Cheryl Leavy
Cheryl Leavy is a Kooma and Nguri woman writing across non-fiction, poetry, and children's literature. In 2022 Cheryl was awarded the Oodgeroo Noonuccal Prize for Indigenous Poetry for her poem, Ngali – We two and has since been commissioned by Camerata (Queensland’s chamber orchestra), the Institute of Modern Art and the Queensland Art Gallery. Cheryl was an inaugural recipient of both a First Nations Australian Writers Network (FNAWN) Fellowship at Varuna and a Queensland Museum Fellowship. She has also judged several prizes including the Queensland Poetry Awards and the Stella Prize, and served on many boards including with the Brisbane Writers Festival and FNAWN. Cheryl is passionate about the power of language in advancing social, cultural and land justice.
Published by UQP this year, Yanga – Mother, Cheryl’s first children’s book is told in Kooma translated to English. It's a gentle story about never-ending motherly love with a powerful backstory honouring the Stolen Generations.
Cheryl will be appearing at the following events:
HOME TRUTHS Lech Blaine, Daniel Browning and Veronica Gorrie in conversation with Maeve Marsden