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Sally Rippin
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Author/Illustrator
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Sally Rippin was born in Darwin but spent most of her childhood in South-East Asia. As an adult she lived for three years in China, studying traditional Chinese painting.
Fang Fang’s Chinese New Year, a story about embracing multiculturalism, is based on her young friend who was born in China, but moved with her family to Australia when she was very young.
‘Her story is just one of the many stories I hear from children born in other countries, who make up our multicultural population. These stories are not just for them, but also for children born in Australia who may wonder what it would be like to speak more than one language at home and to eat rice with chopsticks.’
Along with the painting techniques Sally studied in China, the illustrations were influenced by the striking colours and fascinating faces of China Town. This wonderful vibrancy is achieved using wet paper and watercolour.
Fang Fang’s Chinese New Year was short-listed for the 1997 Crichton Award, an award made to recognise and encourage new talent in the field of Australian children’s book illustration.
With her French-born husband and two sons, Sally now lives in the south of France. The Rippin household is truly multicultural, with the family speaking what she calls ‘a strange mixture of English, French and Chinese.’
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Awards:
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- Crichton Award for Fang Fang's Chinese New Year (1997)
- Notable Book CBC Awards for What a Mess Fang Fang (1999)
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Books by Sally Rippin published by Scholastic include:
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- Me, Oliver Bright HB (2009)
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