Mark Brandi Mark Brandi i(8514581 works by)
Born: Established:
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Italy,
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Western Europe, Europe,
;
Gender: Male
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BiographyHistory

Writer and broadcaster.

Mark Brandi was born in Italy and then spent most of his childhood in a remote country Victorian pub. As of 2018, he lives in Melbourne.

Brandi holds a degree in criminal justice, and worked as a policy advisor and project officer in the Department of Justice, Victoria. He published his first novel, Wimmera, in 2017, but had previously been published in newspapers and periodicals such as The Guardian, The Age, and The Big Issue. His work has also been broadcast on Radio National.

Wimmera, which draws on Brandi's experience as a migrant in a small, rural  Australian town, won the Crime Writers' Association Debut Dagger and was shortlisted for the Indie Awards, the Ned Kelly Awards, and two ABIA Awards. His follow-up novel also sttracted an Indie Award longlisting. He has previously been shortlisted for the Viva La Novella Award.

Most Referenced Works

Personal Awards

2023 recipient Australia Council Grants, Awards and Fellowships Arts Projects for Individuals and Groups $30,358     
2021 recipient Australia Council Grants, Awards and Fellowships Individuals and Groups
2020 recipient City of Melbourne COVID-19 Arts Grants

Awards for Works

y separately published work icon Southern Aurora Sydney : Hachette Australia , 2023 25993957 2023 single work novel

'The unforgettable new novel from the Dagger award-winning author of Wimmera, Mark Brandi. A novel that shows small-town life is unforgiving if you're from the other side of the tracks.

'We always listen out for the train when we're down in the cutting because sometimes they come quicker than you expect. There aren't as many trains as there used to be. Mostly just the freight ones, like the one that nearly killed us on the bus . . . The best train is the Southern Aurora. It goes all the way from Melbourne to Sydney, and from Sydney to Melbourne. It stops in Mittigunda because we're pretty much exactly halfway between.'

'Jimmy is a kid growing up fast on the poorest street in town. He tries to do everything right and look out for his mum and his younger brother. His older brother is in jail, so it's up to Jimmy to hold things together. But small-town life is unforgiving if you're from the other side of the tracks.

'If only his mum didn't drink so much.
If only he could win the school billycart race.
If only his best friend understood.
If only he could stop his mum's boyfriend from getting angry.
If only he was there.

'Jimmy soon learns that even when you get things right, everything can still go wrong.' (Publication summary)

2024 highly commended Victorian Premier's Literary Awards Prize for Fiction
y separately published work icon The Others Sydney : Hachette Australia , 2021 21518706 2021 single work novel

'I heard voices talking last night. I've never heard my father talk to someone else. Not that I can remember. I was in bed, and I heard my father's voice first. He was talking to someone, and then I heard another man with a deep voice. The man got angry, I could tell, even though I couldn't hear exactly what he was saying. Then my father said, 'I'd kill you first.'

'On his eleventh birthday, Jacob's father gives him a diary. To write about things that happen. About what he and his father do on their farm. About the sheep, the crop, the fox and the dam. But Jacob knows some things should not be written down. Some things should not be remembered. The only things he knows for sure are what his father has taught him. Sheltered, protected, isolated. But who is his father protecting him from? And how far will his father go to keep the world at bay? All too soon, Jacob will learn that, sometimes, people do the most terrible things.' (Publication summary)
2022 shortlisted Ned Kelly Awards for Crime Writing Best Novel
y separately published work icon The Rip Sydney : Hachette Australia , 2019 15300182 2019 single work novel crime

'It's funny how quick it happens and without you really noticing. Anton said once that it's like walking out into the sea, and you think everything's fine and the water's warm, but when you turn back you're suddenly miles from shore. I've never been much of a swimmer, but I get what he means. Like, being caught in a current or something. A rip.'

'A young woman living on the street has to keep her wits about her. Or her friends. But when the drugs kick in that can be hard. Anton has been looking out for her. She was safe with him. But then Steve came along.  He had something over Anton. Must have. But he had a flat they could crash in. And gear in his pocket. And she can't stop thinking about it. A good hit makes everything all right. But the flat smells weird. There's a lock on Steve's bedroom door. And the guy is intense. The problem is, sometimes you just don't know you are in too deep, until you are drowning.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

2020 longlisted Indie Awards Fiction
2019 longlisted Ned Kelly Awards for Crime Writing Best Novel
Last amended 25 Aug 2023 12:35:24
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