The Belly of a Wolf by Julianne Negri (UWA Publishing) “Musty books, ink-scratched drawings black and white with gashes of red. Look, it’s us, Wolf gasped. inhaling the pages. Hunting different versions of the story. Rummaging dog-eared collections of fairytales. Searching columns on contents pages, hungry for our title. In op shops, secondhand bookshops, the […]
Read More The Belly of a Wolf by Julianne NegriINSIDE THE CBCA 2026 SHORTLIST The Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Shortlisted Books for 2026 have been announced from the Notables list. Follow the links to those books I have already reviewed, or interviewed the author or illustrator, at PaperbarkWords blog. I will add to this list until the winners are announced in August. Congratulations to those […]
Read More Inside the 2026 CBCA ShortlistWhy, Oh Why? The Story of Rainbows, by Roy G. Biv (Tim Hurburgh) Hardie Grant Custom Roy G. Biv (Tim Hurburgh) writes about his picture book The Story of Rainbows for Paperbark Word blog. Growing up outside Hobart on the River Derwent, life was full of wonder. We were endlessly curious about the natural world […]
Read More Why, Oh Why? The Story of Rainbows, by Roy G. Biv (Tim Hurburgh)The Season for Flying Saucers by Brendan Colley (Transit Lounge) Brendan Colley writes about the inspiration behind The Season for Flying Saucers, his artful, left-field novel for adults, for Joy in Books at Paperbark Words blog. In 2014 I was playing around with some narrative poetry, like I usually do as a warm-up before I […]
Read More The Season for Flying Saucers by Brendan ColleyThe World From Here by Cassy Polimeni, ill. Mel Armstrong CSIRO Publishing – Cassy Polimeni & Mel Armstrong write about ‘The World From Here’ for Joy in Books at PaperbarkWords blog – Cassy Polimeni The first glimmer of what became The World From Here came to me during a writing challenge called Storystorm. I was thinking about countries […]
Read More The World From Here by Cassy Polimeni, ill. Mel ArmstrongTreeshape by Trace Balla Guest author post for Paperbark Words blog by author-illustrator Trace Balla about her new graphic novel Treeshape – the shape of a tree the shape of me. Published by Allen & Unwin This is a story of the trees of my life, and how they have shaped who I am. Perhaps my […]
Read More Treeshape by Trace BallaThe Boy and the Dog Tree Written by Fiona Wood Illustrated by Judy Watson Published by University of Queensland Press Interview with Fiona Wood Argos had said, ‘Quests do not always announce themselves.’ There was no dragon or treasure or lost kingdom but Mitch had discovered the world anew with Argos. Quests were […]
Read More The Boy and the Dog Tree by Fiona WoodMuttonfish Magic by Aunty Ruth Simms & Lucy Robertson ill. by Jasmine Seymour Published by Magabala Books “Muttonfish Magic honours the Kameragyl and Bidjigal people, the traditional custodians of the land around Kamay (Botany Bay) and Guriwal (La Perouse). With sensory lyricism, Bidjigal Elder Ruth Simms and Lucy Robertson depict a loving First Nations family inspired […]
Read More Muttonfish Magic by Aunty Ruth Simms & Lucy Robertson, illustrated by Jasmine SeymourThe Messy Bath Monster by Tina Wilson (words & pictures), Joan Wilson (knitting) & Matt Ottley (music) (One Tentacle Publishing) ‘Monkey knew there was a monster lurking in the bath because it made such a BIG mess! “It must be a HUGE monster,” thought Monkey. It gurgled and it roared … And left puddles on […]
Read More The Messy Bath Monster Interview with Tina Wilson, Joan Wilson & Matt OttleyThe Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Notable Books for 2026 have been announced. Follow the links to those books I have already reviewed or interviewed the author or illustrator at PaperbarkWords blog. NB Once the shortlist is announced, I will add reviews and interviews on the Inside the 2026 Shortlist page on the blog until the winners are […]
Read More Inside the 2026 CBCA Notable Books
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