Ken Spillman facts for kids

Ken Spillman, born on June 11, 1959, is a well-known Australian writer. He lives in Perth, Western Australia. Ken has written many different kinds of books, including poetry and sports stories. He is most famous for writing lots of books for children and young adults. He has also written many books about Australian history.

Ken Spillman's Early Life

Ken Spillman was born in London, England. His parents were Australian. He grew up in Sydney and Perth, Australia. When he was a teenager, he enjoyed acting in plays. He also played in a rock band at school. A teacher at Newman College, Perth encouraged him to write. He started publishing poems and stories after he moved to Brisbane to study at Griffith University.

Ken Spillman's Non-Fiction Books

From 1977, Ken Spillman started working with a professor named Ross Fitzgerald. They researched a book about the history of Queensland. They also worked together on a book about Australian rules football. It was called The Greatest Game.

Ken's first big solo book was about the history of Subiaco, Western Australia. It was called Identity Prized. A former Governor-General, Sir Paul Hasluck, launched the book. Over a thousand people came to the event. Ken wrote another history book about Subiaco about 20 years later. He also did interviews for the Subiaco book. These interviews are now kept in a special library collection. After this, Ken worked on a history of the Parliament of Australia.

Later, Ken Spillman wrote books about many different topics. These included mining in Western Australia and the history of a bank called Bankwest. He also wrote about local areas like the Shire of Mundaring and the Shire of Victoria Plains. He wrote about Edith Cowan University, a surf lifesaving club, a ballet college, a big hospital, and many schools and sports clubs in Western Australia.

A book editor named Rod Moran said that Ken Spillman writes history very clearly. He also said Ken uses interesting words and makes good observations. Ken writes about institutions with a deep understanding of their background. He uses original sources to support his writing.

In 2008, after writing 17 non-fiction books, Ken decided to focus more on writing fiction.

Ken Spillman's Fiction Books

Ken Spillman started writing fiction successfully in 1999 with his novel Blue. After that, he wrote three children's books with writer and comedian Jon Doust. One of these books, Magpie Mischief, was nominated for an award. These books were later released as ebooks with new pictures.

In 2007, Ken's novel for teenagers, Love Is a UFO, won an award. But his biggest success around the world came with his "Jake" series. These books are for young readers. The first book, Jake's Gigantic List, came out in 2009. This book celebrates reading and is dedicated to the Children's Book Council of Australia. Ken has given the money he earned from this book to them. The Jake series has been published in almost 20 countries and languages. It is very popular in India.

In 2011, Ken Spillman started another series for young readers. It was called The Absolutely True Fantasies of Daydreamer Dev. Four years later, his 12-book "Virtues" series was released in South East Asia. This series was inspired by a project called the Virtues Project. A professor from Singapore said that Ken's Virtues series shows he understands children's feelings. She said he respects children's opinions without being too preachy.

Ken Spillman has also written many picture books. Some of these are The Strange Story of Felicity Frown, The Great Storyteller, and The Magic Bird. He also wrote a picture book for all ages called The Circle. This book talks about important topics like cutting down trees, people having to leave their homes, and different cultures living together.

Ken Spillman's Books

Non-Fiction Books

• (1985) Identity Prized : a history of Subiaco
• (1988) Custodians and Champions : the story of the City of Perth Surf Life Saving Club
• (1989) Horizons: A history of the R&I Bank of Western Australia
• (1993) A Rich Endowment : government and mining in Western Australia 1829–1994
• (1997) A Club for All Seasons : the story of the Wembley Athletic Club 1926–1996 (with Andy Collins)
• (1998, 2000) Diehards : the story of the Subiaco Football Club
• (2003) Life was meant to be here : community and local government in the Shire of Mundaring
• (2005) Hands to the Plough : the Shire of Victoria Plains since 1945
• (2006) Tales of a Singular City : Subiaco since the 1970s
• (2006) Raising Edith : the transformation of a new generation university : Edith Cowan University 1995–2005
• (2007) For the Good of Many: The story of the Australian Pensioners' League and Retirees WA
• (2008) Fifty and counting: Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital's first half century

Fiction Books

• (1999) Blue : a novel
• (2002) Magpie Mischief (Jon Doust, co-author)
• (2005) Magwheel Madness (Jon Doust, co-author)
• (2007) Love Is a UFO
• (2009) Jake's Gigantic List
• (2010) Jake's Monster Mess
• (2010) Jake's Balloon Blast
• (2011) Advaita The Writer
• (2011) Jake's Great Game
• (2012) Jake's Concert Horror
• (2012) Radhika Takes the Plunge
• (2013) Jake's Cooking Craze
• (2014) I Am Oscar
• (2014) The Circle
• (2014) The Great Storyteller
• (2014) Rahul and the Dream Bat
• (2014) Everlasting Tales
• (2015) The Auto That Flew
• (2015) All-Time Favourite Fairy Tales: Little Red Riding Hood and Goldilocks
• (2015) All-Time Favourite Fairy Tales: Beauty and the Beast and Hansel and Gretel
• (2015) The Magic Bird
• (2015) Jake's Cash Quest
• (2015) Sophie's Moment of Truth (Virtues Series)
• (2015) Dylan Owns Up (Virtues Series)
• (2015) Grace Under Pressure (Virtues Series)
• (2015) Nicholas Floats an Idea (Virtues Series)
• (2015) James Works It Out (Virtues Series)
• (2015) Zara's Time to Grow (Virtues Series)
• (2015) Ethan Makes it Right (Virtues Series)
• (2015) Tessa Stands Tall (Virtues Series)
• (2015) Ryan Teams Up (Virtues Series)
• (2015) Emily's Heart of Gold (Virtues Series)
• (2015) Brandon's Big Test (Virtues Series)
• (2015) Mikaela Finds Her Voice (Virtues Series)
• (2016) Clumsy!
• (2016) Aesop's Fables Vol. 1