CBCA 2023 Notable Books announced

The Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) has announced its list of Notable Books for 2023. The list acts as the longlist for the CBCA Book of the Year Awards.

The books in each category are:

Older readers

• Ask No Questions (Eva Collins, P&W)
• Completely Normal (and Other Lies) (Biffy James, HGCP)
• The Greatest Thing (Sarah Winifred Searle, A&U)
• Interned (Pamela Rushby, Walker Books)
• Invisibly Grace (Avery McDougall, Forty South)
• The Killing Code (Ellie Marney, A&U)
• Libby Lawrence is Good at Pretending (Jodi McAlister, Wakefield)
• A Little Spark (Barry Jonsberg, A&U)
• The Museum of Broken Things (Lauren Draper, Text)
• Neverlanders (Tom Taylor, iillus by Jon Sommariva, PRH)
• The Not So Chosen One (Kate Emery, Text)
• The Other Side of Tomorrow (Hayley Lawrence, Scholastic)
• Scorpion Falls (Martin Chatterton, Ford Street)
• Slipping the Noose (Meg Caddy, Text)
• The Stand In (Allison Rushby, Scholastic)
• Triple Threat (Katy Warner, HGCP)
• Unnecessary Drama (Nina Kenwood, Text)
• The Wearing of the Green (Claire Saxby, Walker Books)
• We Who Hunt the Hollow (Kate Murray, HGCP)
• What We All Saw (Mike Lucas, PRH)
• Where You Left Us (Rhiannon Wilde, UQP).

Younger readers

• All Four Quarters of the Moon (Shirley Marr, PRH)
• August & Jones (Pip Harry, Hachette)
• Big Magic (Sarah Armstrong, HGCP)
• The Book of Wondrous Possibilities (Deborah Abela, PRH)
• The Bravest Word (Kate Foster, Walker Books)
• Dusty in the Outwilds (Rhiannon Williams, HGCP)
• Evie and Rhino (Neridah McMullin, illus by Astred Hicks, Walker Books)
• Hedgewitch (Skye McKenna, Welbeck)
• The Jammer (Nova Weetman, UQP)
• The Last Light Horse (Dianne Wolfer, illus by Brian Simmonds, Fremantle Press)
• Mikki and Me and the Out-of-Tune Tree (Marion Roberts, A&U)
• Ming and Flo Fight for the Future (Jackie French, HarperCollins)
• No Words (Maryam Master, Pan Macmillan)
• The Raven’s Song (Zana Fraillon & Bren MacDibble, A&U)
• Runt (Craig Silvey, A&U)
• The Sugarcane Kids and the Red-bottomed Boat (Charlie Archbold, Text)
• The Travelling Bookshop: Mim and the Woeful Wedding (Katrina Nannestad, illus by Cheryl Orsini, HarperCollins)
• Waiting for the Storks (Katrina Nannestad, HarperCollins)
• The Way of Dog (Zana Fraillon, illus by Sean Buckingham, UQP)
• We Run Tomorrow (Nat Amoore, illus by Mike Barry, PRH)
• What About Thao? (Oliver Phommavanh, PRH)
• What Snail Knows (Kathryn Apel, UQP)
• The Wintrish Girl (Melanie La’Brooy, UQP)
• Xavier in the Meantime (Kate Gordon, Riveted Press)
• Zadie Ma and the Dog Who Chased the Moon (Gabrielle Wang, PRH).

Early childhood

• Australian Animals Indigenous Discovery Big Book (Emily Bruce, illus by Leanne Mulgo Watson, Learning Media)
• Backyard Beasties (Helen Milroy, Fremantle Press)
• Beside the Sea (Kerri Day, illus by Jess Racklyeft, Windy Hollow)
• Bev and Kev (Katrina Germein, illus by Mandy Foot, Little Book Press)
• Clementine’s Treasure (Annie White, New Frontier Publishing)
• Come Over to My House (Eliza Hull, illus by Daniel Gray-Barnett, HGCP)
• The Echidna Near My Place (Sue Whiting, illus by Cate James, Walker Books)
• Ella and the Useless Day (Meg McKinlay, illus by Karen Blair, Walker Books)
• Emergency! Emergency! Vehicles to the Rescue (Rhiân Williams, illus by Tom Jellet, Wild Dog)
• Garden on Red Gum Road, The (Phil Cummings, illus by Danny Snell, Little Book Press)
• How Do You Say I Love You? (Ashleigh Barton, illus by Martina Heiduczek, HarperCollins)
• Jack’s Jumper (Sara Acton, Walker Books)
• Jigsaw: A Puzzle in the Post (Bob Graham, Walker Books)
• Lionel and Me (Corinne Fenton, illus by Tracie Grimwood, New Frontier)
• Market Day (Carrie Gallasch, illus by Hannah Sommerville, HGCP)
• My Shadow is Purple (Scott Stuart, Larrikin House)
• Please Handle With Care (Coral Vass, illus by Tull Suwannakit, New Frontier)
• Polly’s Grand Party Plan (Jane Godwin, illus by Evie Barrow, Affirm)
• Rainbow Days (Margaret Hamilton, illus by Anna Pignataro, HGCP)
• Ship Ahoy! Box Boy (Mal Webster, Windy Hollow)
• Snap! (Anna Walker, Scribble)
• Thank you rain! (Sally Morgan, illus by Johnny Warrkatja Malibirr, Magabala)
• This Little Joey (Renee Treml, PRH)
• Where the Lyrebird Lives (Vikki Conley, illus by Max Hamilton, Windy Hollow).

Picture book of the year

• 11 Words for Love (Randa Abdel-Fattah, illus by Maxine Beneba Clarke, Hachette)
• Accidentally Kelly Street (Briony Stewart, Affirm)
• A Job for Kingsley (Gabriel Evans, HGCP)
• Amma’s Sari (Sandhya Parappukkaran, illus by Michelle Pereira, HGCP)
• Be Careful, Xiao Xin! (Alice Pung, illus by Sher Rill Ng, HarperCollins)
• Crumbs (Phil Cummings, illus by Shane DeVries, Scholastic)
• Dirt by Sea (Michael Wagner, illus by Tom Jellett, PRH)
• Egg (Clare Atkins, illus by Harrison Vial, UQP)
• Farmhouse (Sophie Blackall, Hachette)
• Frank’s Red Hat (Sean E Avery, Walker Books)
• Jigsaw: A Puzzle in the Post (Bob Graham, Walker Books)
• Jørn’s Magnificent Imagination (Coral Vass, illus by Nicky Johnston, EK Books)
• Koala Ark (Stephen Michael King, Scholastic)
• My Strange Shrinking Parents (Zeno Sworder, T&H)
• Open Your Heart to Country (Jasmine Seymour, Magabala)
• Our Dreaming (Kirli Saunders, illus by Dub Leffler, Scholastic)
• Paradise Sands: A Story of Enchantment (Levi Pinfold, Walker Books)
• Piano Fingers (Caroline Magerl, Walker Books)
• Summer Blue (Trudie Trewin, illus by Marjorie Crosby-Fairall, Scholastic)
• Tiny Wonders (Sally Soweol Han, UQP)
• The Tree of Ecstasy and Unbearable Sadness (Matt Ottley, WestWords)
• What to Say When You Don’t Know What to Say (Davina Bell, illus by Hilary Jean Tapper, Hachette)
• When You’re Older (Sofie Laguna, illus by Judy Watson, A&U)
• Where? (Jordan Collins, illus by Phil Lesnie, A&U)
• Whisper on the Wind (Claire Saxby, illus by Jess Racklyeft, A&U).

Eve Pownall Award

• A Is for Australian Reefs (Frané Lessac, Walker Books)
• Amazing Animal Journeys (Jennifer Cossins, Hachette)
• Charlie’s Swim (Edith Wright, illus by Charmaine Ledden-Lewis, Magabala)
• Come Together: Things Every Aussie Kid Should Know about the First Peoples (Isaiah Firebrace, illus by Jaelyn Biumaiwai, Hardie Grant)
• DEEP: Delve into Hidden Worlds (Jess McGeachin, Welbeck)
• The Echidna Near My Place (Sue Whiting, illus by Cate James, Walker Books)
• Grub (Sandra Severgnini, illus by Sandra Severgnini, EK Books)
• The Happiest Boy on Earth (Eddie Jaku, illus by Nathaniel Eckstrom, Pan Macmillan)
• Hello Every Body! (Samantha Curcio, HGCP)
• In An Artist’s Garden (Claire Orrell, T&H)
• Kind (Jess McGeachin, A&U)
• The Marvellous Manner of Water (Philip Bunting, Scholastic)
• Naturopolis (Deborah Frenkel, illus by Ingrid Bartkowiak, Storytorch)
• Oceans of Plastic: Understanding and Solving a Pollution Problem (Tracey Gray, CSIRO)
• Off to the Market (Alice Oehr, illus by Alice Oehr, Scribble Kids’ Books)
• On the Trail of the Plains-wanderer: A Precious Australian Bird (Rohan Cleave, illus by Julian Teh, CSIRO)
• Opal and Dart (Vianne Brain, illus by Clare Bradley, Fourty South)
• Peregrines in the City (Andrew Kelly, illus by Dean A. Jones, Wild Dog)
• A Shorebird Flying Adventure (Jackie Kerin, illus by Milly Formby, CSIRO)
• Votes for Women! The story of Nellie, Rose and Mary (Mark Wilson, Hachette)
• The Voyage of Whale and Calf (Vanessa Pirotta, illus by Samantha Metcalfe, CSIRO)
• Where Do Babies Come From? (Heath McKenzie, Lake Press)
• Wild Australian Life (Leonard Cronin, illus by Chris Nixon, A&U)
• Wonders Under the Sun (Tai Snaith, T&H)
• The World’s Most Ridiculous Animals (Philip Bunting, HGCP).

The shortlists for the 2023 CBCA Book of the Year Awards will be announced at noon on Tuesday, 28 March. The winners will be announced on Friday, 18 August.

Children’s Book Week will run from 19-25 August. The Sun Project: Shadow Judging Book of the Year will run on the final day of book week, where groups of young people across Australia vote for their winners from the 2023 shortlist, choosing one winner per category.

For more information about the CBCA Awards and this year’s Notables list, see the CBCA website.

Category: Junior Local news