Derek by Anne Donaldson, illustrated by Matt Shanks (Little Hare, Hardie Grant) “Derek was a fish with many questions.” (Derek) INSIDE THE CBCA 2026 SHORTLIST Derek is the humorously perceptive Honour-awarded picture book in the Early Childhood category of the 2026 CBCA awards. It is also the Early Childhood Shadow Judging winner. Interview with Derek creators Anne […]
Read More Derek by Anne Donaldson, illustrated by Matt ShanksDarkest Night, Brightest Star by Barry Jonsberg (Allen & Unwin) INSIDE THE CBCA 2026 SHORTLIST “ ‘Think about this,’ Dad said. If you are to be the brightest star, like Diego Maradona, then you must go through the dark bits first. The practice. Working hard even when you don’t want to. You understand?’” (Darkest Night, […]
Read More Darkest Night, Brightest Star by Barry JonsbergWild Darling by Alexandra Moody (HarperCollins Australia) ‘Something about her expression hit me square in the chest. She never smiled or laughed when I was around. The way her eyes were sparkling now felt like discovering a rare hidden treasure. The thought stopped me short. Did I actually like making her laugh? She shook her […]
Read More Wild Darling by Alexandra MoodySuzy Zail & A New Kind of Beautiful (Walker Books Australia) “I want to be brave. But I just dropped the Wild Thing tag and I don’t need a new story: The Adventures of Brave Girl.” (A New Kind of Beautiful) Author Interview: Suzy Zail Suzy shares her thoughts about A New Kind of Beautiful […]
Read More Suzy Zail & A New Kind of BeautifulThe Escape Game by Marissa Meyer & Tamara Moss Published by Penguin Books ‘Not that long ago, she would’ve said that her favorite thing was getting into the rhythm of the room, absorbing the puzzles. But now? “The people,” she said. “It’s so nice being around others who are as obsessed with escape rooms as […]
Read More The Escape Game by Marissa Meyer & Tamara MossA Hat for Every Harriet by Jess Horn, ill. Zoë Bennett (Affirm Press, Simon & Schuster) A Hat for Every Harriet: Behind the Hats With great honesty and insight, Jess Horn writes about the genesis of her moving and wise, A Hat for Every Harriet, for Joy in Books at PaperbarkWords blog. And, as a […]
Read More A Hat for Every Harriet by Jess Horn & Zoë BennettTerrible Tails: The Last Sipper written & illustrated by Adin Milo (Berbay Publishing) “Nestled in a valley of mountains and surrounded by forests, the Terrible Tail Tavern sits along Old King’s Road … in the kingdom of Austerra.” (Terrible Tails: The Last Sipper) The Last Sipper is the first book in Adin Milo’s ‘Terrible Tails’ […]
Read More Terrible Tails: The Last Sipper by Adin MiloA Loo of One’s Own: A Mostly True Tale of Australia’s First Female Parliamentarians written and illustrated by Eleri Harris (Allen & Unwin) “Our story starts eighty years ago in Canberra, where all the cool stuff happens… On the first day of school … Wait! Parliament! Two women walked into Australia’s Parliament House. And came […]
Read More A Loo of One’s Own by Eleri HarrisMine by Adam Ouston Transit Lounge “… considering the situation, which was in large part where the element of terror originated, the sense that there was something else happening, something bigger than him, a secret story beneath the apparent one, for which he had no words or even capacity for understanding, more mindbloggling than the […]
Read More Mine by Adam OustonPeculiar Parents by Stephanie Owen Reeder and Ingrid Bartkowiak (NLA Publishing) Peculiar Parents is shortlisted in the Eve Pownall non-fiction category of the 2026 CBCA awards. Author Dr Stephanie Owen Reeder writes about her well-named and impeccably researched and compiled book, Peculiar Parents, for Paperbark Words blog: Stephanie Owen Reeder on Peculiar Parents Peculiar Parents explores […]
Read More Peculiar Parents by Stephanie Owen Reeder and Ingrid Bartkowiak
