Tom Keneally Centre
The Tom Keneally Centre was officially opened on 18 August 2011 by Professor Marie Bashir, then Governor of New South Wales. Designed to reflect the character of Tom’s original library, it retains the warmth and intimacy of a space built for storytelling.
Since opening its doors, the Tom Keneally Centre has become a refuge, a quiet pocket of the city where stories gather, and history lingers. The shelves hold books that mattered to Thomas Keneally, their margins filled with his own notes. His desk sits at the heart of the space, a reminder of the stories crafted there. Letters, research materials, and personal memorabilia surround it, each piece offering a glimpse into the mind of one of Australia’s greatest storytellers.
This is where writers come. They sit, they listen, they write. Authors speak, ideas take shape, and stories find their way onto the page. The CBD Write-Ins, workshops, and literary exhibitions fill the space with creativity.
Everyone is welcome to explore, peruse the collection, take a seat, and disappear into Keneally’s world.
More than a library, it is a living legacy.
Opening Hours
Tuesdays, Thursdays & Fridays
from 10.30am – 2.30pm
Address
Level 3, 280 Pitt Street, Sydney NSW 2000
About the Tom Keneally Centre
The Sydney Mechanics’ School of Arts is proud to be the home of the Tom Keneally Centre, which holds the research collection of world-renowned author Thomas Keneally, in addition to copies of his own works and some items from his private collection of photographs and memorabilia.
The Westfield Group, headed by Frank Lowy, generously funded the construction of the Tom Keneally Centre, while the Sydney Mechanics’ School of Arts has provided the space on Level 3, furnishings and staffing on an ongoing basis.
The Tom Keneally Centre’s look and feel reflects, as much as possible, the character of Tom’s original library.
It was officially opened on 18 August 2011 by Her Excellency, Professor Marie Bashir, AC, CVO, Governor of New South Wales in August 2011.
The Tom Keneally Centre is devoted to Australian literature and history, reflecting the synergy between the SMSA and Tom Keneally’s approach to writing and to life; open access to knowledge, continued learning and social change.
Thomas Keneally – About the Man
Thomas Keneally is one of Australia’s best known and most respected authors, writing both fiction and non-fiction. Born in 1935, he has published more than 35 novels, 18 non-fiction works and several plays since 1964. In 1982 he won the Man Booker Prize for Schindler’s Ark (1982), later made into the Academy Award-winning film Schindler’s List (1993) by Steven Spielberg.
Keneally’s fiction includes The Widow and Her Hero (2007), which was shortlisted for the Prime Minister’s Literary Award, An Angel in Australia (2002) and Bettany’s Book (2000). His novels The Chant of Jimmy Blacksmith (1972), Gossip from the Forest (1975), and Confederates (1979) were all shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize, while Bring Larks and Heroes (1967) and Three Cheers for the Paraclete (1968) won the Miles Franklin Award in two consecutive years. The People’s Train (2009) was longlisted for the Miles Franklin Award and shortlisted for the Commonwealth Writers Prize, South East Asia division.
As well as writing many novels, Keneally also writes historical non-fiction. His history of Irish convictism The Great Shame (1998) was published in all English language markets. The same is true of his later work, The Commonwealth of Thieves (2005), which looked upon the penal origins of Australia in a way which sought to make the reader feel close to the experience of individual Aboriginals, convicts and officials.
In recent years Keneally and his daughter Meg Keneally have teamed up to write the Monsarrat series which so far includes The Soldier’s Curse (2016), The Unmourned (2017), The Power Game (2018) and The Ink Stain (2019).
Keneally’s latest work Fanatic Heart was published in 2022. This fictional work follows the tale of Irish patriot John Mitchel and retells his life and exploits. It particularly focuses on his time in exile on Van Diemen’s Land (now Tasmania). To read an excerpt from the book and to learn more about the book click here.
Tom Keneally has the won the Miles Franklin Award, the Booker Prize, the Los Angeles Book Prize, the Royal Society of Literature Prize, the Scripter Award of the University of Southern California, the Mondello International Prize and the Helmerich Prize. He was recently awarded the 2022 ARA Historical Novel Prize (Adult Category) for Corporal Hitler’s Pistol (2021). Keneally lives in Sydney with his wife, and is Number 1 ticket-holder of the Manly-Warringah Rugby League team.