Thomas Keneally (b.1935), author and republican activist, has achieved a considerable reputation for the breadth and accessibility of his writing, and his passion for causes about which many Australians feel deeply. He achieved his first major success with Bring Larks and Heroes (1967), a novel about the Vinegar Hill convict uprising of 1804, based on the writings of Watkin Tench. It won the Miles Franklin Award, as did his next novel, Three Cheers for the Paraclete (1968). His 1972 novel, The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith, won several awards and was made into a film in 1978. His 1982 Booker Prize-winning novel Schindler's Ark was filmed by Steven Spielberg as Schindler's List (1993). It has been said that Keneally's writing 'captures the texture of history'.
