Discover the Whelan Collection, a remarkable archive of Australian literature with over 1,000 autographed books, manuscripts, and letters from 1892 to 1967. Collected by bibliophile Philip Whelan, it offers a rare glimpse into Australia’s rich storytelling heritage and vibrant literary culture.

The Alston Collection is a treasure trove of over 1,800 works on philology and linguistics. From rare books and manuscripts to Robin Alston’s personal drafts and correspondence, this collection is a must for anyone exploring the history of language and early bibliographical studies.

Learn about the research of 2024 National Library Scholar Zoe Smith and what she found during her time at the Library.

Personal papers of Patrick White, plus letters from White to other Australian writers acquired as part of their papers. Also papers of White's biographer David Marr and those of the artist and theatre designer Desmond Digby who had a long friendship with White.

Authors Tess Scholfield-Peters, André Dao and Sam Vincent, in conversation with broadcast journalist Virginia Haussegger

Dr Burcu Cevik-Compiegne presented a lecture on her 2024 National Library Fellowship research into uncovering different forms of life writing produced in Australia following the Labour Migration Scheme between Turkey and Australia in 1967.

Dr Bernadette Brennan presented a lecture on her 2024 National Library Fellowship research into the archives of award-winning author and editor Drusilla Modjeska.

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Henry Lawson is celebrated as one of Australia’s greatest poets. The Library’s collection of Henry Lawson realia helps contemporary Australians understand Lawson’s popularity in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. 

Get some winter book recommendations to suit all reading moods.

Learn about the fascinating career of Eleanor Witcombe with 2023 National Library Fellow and biographer Eleanor Hogan.

Explore some of the crime-fiction reads in the collection and how they can help readers learn more about Australian culture, history and place.

Explore some of the speculative fiction reads in the collection and how they can help future generations understand society in the time they were written.