Mem Fox facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Mem Fox
|
|
|---|---|
Fox speaking to audience in 2014
|
|
| Born | Merrion Frances Partridge 5 March 1946 Melbourne, Victoria, Australia |
| Pen name | "Mem" Fox |
| Occupation | Author |
| Education | Rose Bruford College Flinders University |
| Genre | Children's literature |
| Notable works | Possum Magic |
| Notable awards | Nan Chauncy Award, 2017 |
Merrion Frances "Mem" Fox, born on March 5, 1946, is a famous Australian author of children's books. She is also an expert in teaching people to read and write, which is called literacy. Even though she partly retired in 1996, Mem Fox still writes books and gives talks. She lives in Adelaide, South Australia.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Merrion Frances Partridge was born in Melbourne on March 5, 1946. When she was very young, her parents moved to Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) in Africa. They were missionaries who taught at Hope Fountain Mission.
Mem and her two sisters grew up and went to school in Africa. She was the only white child at the mission school. Later, she had to go to an all-white school and was teased because she had an African accent. After high school, she volunteered at a conference center in Switzerland.
Mem dreamed of becoming an actress. Her father agreed to send her to a drama school in England. She went to Rose Bruford College in London in 1965. There, she realized she didn't really want to act, but she did want to be well-known. She also met her future husband, Malcolm Fox. They married in 1969 and lived in Rwanda, then England, and finally Adelaide, South Australia. Their daughter, Chloe, was born in 1971.
Mem Fox's Career
In Adelaide, Mem Fox tried to get a job in radio. She only got small parts in radio plays, so she started teaching to earn enough money. By 1973, Fox was teaching drama full-time at Sturt's Teachers University.
How Possum Magic Was Born
When her daughter Chloe was seven, Mem Fox took a course about children's books at Flinders University. This was because Chloe loved to read. For one assignment, Fox wrote a story called Hush the Invisible Mouse. Her professor encouraged her to try and publish it.
The story was illustrated by Julie Vivas, an art student. It was rejected nine times over five years! Finally, a publisher called Omnibus Books accepted it. But they asked Mem to rewrite it to be more like a song, make it much shorter, and change the mice into possums.
In 1983, the book was published as Possum Magic. It tells the story of Hush, a possum whose Grandma Poss makes her invisible to keep her safe. Possum Magic is now a classic Australian children's book and is the bestselling children's book in Australia.
Other Books by Mem Fox
In 1984, Mem Fox's second book, Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge, was published. This book is about a boy who helps his elderly neighbor remember things by giving her special gifts. The title of the book was actually her father's name.
Another one of her books, Guess What?, has been challenged by some groups. To "challenge" a book means to try and stop it from being available for everyone to read. The part that caused concern was when the main character takes a bath.
Mem Fox as a Teacher
In 1981, while still teaching drama, Mem Fox decided to study literacy. She said that teaching people to read and write became her main focus and passion. She has written books about literacy for children, parents, and teachers.
She was an Associate Professor in Literacy Studies at Flinders University until she retired in 1996. Since retiring from teaching, Mem Fox travels around the world. She gives presentations and talks about children's books and how important it is to learn to read.
Personal Life
Mem Fox dislikes her full legal name, Merrion. She started using her nickname "Mem" when she was about thirteen years old. Her daughter, Chloë Fox, used to be a member of the South Australian House of Assembly, which is like a local government.
Awards and Recognition
Mem Fox has won many awards for her work:
- Won – New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards Ethel Turner Prize for young people's literature for Possum Magic (1984)
- Won – Dromkeen Medal (1990)
- Won – Member of the Order of Australia for "services to children's literature" (1993)
- Won – COOL Award for Possum Magic (1994)
- Won – Centenary Medal (2001)
- She also received special honorary doctorates from Wollongong and Flinders Universities in Australia in 1996 and 2004.
Works
Children's Books
- Possum Magic (1983), illustrated by Julie Vivas
- Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge (1984), illustrated by Julie Vivas
- A Cat called Kite (1985), illustrated by K. Hawley
- Zoo-Looking (1986), illustrated by Rodney McRae
- Arabella, the Smallest Girl in the World (1986), illustrated by Vicky Kitanov
- Hattie and the Fox (1986), illustrated by Patricia Mullins
- Just Like That (1986) with Kilmeny Niland
- Sail Away: The Ballad of Skip and Nell (1986), illustrated by Pamela Lofts
- The Straight Line Wonder (1987), illustrated by Meredith Thomas
- A Bedtime Story (1987), illustrated by Sisca Verwoert
- Goodnight Sleep Tight (1988), illustrated by Helen Semmler
- Guess What? (1988) with Vivienne Goodman
- Koala Lou (1988), illustrated by Pamela Lofts
- With Love at Christmas (1988), illustrated by Fay Plamka
- Night Noises (1989), illustrated by Terry Denton
- Feathers and Fools (1989), illustrated by Lorraine Ellis
- Shoes from Grandpa (1989), illustrated by Patricia Mullins
- Sophie (1989), illustrated by Craig Smith
- Time for Bed (1993), illustrated by Jane Dyer
- Tough Boris (1994), illustrated by Kathryn Brown
- Wombat Divine (1995), illustrated by Kerry Argent
- A Bedtime Story (1996), illustrated by Elivia Savadier
- Boo to a Goose (1996), illustrated by David Miller
- Whoever You Are (1997), illustrated by Leslie Staub
- Sleepy Bears (1999), illustrated by Kerry Argent
- Harriet, You'll Drive Me Wild! (2000), illustrated by Marla Frazee
- The Magic Hat (2002), illustrated by Tricia Tusa
- Where is the Green Sheep? (2004), illustrated by Judy Horacek
- Hunwick's Egg (2005), illustrated by Pamela Lofts
- A Particular Cow (2006), illustrated by Terry Denton
- Where the Giant Sleeps (2007), pictures by Vladimir Radunsky
- Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes (2008), illustrated by Helen Oxenbury
- The Goblin and the Empty Chair (2009), illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon
- Hello, Baby! (2009), illustrated by Steve Jenkins
- A Giraffe in the Bath (March 2010) with Olivia Rawson, illustrated by Kerry Argent
- Let's Count Goats! (October 2010), illustrated by Jan Thomas
- The Little Dragon (April 2011), illustrated by Roland Harvey
- Two Little Monkeys (May 2012), illustrated by Jill Barton
- Tell Me About Your Day Today (2012), illustrated by Lauren Stringer
- Good Night, Sleep Tight (2012), illustrated by Judy Horacek
- Yoo-hoo, Ladybird! (2013), illustrated by Laura Ljungkvist
- Baby Bedtime (2013), illustrated by Emma Quay
- Nellie Belle (2015), illustrated by Mike Austin
- This & That (2015), illustrated by Judy Horacek
- Ducks Away! (2016), illustrated by Judy Horacek
- I'm Australian Too (2017), illustrated by Ronojoy Ghosh
- Bonnie and Ben Rhyme Again (October 2018), illustrated by Judy Horacek
- The Tiny Star (2019), illustrated by Freya Blackwood
Non-Fiction Books
- Thereby Hangs a Tale (1980)
- How to Teach Drama to Infants Without Really Crying (Australian title) (1984) (Teaching Drama to Young Children (USA title) (1987))
- Mem's the Word (1990 – Australian title) (Dear Mem Fox (1992 – USA title)
- English Essentials: The Wouldn't-Be-Without-It Guide To Writing Well (1993 and 2009) with Lyn Wilkinson
- Memories: An Autobiography (1992)
- Radical Reflections: Passionate Opinions on Teaching, Learning, and Living (1993)
- Reading Magic: How Your Child Can Learn to Read Before School - and Other Read-aloud Miracles (2001)
