Vale Tony Horgan

Wednesday, 2 November 2022 Books+Publishing

Tony Horgan, co-owner with his wife Barbara of Shearer’s Bookshop, has died. His funeral will be held today, Wednesday 2 November at 3pm AEST/12 pm AWST, and can be viewed by livestream here.

Robyn Huppert, communications manager at BookPeople, writes:

‘It is with sadness that we share the news of the passing of Life Member and past president Tony Horgan. Tony, along with his wife Barbara, also a Life Member, owned Shearer’s Bookshop first in Gordon and then Leichhardt for 28 years.

‘Tony and Barbara were well known for hosting book events and supporting new authors and illustrators.

‘Tony was a passionate advocate of children’s books and reading and was a founding member of the Australian Booksellers Association’s Children’s Special Interest Group which was he driving force behind the creation of the Kids’ Reading Guide.’

Gleebooks co-founder and ABA Lifetime Member David Gaunt writes:

‘Our sadness at Tony’s passing should also remind us of the tremendous contribution to the Australian Book Industry. Many will know of his long-standing commitment to children’s literature, and the championing of those who wrote and published it, and his engagement with the Children’s Book Council. And of course, he and Barbara Horgan formed an award-winning and trail-blazing partnership for decades at Shearers Bookshop.

‘But it is also worth recalling that Tony, in the true Horgan spirit, took up the challenge of presidency of the ABA at a time of considerable turmoil in the industry. The vexed question of how “closed” or “open” the Australian book market should be had been debated for several decades already, with several enquiries into the appropriateness, or otherwise, of the conditions that a closed market imposed on consumers and booksellers. Tony took up the role in 1991, the same year that the Federal Government radically reformed the import provisions of the Copyright Act. Copyright is of course the bedrock of our industry, and feelings ran deep amongst authors, publishers and booksellers. Publishers were sufficiently aggrieved by the new regulations to abandon support for the ABA’s annual conference (setting up the “Australian Book Fair” in Sydney for a number of years).

‘It was indeed a time of tremendous change, and it is a tribute to Tony’s hard work, interpersonal skill, and capacity to build bridges that we emerged a bigger, stronger, and better industry out of it. Tony worked tirelessly and uncomplainingly at every public duty he undertook. Those of us who work today in the industry owe him a massive debt. Vale Tony.’

Category: Obituaries