Leslie Rees

George Leslie Clarke Rees AM (28 December 1905 - 17 August 2000) was an Australian author and writer for children who was born and raised in Perth, Western Australia.

He attended Perth Modern School and then the University of Western Australia, where he edited the student magazine, Black Swan.He then worked for The West Australian as a journalist before travelling to London to study at University College on a scholarship. It was while there that he married fellow West Australian, Coralie Clarke, who had been a sub-editor during his time on the Black Swan.

Rees returned to Australia in 1936 to become the Australian Broadcasting Commission's first federal drama editor in Sydney.He was also President of PEN (Sydney) for a number of years.

As a writer Rees is best known as a prolific author of children's books as well as written travel books, plays and an autobiography.

He died in Sydney on 17 August 2000.

• 1946 winner Children's Book of the Year Award: Older Readers — The Story of Karrawingi the Emu
• 1981 appointed Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for service to literature