Craig Silvey’s books withdrawn from Victorian and WA school programs after charges

Australian novelist Craig Silvey has had his books withdrawn from school curricula in Victoria and Western Australia and a major stage adaptation paused after he was charged with possessing and distributing child exploitation material. Silvey, 43, was arrested on Monday 12 January after detectives executed a search warrant at his Fremantle home.

He appeared before the Fremantle magistrates court on Tuesday charged with distribution of child exploitation material and possession of child exploitation material; no pleas were entered. Sydney-based theatre company Belvoir said it would "indefinitely pause" sales, development and promotion of its stage adaptation of Silvey’s children’s book Runt, which was due to open in August.

A spokesperson for Belvoir described the matter as "deeply distressing" and said the company had paused the production "while these charges are dealt with by the police and the court." Silvey is best known for Jasper Jones and Runt, both adapted into feature films, and Jasper Jones has been staged by multiple Australian theatre companies.

He was twice named one of the Sydney Morning Herald’s best young Australian novelists and had been patron of the City of Subiaco’s Craig Silvey Award for Young Writers for the past three years.

Key Topics

Culture, Craig Silvey, Runt, Jasper Jones, Belvoir, Victoria