I’ve received an embarrassing number of awards over the years, and am extremely grateful for each of them:

• The Dromkeen Medal for distinguished services to children’s literature 1990
• An Advance Australia Award for an outstanding contribution to Australian literature 1991
• A medal (AM) in the Australia Day Honours awards, for services to the cultural life of Australia, 1993
• The Flinders University Chancellor’s Medal, 1994
• The Alice Award, presented biennially by the Fellowship of Australian Women Writers, 1994
• An honorary Doctorate of Letters from the University of Wollongong, NSW, Australia, 1996
• The Flinders University Convocation Medal, 2001
• A South Australian ‘SA Great’ award, for Literature, 2001
• A Woman of Achievement award from Zonta International, 2002
• The Australian Prime Minister’s Centenary Medal, 2003
• Australian of the Year for South Australia, 2003, and finalist for the Australian of the Year 2004
• An honorary Doctorate of Letters from the University of Flinders, South Australia, 2004
• Appointed by Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark as one of five Australian ambassadors of Hans Christian Andersen in celebration of the author’s 200th anniversary, 2005
• Children’s Language and Literature Achievement Award from the Speech Pathology Association of Australia, 2007