SPICE ROAD by Maiya Ibrahim

SPICE ROAD by Maiya Ibrahim An epic Young Adult fantasy set in an Arabian-inspired land Debut author Maiya Ibrahim has written Spice Road (first in the Spice Road fantasy series), her fantastic #ownvoices story inspired by her heritage and the stories passed down to her from her parents, who fled Lebanon and resettled in Australia […]

Abdulrazak Gurnah wins the 2021 Nobel Prize for Literature

In exciting news Abdulrazak Gurnah has won the Nobel Prize for Literature. I was ‘in conversation’ with him at the 2011 Brisbane Writers Festival. He had been nominated for the Booker Prize for Paradise by then (and also the Whitbread) and we discussed his new novel (at the time), The Last Gift (published Bloomsbury) in […]

The Beatryce Prophecy by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Sophie Blackall

The Beatryce Prophecy by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Sophie Blackall (published by Candlewick Press & Walker Books Australia) Author Interview “There will one day come a girl child who will unseat A king and bring about a great change.” (The Beatryce Prophecy) Kate DiCamillo’s books for children are amongst the best in the world. Titles […]

The Tree by Graeme Base

Graeme Base is one of Australia and the world’s foremost picture book creators, renowned for Animalia and The Waterhole, amongst other treasures. His new book, The Tree (Puffin Books) is a fable. It begins timelessly, “This is the story of …” The tale is perfectly formed and elegantly illustrated to show the tree as a […]

The Giant and the Sea by Trent Jamieson, illustrated by Rovina Cai

“There was a giant who stood on the shore of the sea. She looked out across the water because that is what she had promised to do long, long ago.” The Giant and the Sea by Trent Jamieson, illustrated by Rovina Cai (Lothian Children’s Books) is a significant multifaceted work. It is likely to become […]

A.J. Betts and Rogue

Rogue (Pan Macmillan Australia) continues Hayley’s dystopian story – in a surprising, and very different setting – which began in Hive. Thank you for speaking to PaperbarkWords, A.J. Why have you written a duology? It is unusual to have two books rather than one stand-alone, a trilogy or a longer series. There’s no real reason, […]