David Malouf is an acclaimed Australian poet, novelist, short story writer, playwright, and librettist. Born on March 20, 1934, in Brisbane, he has a Lebanese father and a mother of Sephardi Jewish heritage. Malouf's rich cultural background informs much of his literary work.

He began his literary career in poetry, with his 1974 collection Neighbours in a Thicket: Poems winning the Grace Leven Prize for Poetry and the Australian Literature Society Gold Medal. His 1990 novel The Great World won numerous awards, including the 1991 Miles Franklin Award and Prix Femina Étranger. Another notable work, the 1993 novel Remembering Babylon, was shortlisted for the Booker Prize and won several international honors.

Malouf has been recognized extensively for his contributions to literature. He received the Neustadt International Prize for Literature in 2000, the Australia-Asia Literary Award in 2008, and the Australia Council Award for Lifetime Achievement in Literature in 2016. In 2008, he was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. Besides writing, he has lectured at the University of Queensland and the University of Sydney and delivered the 1998 Boyer Lectures.

He has also been mentioned as a potential candidate for the Nobel Prize in Literature due to his significant contributions to the literary world.