The eldest of three daughters of a doctor and a maths teacher, Julia Leigh studied Arts/Law at the University of Sydney and in 1989 was editor of the University's student paper,
Honi Soit. After some time off she returned to work at the
Australian Society of
Authors where she met
Frank Moorhouse, who became a mentor for the
emerging writer (
Bodey).
Leigh's first novel
The Hunter was published to national and international acclaim and reviewed widely. The novel was named as one of the
New York Times Notable Books of the Year in 2001 and was longlisted for the National Book Critics Circle Award in the US. In the UK it was longlisted for the Orange Prize in 2000 and Leigh was nominated by the
Observer as one of the 21 writers for the 21st century. In Canada
The Hunter was listed in the Top Ten International Fiction for 2000 by
Globe & Mail. Her national and international awards are listed below.