Books in the media this weekend, 19–20 October
Friday, 18 October 2024
A round-up of the books being reviewed and mentioned in key media this coming weekend. National The Saturday Paper The Burrow (Melanie Cheng, Text) Rapture (Emily Maguire, (A&U) Uses of...
James awarded 2024 ASA Medal
Wednesday, 16 October 2024
The Australian Society of Authors (ASA) has announced Ann James is the recipient of the 2024 ASA Medal. Established in 2003, the ASA Medal is awarded annually to an Australian...
A&U acquires ‘Runt’ sequel
Monday, 14 October 2024
Allen & Unwin (A&U) has acquired ANZ rights to Runt and the Diabolical Dognapping, Craig Silvey’s sequel to Runt, via Lesley Thorne at Aitken Alexander Associates. Runt and the Diabolical...
Flanagan shortlisted for 2024 Baillie Gifford Prize for Nonfiction
Monday, 14 October 2024
In the UK, Question 7 by Australian author Richard Flanagan (Knopf) has been shortlisted for the 2024 Baillie Gifford Prize for Nonfiction, worth £50,000 (A$96,907). The six titles shortlisted for...
Bookshops to celebrate LYBD with discounts, events and giveaways
Friday, 11 October 2024
Bookshops across the country are preparing to celebrate Love Your Bookshop Day (LYBD) on 12 October with a range of special events, discounts, and activities designed under this year’s theme...
Sally Rippin on children’s literature, literacy and gatekeeping
Wednesday, 9 October 2024
Sally Rippin is the Australian Children’s Laureate for 2024–25, the latest step in a career that has also included writing over 100 books for children and young adults, including the series...
testing
Tuesday, 8 October 2024
Sophie Beer on ‘Thunderhead’
Tuesday, 1 October 2024
Prolific illustrator Sophie Beer’s debut middle-grade novel, Thunderhead (November, A&U Children’s), was inspired by her own experience with a brain tumour that resulted in hearing loss. Books+Publishing reviewer Clare Millar...
Graphic novel publishing guide released by Beatrice Davis Editorial Fellow
Monday, 30 September 2024
Beatrice Davis Editorial Fellow Sophie Splatt has produced a guide to graphic novel publishing. The report, titled ‘Graphic Novels: Can We Grow Them at Home? The Editing and Publishing of Graphic...
Wainwright Prize winners announced
Monday, 16 September 2024
In the UK, the 2024 winners of the Wainwright Prize for nature and conservation writing have been announced. The nature writing prize was awarded to Late Light: The Secret Wonders...
Vale Louise Thurtell
Wednesday, 11 September 2024
Former Allen & Unwin publisher Louise Thurtell, who also worked at HarperCollins, Transworld and Random House, has died. Thurtell worked in the Australian book publishing industry for more than 30...
Breen joins Fremantle Press
Wednesday, 11 September 2024
Bianca Breen has joined Fremantle Press as a digital publicist, undertaking a contract for part-time maternity leave cover over the next six months. She previously provided volunteer work for the publisher.
Audible tests AI voice replica service for narrators
Wednesday, 11 September 2024
In the US, Publishers Weekly (PW) reports that Audible is ‘inviting a small group of narrators to participate in a beta test that will enable them to create and monetise...
Michelle de Kretser on ‘Theory & Practice’
Tuesday, 10 September 2024
Two-time Miles Franklin winner Michelle de Kretser’s latest novel, Theory & Practice (November 2024, Text), is a combination of fiction, memoir and essay set in St Kilda, Melbourne, in 1986....
Wolfers promoted to new Murdoch role
Thursday, 5 September 2024
Murdoch Books has announced Justin Wolfers has been promoted to the newly created role of commissioning editor. Wolfers, who has worked at Murdoch Books for over 10 years, most recently...
MacDonald wins 2024 Margaret Mahy Illustration Prize
Wednesday, 4 September 2024
Herb MacDonald is the winner of the 2024 Margaret Mahy Illustration Prize, the Margaret Mahy Estate, Hachette Aotearoa New Zealand, and Little Moa have announced. The judging panel praised MacDonald’s...
‘A service we wish to recommit to and double down on’: Shant Kradjian on Booktopia’s distribution services, staffing, and plans to rebuild trust
Tuesday, 3 September 2024
Shant Kradjian, owner of digiDirect, is the new owner of Booktopia, which began trading again last week. With plans ‘to restore Booktopia with a back-to-basics strategy’, Kradjian says his team...
Reid launches PR and literary agency
Tuesday, 3 September 2024
Karen Reid, who resigned from Penguin Random House Australia last year after 30 years at the company, has launched a new business, Reid Books PR and Literary Agency. ‘This agency...
Simon & Schuster acquires Cottle YA series
Monday, 2 September 2024
Simon & Schuster Australia (S&S) has acquired world rights to two books in a new YA series by debut author Ruby Jean Cottle, via agents Lou Johnson and Belinda Bolliger...
‘The Meaning of Singleness’ wins 2024 Australian Christian Book of the Year
Monday, 2 September 2024
The Meaning of Singleness: Retrieving an Eschatological Vision for the Contemporary Church (Danielle Treweek, InterVarsity Press Academic) has been named 2024 Australian Christian Book of the Year. The $3000 prize...
Royal Society Trivedi Science Book Prize 2024 shortlist announced
Monday, 2 September 2024
In the UK, the shortlist for the 2024 Royal Society Trivedi Science Book Prize, which celebrates ‘the best popular science writing from across the globe’, has been announced, reports BookBrunch....
Atlantic acquires Zorn novel ‘Better Days’
Thursday, 29 August 2024
Atlantic Books Australia, a division of Allen & Unwin, has acquired ANZ rights to the novel Better Days by Claire Zorn, in a deal brokered by Grace Heifetz at Left Bank...
Alyson O’Brien on literacy and trade publishing: ‘It’s lucky for a manuscript for the very young to even make it to an acquisitions meeting’
Wednesday, 28 August 2024
A year ago, when former Bright Light publisher Alyson O'Brien moved from commercial publishing to Raising Literacy Australia, she thought her commercial experience would add value to the organisation; she...
Epic Salads (Jessica Prescott, Hardie Grant Books)
Tuesday, 27 August 2024
If you’re ready to ditch the pre-made salads from your local supermarket, Jessica Prescott’s Epic Salads: For every mood, craving and occasion is a must-have for your cookbook collection. Prescott...
The Whale’s Last Song (Joanne Fedler, HarperCollins)
Tuesday, 27 August 2024
Joanne Fedler’s spellbinding The Whale’s Last Song is set in a time known as ‘The Great Forgetting’, when a plague ravages the medieval hamlet of Villingraz. While the wealthy hide...
Books in the media this weekend, 24–25 August
Friday, 23 August 2024
A round-up of the books being reviewed and mentioned in key media this coming weekend. National The Saturday Paper Bina: First Nations Languages, Old and New (Gari Tudor-Smith, Paul Williams &...
Returning to BookUp in 2024
Wednesday, 21 August 2024
The annual BookUp conference for 2024, presented by the Australian Publishers Association (APA), was held at the State Library Victoria, Melbourne, on Wednesday 7 August, with wide-ranging sessions inviting participants to contemplate...
Prime Minister’s Literary Awards shortlists, CBCA winners announced; McGrathNicol confirms Booktopia sale
Wednesday, 21 August 2024
Last Thursday, Creative Australia announced the titles shortlisted for the 2024 Prime Minister’s Literary Awards, with winners to be revealed on 12 September. Headlining other local news this week, the...
Publishers welcome Australian owner for Booktopia
Wednesday, 21 August 2024
Publishers have welcomed the sale of Booktopia to Shant Kradjian, the owner of electronics retailer digiDirect, who has been meeting with publishers and authors to discuss the bookseller’s future and...
Yin on ‘The Conscious Style Guide’
Wednesday, 14 August 2024
Karen Yin is an award-winning writer and editor. She created the Conscious Style Guide, a resource website for writers, editors and others interested in conscious language, as well as the...
