Big Love (Megan Jacobson, illus by Beck Feiner, Walker Studio)
15 September 2021
This sweet picture book debut draws an immediate comparison with children’s bookshelf classic Guess How Much I Love You. As the borders of Big Love’s world unspool, from house to entire universe, the lyrical...
Hometown Haunts: #LoveOzYA Horror Tales (ed by Poppy Nwosu, Wakefield Press)
15 September 2021
To the library of #LoveOzYA anthologies (Begin, End, Begin; Meet Me at the Intersection; Underdog; Kindred) comes Hometown Haunts, a new collection featuring 12 short stories and two graphic novels united...
Merriman YA novels optioned for screen
15 September 2021
Screen adaption rights to YA novels Catch Me When You Fall and Invisibly Breathing by New Zealand author Eileen Merriman have been optioned by Enjoy Entertainment, in a deal negotiated...
‘The Boy Who Tried to Shrink His Name’ sells to North America
15 September 2021
Hardie Grant Children’s Publishing (HGCP) has sold North American rights to The Boy Who Tried to Shrink His Name by Sandhya Parappukkaran and Michelle Pereira to Abrams Books. The deal,...
Environment Award for Children’s Literature 2021 winners announced
14 September 2021
The Wilderness Society has announced the winners of the 2021 Environment Award for Children’s Literature. Selected from shortlists announced in June, the winning titles in each category are: Picture fiction...
$100k Historical Novel Prize longlists announced
9 September 2021
The Historical Novel Society Australasia (HNSA) has announced the longlist for the second annual ARA Historical Novel Prize and the inaugural longlist for its children's and young adult (CYA) category....
Tomorrow is a Brand-New Day (Davina Bell, illus by Allison Colpoys, Scribble)
8 September 2021
Tomorrow is a Brand-New Day is an ode to making a mistake and then making things right. It follows two children—friends with different styles—who come into conflict with each other...
Marcie Gill and the Caravan Park Cat (Monica McInerney, illus by Danny Snell, Puffin)
8 September 2021
With a dozen adult novels under her belt, Monica McInerney is now turning her hand to children’s fiction and her first foray into middle-grade territory is just as full of heart and laughter as her...
‘Ghost Bird’ sells to UK
2 September 2021
UK independent publisher Old Barn Books has bought UK and Commonwealth (ex Canada and ANZ) rights to Lisa Fuller's YA novel Ghost Bird from University of Queensland Press (UQP). The...
The Greatest Mistakes That Went Right (Maddy Mara, illus by Cheryl Orsini, Affirm Press)
31 August 2021
Many kids are afraid to try new things because they are scared of not getting it right the first time; niggling insecurities and latent perfectionism can often mean they miss...
Terciel and Elinor (Garth Nix, A&U)
31 August 2021
Garth Nix’s ‘Old Kingdom’ books have been a perennial staple of YA sections in bookstores for the past 25 years, and I couldn’t even guess how many copies of Sabriel...
How to Repaint a Life (Steven Herrick, UQP)
24 August 2021
How to Repaint a Life is the latest offering from Steven Herrick, author of award-winning young adult titles including The Simple Gift and The Bogan Mondrian. This is gritty, heartbreaking prose that delves into...
Norton and the Borrowing Bear (Gabriel Evans, Berbay)
24 August 2021
Gabriel Evans is fast becoming one of the most consistently delightful Australian picture book creators of recent years. With each release he adds to his oeuvre with such apparent ease,...
Corey Tutt on ‘The First Scientists’
18 August 2021
Kamilaroi STEM advocate and founder of Deadly Science Corey Tutt is the author of The First Scientists (illus by Blak Douglas, Hardie Grant, October), which explores early and contemporary First...
Celebrating 75 years of the CBCA Book of the Year Award
18 August 2021
The Children's Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Book Week—supported by a joint campaign by the ABA and the ASA encouraging people to 'shop local, read local'—kicks off this week following...
Social Queue (Kay Kerr, Text)
17 August 2021
Neurodiverse teenager Zoe is undertaking an internship at an online media company when her first assignment, about the struggles of navigating the online dating scene as an autistic person, goes...
A Duck Called Brian (Al Murphy, Scholastic)
17 August 2021
Brian the duck is unique—unlike all his yellow duck friends, he is bright blue. When Brian wakes up one morning to find he has run out of his favourite cereal,...
NZ Margaret Mahy Illustration Prize shortlist announced
16 August 2021
Hachette Aotearoa NZ and the Margaret Mahy estate have announced the shortlist for the Margaret Mahy Illustration Prize. The shortlisted illustrators are: Elizabeth Knowles Tara Southgate Sarah Trolle Jessica Twohill...
Larrikin House acquires Freeman picture book
12 August 2021
Larrikin House has acquired worldwide rights to children’s picture book The Heartbeat of the Land by Cathy Freeman. The publisher says the book is ‘a poignant call for environmental action...
NZ Book Awards for Children and Young Adults 2021 winners announced
12 August 2021
The winners of the 2021 New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults have been announced. The winning titles in each category are: Margaret Mahy Book of the Year...
My Brother Ben (Peter Carnavas, UQP)
10 August 2021
Acclaimed Australian children’s writer Peter Carnavas has followed up his wonderful first novel The Elephant with another book equally full of heart. An ode to sibling relationships, growing up and the natural world, My...
Pantera acquires McWilliams debut middle-grade novel
4 August 2021
Pantera Press has acquired world rights to The Reindeer and the Submarine, the debut middle-grade novel by Beverly McWilliams. Inspired by the true story of a reindeer who lived aboard...
Cat Rabbit on ‘How to Make Friends: A Bear’s Guide’
4 August 2021
Cat Rabbit is a textile artist and designer based in Melbourne. In her latest picture book, How to Make Friends: A Bear's Guide (Berbay, October), Rabbit explores the struggles of...
Dark Rise (C S Pacat, A&U)
3 August 2021
Will is on the run from the men who killed his mother. When a terrifying artefact is unleashed on the Thames docks, Will finds himself thrust into a hidden world...
Boyle wins 2021 Text Prize for ‘Dancing Barefoot’
30 July 2021
Victorian writer and teacher Alice Boyle has won the 2021 Text Prize for her YA novel Dancing Barefoot. According to Text, Dancing Barefoot is 'a story about finding love, figuring out...
PRH acquires Chadderton middle-grade graphic novel
29 July 2021
Penguin Random House (PRH) Australia has acquired world rights to the contemporary middle-grade graphic novel Oh, Brother by Adelaide author-illustrator Georgina Chadderton. Rights were acquired in a joint deal between PRH...
Christmas in July: children’s and YA
28 July 2021
Last week Books+Publishing brought you a round up of Australian publishers' top adult titles releasing time for Christmas 2021. Here are their children's and young adult picks. Picture books Scholastic’s...
self/less (AViVA, Macmillan)
27 July 2021
self/less is the debut novel by self-described multidisciplinary artist AViVA, whose music has a strong online following. Seventeen-year-old Teddy has lived a privileged childhood in the totalitarian city of Metropolis,...
Dragon Skin (Karen Foxlee, A&U)
27 July 2021
Dragon Skin is the much-anticipated new novel by Karen Foxlee, author of cherished modern classics including the internationally successful Lenny’s Book of Everything. Foxlee is skilled at writing brave yet vulnerable young...
Treasure in the Lake (Jason Pamment, A&U)
20 July 2021
Friendship, hidden cities and all-round adventure lie at the heart of Jason Pamment’s immersive graphic novel Treasure in the Lake. Sam and Iris have been best friends since they were little, but as the two...
