Dipping into the 2026 Notable list

Did you wait with baited breath to see if some of your favourite reads from the past year made it to “the lists”? I did and was thrilled to see some terrific books included. Read on for a quick dip into just a few of Jennie’s favourites across each category. As she hasn’t read all the books this is just a selection that resonated. Lots left out and lots more to read!

 

Eve Pownall Award

The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Fast and Slow Animals. Written and illustrated by Sami Bayly. Published by Lothian Children's Books.

What I love about Baylys’ work is not just the amazing realism of her meticulous art work but the original and creative perspectives she explores to present the familiar and extraordinary animals across the globe and from all animal families. Her coverage of fast and slow goes well beyond the animals we know so well – such as the cheetah! Wonderful for all inquiring minds the coverage is sure to broaden your knowledge. Careful design is evident with carefully laid double page spreads that compare and differentiate between different groups. Language is engaging and entertaining with some humorous commentary intertwined within the factual coverage.

 

This bird. Noticing our Urban Birds. Written and illustrated by Astred Hicks ; with Holly Parsons. Published by CSIRO.

Hicks, with scientific support from Parsons, presents a colourful and vibrant array of familiar Australian birdlife. An original approach to organising each entry works effectively to focus on 'noticing' differences in birds by highlighting unique features that make each bird stand out from the rest. Double page spreads start with "This bird…" followed by an additional clause “... has a red butt; “…is a hoverer; ‘”…loves cities; etc. Information is accessible, interesting, informative and identifies special attributes to help young bird watchers with identification and location.

 

Picture Book of the Year

(I have only read one of the books on this list! But it is wonderful!)

Once I was a Giant. Written and illustrated by Zeno Sworder. Published by Thames & Hudson.

This is an enigmatic and challenging tale of the life of a tree told by one of its end products - a pencil. Dark, muted pastels convey the majesty of the giant tree and its surrounding forest and the joy of the visitations from the wanderer, (perhaps a wood sprite?), who relates the passing of time. The bleak devastation of the cleared land is beautifully contrasted with the quiet work of the wanderer to reseed the forest. Sworder's masterful visual storytelling is both thoughtful and thought provoking, exploring nature and the life cycles that support regeneration and reforestation.

 

Book of the Year: Early Childhood

The Emperor’s Egg. Written and illustrated by Rae Tan. Published by Lothian Children’s Books.

Tan has reworked an ancient Chinese folk tale about integrity, courage and patience that celebrates ancient Chinese traditions. The old and childless Emperor is seeking an heir and puts a call out for children over the age of five to each care for a beautiful coloured egg. Ren nurtures his egg with patience and care as he watches the other children play with their glorious dragon like hatchlings. On the thirtieth day the Emperor makes his decision based on the evidence. The design, layout, and illustrations are exquisite - richly coloured with artful use of white space and glorious movement and facial expressions in the children.

 

Look, See, Find Me. Written and illustrated by Sandra Severgnini. Published by CSIRO.

A cleverly designed introduction to camouflage that presents a range of animals in different environments. With a single descriptive sentence on each double page young readers are encouraged to discover different animals blending into their environment. This is supported with the names - common and scientific - to indicate how many creatures need to found. The artwork accurately portrays both elements with each spread being fully coloured and richly texture to the eye. A glossary at the end includes information about each creature and an image similar to how they look on their respective pages. Perfect for this younger age group, the book is more literary nonfiction rather than story.

 

Where the River Runs Free. Written by Vikki Conley, illustrated by Tasmanian illustrator Jedda Robaard. Published by Windy Hollow Books.

Portraying a delightful and cheerful walk along the river, young readers will make many connections with Mum, two girls and the baby as the set off for an adventure. Familiar landscapes and activities to stimulate discussion, the story is simple and familiar. Splashing in the river, hearing the birds, sharing snacks and chasing butterflies are all part of the fun. Robaard’s Illustrations enrich and expand the story with soft watercolours providing different perspectives, shifting the focus of the eye with broad double page spreads interspersed with cameo images that use white space effectively to highlight the action. The placement of the simple storyline adds to the flow of the story. Text is enriched with wonderful alliteration, onomatopoeia and descriptive language, all perfectly placed on each page. The conclusion is very satisfying – they get to see a ….! Can you guess what they were looking for on the river?

 

Book of the Year: Younger Readers

Run. Written by Sarah Armstrong. Published by Hardie Grant Children’s.

A fast-paced adventure survival story follows Cas (Casper) who avoids facing his long estranged father by escaping into the bush. He quickly realises that he does not have the necessary survival skills and lost, hungry and thirsty, he despairs, but is unable to find his way out. Discovered by two sisters and their dog he soon realises he has stumbled into a mystery as the girls and their Dad are living off grid and have a secret to hide. 

Armstrong explores both physical and emotional survival in this tight, edge-of-the-seat adventure that explores neglect, forgiveness, family, friendship and moral challenges. A great read for older primary and early secondary with a cast of interesting robust characters including a teenager thirsting for civilization.

 

Song of a Thousand Seas. Written by Zana Fraillon, illustrated by Aviva Reed. University of Queensland Press.

Similar in style to her engaging and emotive verse novel Way of Dog, Fraillon uses a first person narrative to tell the story of Houdini the octopus, trapped in a tank, who longs with all of her nine brains, three hearts, and 3,154 suckers to be back home in the sea. Houdini narrates her own and three other points of view - Paul the keeper, Juno the keeper’s daughter and Joe the aquarium cleaner - to present multiple perspectives that show how each is pulled in a particular direction. Fraillon artfully immerses the reader into Houdini's caged world to understand and sympathise with her craving for the ocean and freedom. Black and white illustrations are placed throughout, at times twisting between the short verses each starting with a short and evocative heading to highlight the voice and the perspective being related. The illustrations add depth and mood to the narration as well as enhancing the visual appeal and accessibility of the book. A story for primary aged readers that is rather different from the usual fare - and certainly one that will encourage them to think and question the ethical issues around keeping captive animals - though this is not discussed at any stage. Such is the power of seeing into the 3 hearts and 9 minds of Houdini.

Book of the Year: Older Readers

Eleanor Jones is Playing with Fire. Written by Amy Doak. Published by Penguin.

Eleanor continues to plunge head first into trouble in this third stand-alone adventure. Her friends and others at school are all suspects in the first disaster – a house fire that sees one man dead – accident or arson? A note warning Eleanor off suggests the latter. Although trying to do the right thing and pass all information onto Holly, the local police officer, she can’t help but wonder. 

Another entertaining thriller with an interesting mixture of teen characters, all with flaws and most with strengths, that will engage teen readers from Year 7 up. Doak handles a number of teen issues and moral responsibilities, including family pressure, toxic behaviour and sexting, boredom, carjacking, thrill seeking behaviours, and that most important first kiss, with dexterity, humour and insight. 

 

We Saw What You Started. Written by Carla Salmon. Published by Pan Macmillan.

Told from different perspectives the main characters include Otto, relocated with his mum from California with a mysterious past that involves a fire destroying a farm and a love of surfing. Twins, Jasper and Milly, the brother lazy and laid back, and apparently destined to become captain of the local surf living team of which their father is the manager. Milly, determined to prove her worth to her father and a dedicated life saver. Otto becomes prime suspect for the fires, he suspects Jasper and Milly is determined to prove both innocent. Other characters support or thwart her endeavours. Salmon has crafted a realistic teen fiction story that features three arson attacks, family relationships, the challenges of being new to the town and country, sibling rivalry, family, friendship and community dynamics, exploitation and manipulation and a budding romance. A good read for teens with some detective work, and a strong focus on life saving, surfing and personal relationships.

All the best with your reading adventure over the next few months as we warm up the orchestra for Book Week. Please share one of your early favourites. Now, what will I read next?

Jennie Bales

Retired teacher librarian and CBCA Tasmania Social Media Coordinator

Selecting the Notables – A Fascinating Process

With the 2026 CBCA Book of the Year Notables announced earlier this week, it feels timely to reflect on this year’s judging process. Enjoy this insightful post provided by Anna Davidson that presents thoughts on the process from our three Tasmanian judges.

Tasmania is proudly represented by three CBCA judges in 2026: Dr Mark Macleod (Picture Book and New Illustrator); expatriate from the Northern Territory, Kym Diprose (Younger Readers), and myself (Early Childhood). You can read a short biography of each judge here.

Collectively, we have read 405 books over the past year, assessing each title against the award criteria to determine which titles progress to the Notables list, Shortlist, Honour Books and ultimately, the coveted gold Winner medal.

In February, judges from across Australia gathered at the State Library of Victoria for a weekend of keynote addresses and panel discussions featuring academics, authors, illustrators and publishers. These professional conversations, alongside our formal deliberations, informed the final decisions about this year’s winning titles.

We invite you to hear from each of the Tasmanian judges as we share our reflections on a stimulating and celebratory weekend dedicated to the very best of contemporary Australian children’s literature.

From Picture Book and New Illustrator judge, Mark …

I especially valued the willingness of the Picture Book and New Illustrator judges to put aside ego and offer a list of Notables and Winners that represent the best of Australian visual storytelling for young people this year. Of course, with well over 200 other books, there were many wonderful books that missed out. And each of us on the panel had to watch much loved favourites lose a place in the final list. But we are confident that both the winners and the could-have-won selections will create a valuable ongoing conversation about what readers want and need.

From Younger Reader judge, Kym …

It was interesting to find out that the Younger Readers panel were all teacher librarians this year.  I was sensitive to the possibility that this may have resulted in homogeneous opinions.  But we came from very different geographical areas and life experiences so instead our deeply held professional respect for each other resulted in a wonderful camaraderie.  Careful listening meant that we all altered our understanding of elements of various books after taking into account the thoughtful consideration of the other members of the panel.  We were able to negotiate our Notables by teleconferencing.  The joy of the judging deliberations was our opportunity to talk at length about how the language, originality and challenge within our selections heightens the reading experience of the readers in our category.

From Early Childhood judge, Anna … 

The conference opened with a keynote from Dr Christine Oughtred, who framed our deliberations through her exploration of the question, ‘Judging Quality Children’s Literature: Science or Magic?’ Christine spoke about the delicate balance between critical evaluation and the intangible qualities that make a story meaningful, reminding us to leave space for young readers to bring their own experiences and interpretations to a text. Christine’s reflections strongly resonated with the Early Childhood judging panel as we considered the shortlisted titles. After months of meeting online, it was a pleasure to gather in person to reach our final decisions. Dr Oughtred, approaching the books with fresh eyes, offered thoughtful provocations that encouraged us to re-examine each title from new angles and deepen our discussion.

With only a month to go until the 2026 CBCA Book of the Year Shortlist is announced on the 31st March we hope you enjoy exploring the wonderful selection of Notable books.

 

Anna Davidson
2025-2026 Book of the Year Judge
Junior School Teacher Librarian, avid reader (mad for Middle Grade Fiction), dog lover, yogi, nature lover, tea drinker
Twitter - @davidsonteach

 

Editor’s note: Well done judges! What a wonderful, diverse selection of books on the 2026 Notable lists. Thank you for devoting long hours to reading, collaborating and cogitating over so many titles. Your insights are appreciated! 

Children’s Book Week 2025: Book of the Year Awards

Regular reviewer and writer for the CBCA Tasmania Blog; Maureen Mann shares her thoughts on this year’s outcomes for the 2025 Book of the Year Awards.

Congratulations to all the authors and illustrators, as well as publishers involved in all children’s books published in Australia, but especially those who were successful in the Awards, announced Friday 15 August 2025. 

Are you someone, like me, who looks forward to the announcement of the winners and honour books each year? It’s not my favourite time – I like the announcement of the Notables as it gives me a chance to review my year’s reading as well as helping me make my decisions as to which ones I think should be in the Short List, and then which of those might be chosen as winners and honour books. 

But, for many, it is the best time of the year. What were your picks for the Awards? Are you happy with the results, or would you like to have a conversation with the judges?

In this blog, I am going to comment on this year’s successful books. However, I must acknowledge that I am not one of the 15 judges over the 5 categories. I have not read all entries in any category, though I have read most of the books listed in the Notables. 

The judges assess books against 5 main criteria: literary merit, including quality of language and characterisation; cohesiveness of language, style, themes; appeal to implied readership; quality of illustrations and design and production; originality.  For me, the most important is literary merit – is it multi-layered and appropriate to the implied readership? 

Older Readers

Winner: Gary Lonesborough’s I’m Not Really Here. It’s a great indigenous queer coming of age story, with some challenging themes, but resolves well. I couldn’t decide when it was set – some of the social media references didn’t quite fit 2025. It’s very similar to some of his previous titles. 

My winner would have been Birdy by Sharon Kernot which was named an Honour book. This verse novel includes the themes of love and the trauma of loss and assault, family relationships with a positive ending. Into the Mouth of the Wolf, another queer story, was the other Honour book and provided some unexpected twists and turns. 

Younger Readers

Winner: Laughter is the Best Ending by Maryam Master. For me this was the best book of the Short List, with characters relevant to the YR age group. I enjoyed the relationships within, the fact that Zee liked Oscar Wilde often in preference to the real world and that she was prepared to tread her own path. 

I was disappointed in the Honour books. Fluff is a great read and will appeal to many YR readers, but I felt that it was superficial and I don’t think it lacks literary merit. Aggie Flea Steals the Show doesn’t have the depth that I expect of a literary text for the YR group, though it is a story which many readers will enjoy. 

Early Childhood

Winner: The Wobbly Bike. This category is aimed at readers aged 0 to 6. Though I loved this book, I think it is probably more suited to slightly older readers, maybe those who are at least another 1 or 2 years older. It would have been better suited to the Picture Book category for its readership, but possibly would have been lost in that category.

Honour books: One Little Dung Beetle and How to Move a Zoo. Two great stories, with lots of literary merit and beautifully packaged, but I’m not sure are best fitted in the Early Childhood category. I think they ended up in EC so they weren’t ‘lost’. I really enjoyed Spiro, the shadow judges’ pick.

Picture Book

Winner: The Truck Cat is a fantastic story of migration, friendship and the meaning of home. It fits all the assessment criteria so well, for readers of all ages. 

Honour books. Afloat and These Long-Loved Things.  Afloat tells the story of indigenous cultures, using weaving as a cohesive link between different groups. These Long-Loved Things didn’t work for me. It’s about all those memories which we lose as we age, especially for those who develop dementia. 

Eve Pownall

Winner: Always Was, Always Will Be is a beautifully created book, the strongest of the EP Notables list for me, reminding us of many of the First Nation protest movements and actions over the past 200+ years in Australia. 

Honour Books. Making the Shrine is a graphic retelling of building the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne and that for me is also its weakness, that it is specific to Victoria rather than being relevant Australia-wide.  South with the Seabirds celebrates 4 women’s achievements in their successful voyage (breaking accepted social beliefs) to Macquarie Island in the 1950s. 

New Illustrator

Congratulations to Sarah Capon for her illustrations in Grow Big, Little Seed using the medium of paper collage. The story itself is challenging as it is about pregnancy loss followed by success. 

Happy reading for the next year!

Maureen Mann
Retired teacher librarian and avid reader

Editor's Note: Well done to all the creators and judges involved in the process. Find out more about the awards, the judging and Book Week on the CBCA website.

I am sure many readers had some favourites from the shortlist or notables. Why not share a title or too that you think was extra special.

 

Emotional Intelligence

This week Maureen Mann casts an alternative lens over a selection of CBCA Shortlisted titles to consider those that could spark conversations around empathy and resilience because of the emotional intelligence displayed in the characters. You are invited to add your own examples to this list.

The 2024 CBCA Shortlist contains books with a wealth of themes which can be explored in the classroom or at home. There are the regular themes of family relationships, friendship, historical settings, mental health issues and many others. I’d like to focus on Emotional Intelligence which I’ll define as the ability to empathise with others’ feelings, viewpoints, cultural backgrounds and diversity to develop resilience and coping skills. The ideal is that through experiencing Emotional Intelligence in story format that readers can then discuss and learn, at an appropriate level, from their reading.

Here are a few of my favourites from the 2024 Short List which I think will be excellent books to use with different age groups to focus on this concept.

Grace Notes by Karen Comer.  

Set during Victoria’s early lockdowns, Grace sets out to help her grandmother, now in a nursing home, cope with the absence of her husband, absence of music and contact with the outside world. Crux learns to understand others’ points of views through his interaction with other street artists. Positive family dynamics are very well portrayed, while allowing the reader to understand the everyday frictions.

Inkflower by Suzi Zail. 

This story has two timelines: the 1980s and the Holocaust years. The latter sections are harrowing, possibly making readers question their veracity over the hardships and cruelty but by using discussion readers should becoming more empathetic people. Lisa’s story in the 1980s shows her emotional adjustment to the earlier conditions as she learns more and more, and how to cope with the grief of her father’s encroaching illness. 

Scout and the Rescue Dogs by Dianne Wolfer and Tony Flowers.

Scout as a character is almost too good to be true as she responds to the plight of homeless dogs, of animals injured in the wildfires across Victoria and NSW, and her developing friendship from a school assignment. But Scout such an empathetic character and her actions centre on her emotional maturity, her generosity and her wonderful relationship with her truckie father. 

Being Jimmy Baxter by Fiona Lloyd. 

Jimmy is a carer and old beyond his years, while also being naïve. The reader has to come to terms with these variables to develop an understanding of his view of the world, and eventually realise that not everyone has the same opportunities or setbacks.

Grace and Mr Milligan by Caz Goodwin. 

Grace forms a strong friendship with her neighbour Mr Milligan as well as his pet goat Charlie and the three of them do everything together. When Charlie dies from old age, Mr Milligan in particular loses the will to live and Grace slowly encourages him to return to his old self. There are lots of discussion points which will help early childhood readers understand the sadness as well as the importance of friendship.

Bear and Duck are Friends by Sue deGennaro. 

Bear is scared of everything and Duck has to help him overcome his fears. It’s the small creature helping the bigger one until they both realise that, in fact, they are helping each other achieve their goals. Lots of discussion for early childhood readers on bullying and stereotypes and meeting new challenges. 

That Bird has Arms by Kate Temple & Jol Temple and Ronojoy Ghosh & Niharika Hukku.  

Roy is a bird who has arms but has to hide them from all the other birds because that’s an unheard-of condition. The other birds mock the basic concept, but all have to accept the differences when Roy demonstrates so clearly and uniquely that he can solve a problem. For the picture book reader, regardless of age, this understanding of diversity as well as the establishment of individual identity is a strength.

Every Night at Midnight by Peter Cheong. 

This is another book exploring identity and acceptance. Felix struggles to make and keep friends because he can’t join in normal activities: every night he turns into a wolf and fears being ostracised by his human buddies. On first reading, its suited to younger readers but older picture book readers will bring many more emotional experiences and maturity to all the events in this book. 

Do you agree with my selections? Which other 2024 short list titles would you like to add to this list of books exploring emotional intelligence? 

 

Maureen Mann

Retired teacher librarian and avid reader.