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Tessa Duder
Tessa Duder CNZM OBE (née Staveley, born 13 November 1940) is a New Zealand author of novels for young people, short stories, plays and non-fiction, and a former swimmer who won a silver medal for her country at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games. As a writer, she is primarily known for her Alex quartet and long-term advocacy for New Zealand children's literature. As an editor, she has also published a number of anthologies. In 2020 she received the Prime Minister's Award for Literary Achievement in acknowledgement of her significant contributions to New Zealand fiction.
Duder was born Tessa Staveley in Auckland on 13 November 1940, the daughter of Sir John Staveley, a doctor and pioneer of blood transfusion in New Zealand who was later knighted, and Elvira, Lady Staveley (née Wycherley), a cellist. Her great-grandparents were from Livorno, Italy. She has a younger brother, John and was educated at Diocesan School for Girls in Auckland, and went on to study at Auckland University College in 1958, later returning to the University of Auckland between 1982 and 1984.
After leaving school, Staveley worked as a journalist for the Auckland Star from 1959 to 1964, before travelling to Europe and working for the Daily Express in London between 1964 and 1966. She married John Duder in 1964, and the couple went on to have four daughters. Following the birth of her first child, Duder was a full-time mother for seven years, much of it spent in Pakistan. She returned to Auckland in 1972, where she reentered the workforce as a pianist.
The fictional boat Aratika in Duder's first novel Night Race to Kawau was based on her then-husband John's family yacht, the Archibald Logan designed keel cutter Spray II.
As a teenager, Staveley competed in the butterfly and medley swimming events, becoming a national record holder in both events during 1958–59. She won the New Zealand national 110 yards butterfly title in 1957 and 1958, and the national individual medley championship in 1957, 1958, and 1959.
At the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Cardiff, Staveley won the silver medal in the 110 yards butterfly, recording a time of 1:14.4 in the final. She was also a member of the New Zealand women's 4 x 110 yards medley relay team, alongside Philippa Gould, Kay Sawyers, and Jennifer Hunter, that finished in fourth place.
Staveley was named New Zealand Swimmer of the Year in 1959.
Duder began writing fiction in 1977. Her first novel Night Race to Kawau was published by Oxford University Press in 1982. Her most successful works are the Alex quartet of novels (Alex, Alex in Winter, Alessandra: Alex in Rome and Songs for Alex) which build upon her own childhood experiences by following a teenage competitive swimmer with Olympic ambitions. The series won three New Zealand Children's Book of the Year awards and three Esther Glen medals. Alex has been translated into five languages and was for many years Penguin New Zealand's best selling work of fiction. Alex was adapted into the 1993 film of the same name. The film premiere of Alex was attended by longtime friend and then Governor-General Dame Catherine Tizard.
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Tessa Duder
Tessa Duder CNZM OBE (née Staveley, born 13 November 1940) is a New Zealand author of novels for young people, short stories, plays and non-fiction, and a former swimmer who won a silver medal for her country at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games. As a writer, she is primarily known for her Alex quartet and long-term advocacy for New Zealand children's literature. As an editor, she has also published a number of anthologies. In 2020 she received the Prime Minister's Award for Literary Achievement in acknowledgement of her significant contributions to New Zealand fiction.
Duder was born Tessa Staveley in Auckland on 13 November 1940, the daughter of Sir John Staveley, a doctor and pioneer of blood transfusion in New Zealand who was later knighted, and Elvira, Lady Staveley (née Wycherley), a cellist. Her great-grandparents were from Livorno, Italy. She has a younger brother, John and was educated at Diocesan School for Girls in Auckland, and went on to study at Auckland University College in 1958, later returning to the University of Auckland between 1982 and 1984.
After leaving school, Staveley worked as a journalist for the Auckland Star from 1959 to 1964, before travelling to Europe and working for the Daily Express in London between 1964 and 1966. She married John Duder in 1964, and the couple went on to have four daughters. Following the birth of her first child, Duder was a full-time mother for seven years, much of it spent in Pakistan. She returned to Auckland in 1972, where she reentered the workforce as a pianist.
The fictional boat Aratika in Duder's first novel Night Race to Kawau was based on her then-husband John's family yacht, the Archibald Logan designed keel cutter Spray II.
As a teenager, Staveley competed in the butterfly and medley swimming events, becoming a national record holder in both events during 1958–59. She won the New Zealand national 110 yards butterfly title in 1957 and 1958, and the national individual medley championship in 1957, 1958, and 1959.
At the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Cardiff, Staveley won the silver medal in the 110 yards butterfly, recording a time of 1:14.4 in the final. She was also a member of the New Zealand women's 4 x 110 yards medley relay team, alongside Philippa Gould, Kay Sawyers, and Jennifer Hunter, that finished in fourth place.
Staveley was named New Zealand Swimmer of the Year in 1959.
Duder began writing fiction in 1977. Her first novel Night Race to Kawau was published by Oxford University Press in 1982. Her most successful works are the Alex quartet of novels (Alex, Alex in Winter, Alessandra: Alex in Rome and Songs for Alex) which build upon her own childhood experiences by following a teenage competitive swimmer with Olympic ambitions. The series won three New Zealand Children's Book of the Year awards and three Esther Glen medals. Alex has been translated into five languages and was for many years Penguin New Zealand's best selling work of fiction. Alex was adapted into the 1993 film of the same name. The film premiere of Alex was attended by longtime friend and then Governor-General Dame Catherine Tizard.