Happy 80th Birthday CBCA Book of the Year

On Saturday 31^st October, a capacity crowd of 120 excited children along with their responsible adults, CBCA members and a number of local authors and illustrators gathered at C3 Conference Centre in Hobart to celebrate this wonderful milestone in the Book of the Year Awards.

President Steve Martin opened proceedings before passing the MC role over to Jennie Bales. Jennie described the newly created webpage, Notably Tasmanian,  which has been developed to showcase Tasmanian authors and illustrators whose works have been recognised in the Book of the Year awards: as a notable or short list title, and highlighting those who have been short-listed or received Honour book or Winner in the relevant category. 

Jennie introduced Jedda Robaard who illustrated Where the River Runs Free (written by Vikki Conley) about children out on a walk searching for a platypus in the river (the inspiration for this Platypus themed event and its location on the banks for the Hobart Rivulet). Jedda read this lovely book to an eager young audience and then showed them how to draw a platypus — simple lines and shapes — with varying successes but delighting all participants. Some of the attending adults - including illustrators - had fun following along.

TasWater sponsored the afternoon – thank you so much. Their book, Saving the Creek: The Water Guardians, was freely available. Kate Beard, from TasWater introduced the Water Guardians Water Literacy Program and went on to both entertain, and educate, the crowd.  With the help of 13 young volunteers Kate kept her audience enthralled telling the story of a creek developing into a river and having to cope with the many pollutants which make their way into waterways. Each young volunteer added the contents of a small container into a jug to show, by the end, just how dirty our water can become. Along the way, Kate suggested solutions and improvements to reduce the pollution. It was a great session. Thanks Kate. 

As with all good birthday parties, a rousing rendition of Happy Birthday was followed by guests collecting their cake, and eating it! A very big thanks to Felicity for the lovely cupcakes complete with a chocolate platypus on top – thoroughly moreish, and a popular feature that was greatly admired, and then devoured. 

CBCA Tas also thanks Hobart Bookshop for providing the opportunity for some retail therapy with a range of representative titles available for purchase, and to local business, Red Parka, for kindly donating the thank you gifts for our presenters – beautiful platypus pins to remind them of the event. It was also great to see the creators who attended as they informally mingled and chatted to the audience – a real treat for all.

Which titles do you remember from past Book of the Year Awards? Check out the Notably Tasmanian webpage and downloadable PDF to see if there was a Tasmanian involved in recent years.

Maureen Mann
Retired teacher librarian and avid reader

Celebrating the 2026 CBCA Book of the Year Awards

Anna Davidson, one of the Tasmanian judges for the 2026 Book of the Year Awards, provides readers with a window into the prestigious national award ceremony held at the State Library of NSW. What a wonderful experience!

Friday 21 August was a big day in the Australian children’s literary world, with the announcement of the 2026 CBCA Book of the Year Awards.

As a teacher librarian, it’s always a day to eagerly anticipate; slipping out of class if necessary to check the winners at 12pm, before spending lunchtime with other passionate children’s literature enthusiasts, umming and ahhing, agreeing and disagreeing over the judges’ choices.

In 2026, however, there was a different kind of excitement for me. As one of the 2026 CBCA judges, it was the day that I, along with all the other judges, no longer had to keep the results secret!

Many of the judges were represented at the official Awards Ceremony at the State Library of NSW, and it was a delight to catch up with them in person for the first time since our judges’ deliberation conference in February.

The CBCA has worked hard to ensure that student voices are prominent in the Awards Ceremony, so it was wonderful to see students taking on the role of MCs and to hear from Shadow Judges as they shared their thoughts on the shortlisted Younger Readers and Older Readers books.

Student press interviewing Jo Pankridge -
CBCA National Chairperson. Image © CBCA

It was also wonderful to see so many of the shortlisted creators in attendance. As a judge, it was a particular treat to meet authors and illustrators whose work I had spent so many months reading, discussing and debating, and to share in their joy as their books were celebrated so publicly.

Award Ceremony Convenors - Alex & Marissa
Award recipients - Anne Donaldson& Cate James
Image © CBCA

Thank you to the CBCA for putting on such a fabulous event and for bringing Australian authors, illustrators, publishers, judges, readers and, of course, students together to celebrate contemporary Australian children’s literature.

Older Reader Award recipients. Image © ACBCA

Early Childhood Award Recipients. Image © CBCA

And while the 2026 awards may have drawn to a close, the work has already begun for the 2027 CBCA judges. A new wave of incredible books is arriving in our homes, ready to be read, re-read and pored over, with plenty of time to consider their place in the ever-evolving story of Australian children’s literature.

Eleri Harris at the Award Ceremony
 Image © CBCA

Anna Davidson

Head of Library, The Hutchins School

CBCA 2026/27 Judge: Early Childhood category

Editor's note: Find out more about Tasmanian award winner Eleri Harris and Tasmanian Shadow Judges on the CBCA Tasmania blog.

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.

What’s on the 2023 Notables Picture Book List?

Have you been fine tuning your reading selections to target some of the great titles on the 2023 CBCA Notables list? This week Maureen shares her thoughts on titles in the Picture Book of the Year list.

I wonder….. I’ve never been very good at predicting the judges’ choices for the titles which are put onto the CBCA Short List. Though I often don’t agree with the choices, I am confident that the process has been thorough and the choices are those that the judges for that year have agreed on 

I’m going to focus only on the Picture Book category. I’ve read all but 2 of the titles on the PB Notables list and can no longer wait for the outstanding ones to come from the library. 

For me, the Picture Book list has a large number of books suited to the Early Childhood section. I wonder if this is an indication of what is being published? Are picture books viewed as being only for young readers? Are publishers not producing many picture books for more mature readers?  Or is the number of picture books included on the Notables list an indicator of the leanings of the judging panel? I don’t know the answer, and none of us do.

What have been my favourites? Remember too, there are 2 titles which I haven’t read so I haven’t been able to include or discount them. 

Be Careful Xiao Xin! by Alice Pung & Sher Rill Ng (2022), Working Title Press.

Xiao Xin thinks he is a red fire warrior but his family see the world as a dangerous place. A wonderful presentation of child and adult learning to conquer fear and developing trust. The book is bi-lingual, with visual and linguistic metaphors. Great for all ages.

Crumbs by Phil Cummings & Shane DeVries (2022), Scholastic Press. 

This is a book which shows a homeless man as a generous person and his actions have a strong impact on Ella and her father. The main theme is social inclusiveness. It reads well aloud and has some beautiful language. The illustrations portray the main characters clearly, but the backgrounds reflect the chill of the winter day. 

Dirt by Sea by Michael Wagner & Tom Jellett (20220, Penguin Random House. 

This large format book, with its comic-style illustrations, is a celebration of the Australian coastline, especially for a child raised in the dry red-centre. Daisy thinks our national anthem includes the words “dirt by sea” and Dad sets out to show her the sea and prove Australia is more than the landscape she has known.  Their road trip around the coast focuses on much that is stunning in our varied land. I’m not sure it’s shortlist quality, but I loved it. 

Farmhouse by Sophie Blackall (2022), Lothian.

Superficially, this is the story of an old American farmhouse and the family of 12 children who had lived in it, depicting the prosperous as well as the less good times. The illustrations are multi-layered, literally, and figuratively. At the end of the book, the reader sees the house as if it were a doll’s house and ends with the sad news that the building was demolished but that its valuables had been salvage.  One criticism for me is that the text is one long sentence. I would have preferred it to have some breaks to allow the reader to reflect, rather like ‘white space’ in illustrations. 

My Strange Shrinking Parents by Zeno Sworder (2022), Thames and Hudson. 

We all think our parents are strange – at least when we are young, we do. This fable is about parents who, without the money to buy what they think their child should have, barter their height throughout his life, to give him the best they can. A wonderful celebration of the sacrifice made by parents, including immigrants who arrive with nothing. Wonderful illustrations which repay the reader for careful attention to detail. 

The Tree of Ecstasy and Unbearable Sadness by Matt Ottley (2022), Dirt Lane Press. 

This is not merely a book to read, but is accompanied by a 50 minute sound track, composed by the author, which complements the text. It’s the story of a boy whose mental illness gradually takes over his life until the last section when there is hope. Even without the musical support, the story and illustrations are confronting and challenging. Readers need to come to it with kindness to themselves.  For me, this complexity and demanding nature of the content stops it being shortlist material because I think there could be readers who could be damaged by reading it without support. 

When You’re Older by Sophie Laguna & Judy Watson (2022), Allen & Unwin. 

A celebration of the bond between an older brother and his very young sibling, and all the things which are planned for the future. Young readers will empathise with the hopes of the older child. More mature readers, including adults, will appreciate the rich language and reflect on the experiences presented.   

Where? by Jordan Collins & Phil Lesnie (2022), Allen & Unwin.

This book presents a challenge to all readers to accept those around us for who they are, regardless of colour, ethnic background and beliefs and accept that everyone might look different on the outside but are very similar.  It’s based on a heartfelt poem written by the author when a teenager, having grown up in the USA, wanting to be the same as everyone else, but his skin prevented it happening. 

Whisper on the Wind  by Claire Saxby & Jess Racklyeft (2022), Allen & Unwin. 

After a dream, Ren sends a wish across the sea and the cumulative text follows that wish around the world until it is granted. The reader sees the sea in all its moods and imaginings: the ‘real’ world below the surface as well as fantastical creatures and concepts. Young readers will be able to join in to the text once they become familiar with it.

I would have liked to see My Shadow is Purple (by Scott Stuart [2022], Larrikin House) on the Picture list, rather than Early Childhood, as I think it would be powerful for slightly older readers, and there’s many discussion points within it for more mature readers. It has failings – the stereotype of blue for boys and pink for girls – but redeeming features in the recognition that we all have own skills and perspectives.  

What do you hope to see on the Short List when it is published at noon AEDT 28 March 2023?

Maureen Mann
Retired teacher librarian and avid reader

Editor's note: It is hard to pick a favourite from this list! I am still reading, but so far my top two favourite titles are Farmhouse and Be Careful, Xiao Xin! Their accessibility and the many layers of story within the illustrations are particularly strong and resonated strongly in my reading.

The Benefits of Shadows: Thoughts on the SUN Shadow Judging Program

Lyndon Riggall, a Senior Secondary English teacher in Tasmania, was eager to facilitate a group of keen students in the Shadow Judging process and shares his insights into this new CBCA initiative.

I am sitting with a small group of students watching a live stream from John Marsden’s remarkable Candlebark School in Victoria. Jay Laga'aia is on the screen, and we are waiting patiently for him to announce the Older Readers Book of the Year. Things are a little different this time, though. Firstly, the Older Readers Book of the Year has already been announced. We learnt what it was a week ago. Secondly, my students are especially invested in the outcome… after all, in this case they have helped decide it.

I talk, of course, of the SUN Project’s Shadow Judging Program, which began this year. Alongside creative components and author visits, the goal of Shadow Judging was to create a separate set of “Shadowers’ Choice” awards, chosen by students of appropriate age groups from across the country. I am extremely excited about this concept. When I was in Grade 10 and was asked to design and undertake an independent project, I had a pretty radical idea (in hindsight, I’m lucky that my teacher didn’t take the whole thing as a personal insult). I went to the school library and collected a stack of novels covering different genres, authors and styles. Then, I showed these books to group of staff and students, asking them which they thought the children of the school would like the best. The lists I composed at the end of my project were almost direct opposites. It turned out that when it comes to deciding what to read, even adults looking for books that will appeal to children sometimes see things with vastly different eyes to the children themselves. It came as no surprise, then, that I also saw very diverse points of view expressed in the Shadow Judges’ final decision-making.

CBCA Sun Project: Shadow Judge Shadowers' Choice Awards Announcement 2022

I’m not suggesting, of course, that we throw away the traditional CBCA awards altogether and let young people entirely run the show. Award-winning books in these categories are selected based on their literary merit rather than simple appeal to readers, and that is as it should be when we consider the legacy that is being made by the council long-term. That said, when the shadow judging teams made vastly different decisions to the adults even when using quite similar criteria, it solidified in my mind an unshakeable belief that our children and adolescents see the world with different eyes… the only way to truly be sure what connects with them in the world of reading is to take notice and ask them.   

My group of shadow judges found How to Repaint a Life by Stephen Herrick to be the novel that most resonated with them from the Older Readers category. The Children’s Book Council found Tiger Daughter by Rebecca Lim to be the book with the highest level of literary merit. In general, the Shadow Judges from across the country selected Sugar Town Queens by Malla Nunn as the strongest title on the shortlist. It seems there is no hope of getting a clear answer. But should this significant discrepancy bother us? I don’t think so. The Shadow Judging Process does two wonderful things: it reminds us that readers are different (and that no single judging decision in an instance like this is by default the right one), and it promotes discussion, debate and further reading. These are—to me at least—objectively positive outcomes. 

When I asked the classes at the school where I work whether anyone might be interested in being involved in the Shadow Judging project, the response was enthusiastic. “I love judging people!” one student immediately declared. My judges have been learning—as I once did when I was a CBCA judge a decade ago—the joys and sorrows of the judging process. It is awful and frustrating to see books that you love fall to the wayside of group consensus, but it is wonderful to be part of the process of picking a winner: to see a text celebrated, shared and appreciated in a way that might otherwise never have been possible for it. The Shadow Judging program empowers young people to have autonomy in their decision-making and brings more attention to books. As I watched my students collaborate, share, consider, create, and get excited about individual novels, I saw a culture of reading grow. Many of them are still passionate about individual titles and are pushing these books onto their friends and classmates. Shadow Judging is creating something special.

I suspect that my students will be back next year, but in the meantime we’ve got even more wonderful books to read and celebrate than we have ever had before… 

That, for me, is the greatest win of all.

Lyndon Riggall is a writer and teacher from Launceston. With Graeme Whittle he created the picture book Becoming Ellie, and he has recently collaborated with Grace Roberts on Tamar the Thief, which is available to read for free on the Tamar Valley Writers Festival website. Lyndon can be found at http://lyndonriggall.com and on Twitter @lyndonriggall.

Editor’s note: Further details on the winning titles in the Shadow Judging and links to the creative responses to these books can be found on the CBCA website under Shadow Judging.