Judah Waten

Biography

Judah Leon Waten AM was an Australian novelist who was at one time seen as the voice of Australian migrant writing. Born in Odessa, Russian Empire to a Russian-Jewish family, Judah Waten arrived in Western Australia in 1914. He attended Christian Brothers' College, Perth and, moving to Melbourne in 1926, University High School, Melbourne. He joined the Communist Party of Australia while still at school. Between 1931 and 1933, he visited Europe, became engaged in left-wing political activities in England, and spent three months in Wormwood Scrubs Prison. He wrote novels, short stories and a history of the Great Depression in Australia. His best-known work is a collection of autobiographical short stories, Alien Son, first published in 1952. He travelled to the Soviet Union several times, once with Manning Clark. He was involved in the Realist Writers Group, International PEN, the Fellowship of Australian Writers and served on the Literature Board of the Australia Council. In 1967, he became a member of the National Committee of the Communist Party. However, he left the party in 1972 to join the pro-Soviet Socialist Party of Australia. In 1985 he died in Melbourne.