Storylines Children’s Literature Charitable Trust of New Zealand | Te Whare Waituhi Tamariki o Aotearoa
Winner of the 2005 Storylines Margaret Mahy Medal, David Hill is a versatile and popular author. A regular visitor to schools, he also teaches creative writing, and has been a reviewer and columnist for radio, newspapers and magazines for more than two decades.
Born in Napier in 1942, David gained an MA (Hons) from Victoria University in 1964, teaching English in secondary schools for 14 years before becoming a full-time writer. David is a versatile journalist, reviewer, fiction writer, playwright and children’s author. He has been widely published in newspapers and magazines both in New Zealand and overseas. Many of his novels have been translated into various languages including French and Chinese.
David has a well-developed sense of humour, which, coupled with his own interests and experiences as a child and teenager, provide much raw material for his writing. In Beneath Southern Skies (Scholastic 1993), David comments, ‘As a small kid I was short, stout and stammering. As a teenage kid I was spotty, scruffy and still stammering.’ David understands the desire of young people to be accepted within their peer group and this has become a strong feature of his writing – and what makes it incredibly accessible and sought after by his readers.
‘As one of the country’s most versatile writers,’ said Dr Libby Limbrick, ‘David has helped many children develop a love of story and books, as well as tirelessly supporting teachers and librarians. His contribution to both literature and literacy in New Zealand continues to be outstanding.’
David works from his home in New Plymouth where he lives with his wife Beth, who is a language teacher. In his spare time David enjoys reading, astronomy, tramping and supporting the All Blacks.
