Wales. {{Margaret Mahy Award winners}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Pamela}} [[Category:1934 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:People from North Shore, New Zealand]] [[Category:Elam School of Fine Arts alumni]] [[Category:New Zealand children's writers]] [[Category:Writers who illustrated their own writing]] [[Category:Members of the New Zealand Order of Merit]] [[Category:Members of the Order of Australia]] [[Category:New Zealand women children's writers]] [[Category:New Zealand women illustrators]] [[Category:20th-century New Zealand women writers]] [[Category:21st-century New Zealand women writers]] [[Category:20th-century New Zealand writers]] [[Category:21st-century New Zealand writers]] [[Category:New Zealand expatriates in Australia]]