Australian CYA at Frankfurt
An array of books—from those for young children to those on the cusp of adulthood, and with subjects ranging from axolotls to ultra-villains—are set to feature among publishers’ CYA pitches at Frankfurt. Below are some highlights that publishers are excited to share at the fair this year.
Picture books
From Allen & Unwin, for children aged 3 to 6, A Beginner’s Guide to Choosing the Perfect Pet (Ali Rutstein, illus by Tommy Doyle, October) is ‘a very funny, anarchic picture book that will appeal to kids who are longing for a pet … as well as parents who are trying to avoid one!’ ‘While the text says one thing, the gloriously energetic illustrations say quite another,’ says A&U, promising that this book is ‘perfect for pet-owners, pet-wanters, and anyone who loves mischief and mayhem!’ Also from A&U, The Tractor Has a Wobbly Wheel (Tim Saunders, illus by Carla Martell, March 2025) is also aimed at this age bracket, with a perennially popular subject.
From Fremantle, Bigfoot vs Yeti by James Foley is a new picture book by the creator of the publisher’s international success story Stellarphant. The new book is ‘a love story in the tradition of Romeo and Juliet … but Bigfoot vs Yeti couldn’t be less traditional in format with artwork that breaks new boundaries as it gradually moves from a wood-cut graphic novel style to a full-colour extravaganza’, says Fremantle CEO Alex Allan. Also from Fremantle is Timeless by Kelly Canby, a winner in the coveted Children’s Book Council of Australia awards. ‘The book is gorgeously illustrated and both entertaining and sophisticated in the way it approaches the complex concept of time,’ says Allan.
In Winifred Wanders the World (Frieda Herrmann, illus by Hilary Herrmann, Little Owl Books/Animal Dreaming Publishing, December), Winifred is amazed that, up close, the waves don’t sound fearsome at all; they sound like a song. In Rosie’s Garden (Olivia Coates, illus by Samantha McLelland, Exisle), for children aged 3 to 7, ‘Rosie loves nothing more than digging and spending time in her neighbourhood garden’. ‘But when the garden is destroyed to make way for a towering skyscraper, Rosie has to take some very brave—and unexpected—action to save the day’, in a book that ‘explores themes of sustainability, community engagement and navigating change in a way that is understandable and accessible’.
In Verity Finds Her Voice (Kristin Kelly, illus by Jasmine Berry, Exisle), for children aged 3 to 8 years, Verity is a shy preschooler who always does whatever others tell her: ‘She picks up after her friends, has no say in games, and even plays second fiddle to a drooling baby,’ says the publisher. ‘But when she is overlooked at her beloved swimming class, Verity realises something needs to change—and discovers the courage to speak up.’
Also from Exisle, The Mosaic (Deborah Kelly, illus by Nicky Johnston) is a story about family separation, inspired by the author’s conversations with her children about her own separation; and The Humongous Humdingle Family and the Tiny House (Michelle Wilson & PJ Reece) is a ‘charming story about minimalism, multi-generational living, and the importance of appreciating what we have’.
From Hardie Grant Children’s Publishing, look out for Waiters in Elevators (Dylan Shearsby & Amanda Shearsby, August), also for readers aged 3 to 7. In this picture book, Hanz and Franz are waiters in elevators. ‘They think of the Rigatoni Hotel’s loyal guests as friends, and their fellow workers as family. But when no one says please, much less thank you, it starts to wear on our waiters in elevators. Will they hand in their resignation at last?’ Publisher Chren Byng says the book is ‘jam-packed with hilarious characters, an epic setting and joyful read-it-again storytelling’. Bing adds: ‘While [readers will] get caught up in the wild goings-on of the Hotel Rigatoni and its cast of eccentric guests, there’s also a gorgeous message about gratitude and service buried at its heart.’
From Hachette, How to Help When You Really Want to Help (Davina Bell, illus by Hilary Jean Tapper) is the third installment in the multi-award-winning series, which has been published into six territories including the US and UK. ‘This warm and whimsical guide will teach little readers how to negotiate new experiences and big emotions with empathy, kindness and words from the heart,’ says Hachette.
In Elegy for an Elephant (Narratives of Nature), which was shortlisted for the New South Wales Premier’s Literary Awards, author and illustrator Ryan Abramowitz draws on his own family’s experience and the input of professionals to address the sensitive subject of suicide. A story of three children seeking their father’s soul, the picture book is ‘offered as a beacon of hope for readers aged 7+ navigating grief, and for the families and communities supporting them through their mourning’, and has been ‘sensitively and uniquely designed alongside mental health practitioners’, says the publisher, which adds that the book can be used as ‘a resource for processing grief through prompting conversations in safe and supported ways’.
From Pantera, The Rainbow Garden (Shane Jenek, April 2025) is ‘a gorgeous, fully illustrated picture book by beloved drag performer Courtney Act and renowned Yuwi, Torres Strait and South Sea Islander artist Dylan Mooney’. In Nan’s garden, where kangaroo paws play soccer, waterlilies do synchronised swimming, and lilly pillies are budding scientists, Confetti is on a mission to find out just who they are—a wistful waratah, a serious grevillea, or perhaps a frolicking fern? For children three years and older, The Rainbow Garden ‘explores difference and connection, individuality and self-discovery’, says Pantera. Says Pantera publishing director Lex Hirst: ‘Courtney Act has a unique place in our culture, as a beacon for self-expression and inclusion. This gorgeous story, enhanced by Dylan Mooney’s spectacular illustrations, is a playful way to talk about a powerful idea—that we all need to be free to discover and celebrate who we really are. A vital message for today’s children and adults alike.’
Junior fiction
In junior fiction, Allen & Unwin has a new installment in the Bravepaw series by L M Wilkinson, illustrated by Lavanya Naidu, for ages 7 to 11. In Bravepaw and the Clawstone of Rotwood Mire (March 2025), ‘Titch and Huckleberry have followed their hearts … right into the path of a terrifying swamp monster. Maybe their hearts aren’t to be trusted? Maybe Titch isn’t Bravepaw after all? Bravepaw or not, Titch is not about to give up!’ The publisher says this title is ‘for kids who love Wings of Fire, Deltora Quest and Willow, parents who love Lord of the Rings and The Dark Crystal and Redwall, and anyone who plays D&D, or loves small furry creatures being Very Brave’.
From Hardie Grant Children’s Publishing comes the first in a new series for readers aged 4 to 8. In Ebb & Flo #1: Oopsy Daisy! (Laura Bunting & Philip Bunting, March), Ebb and Flo ‘often have contrasting approaches to life, but they also have a great friendship that only gets stronger as they navigate their differences’. Each story in the series features decodable phonetic words, sight words and high-frequency words, and phoneme manipulation to boost phonological awareness, alongside friendship stories. Hardie Grant will be launching the series with eight titles publishing across 2025. ‘What I love most about Ebb & Flo is that it’s an early reader series that has something for the parents too,’ says Byng. ‘These are books the whole household will simply adore.’
Also from Hardie Grant Children’s Publishing comes the second in the ‘hilariously spooky’ Big Trouble series, for readers aged 5 to 10. In Big Trouble #2: Big Trouble with an Old Fart (Lachlann Carter, illus by Douglas Holgate, April), readers will find out if Maddie and Clare can stop ‘a prehistoric mutant fart gas from zombifying everything in Dead End, including their own dad’. Says publisher Marisa Pintado of the series: ‘Smashing together Twilight Zone with the crazy energy of Adventure Time, it’s set in a dead-end street where anything can—and will—come to life with a vengeance … This series features everything from a mass uprising of angry chairs, [and] an invasion of killer pineapples, [to] a scary-movie monster coming to life.’
Middle-grade
For a middle-grade audience, The Last Seed Keeper Trilogy (The Last Seed Keeper‘New Sanctuary and Amity) by Paul Russell (Exisle) is a dystopian series for readers aged 9 to 13 that ‘provides upper middle-grade and early YA readers with a complex, dynamic plot, without the mature themes such as romance and violence that sometimes feature in this age bracket’, says the publisher—‘an empowering read about corruption, environmentalism, and what we would do if nature gave us a second chance’. Ivy is a Groundling, bound to roam the surface of the Earth, eking a living from the rubble of the past. Skyler lives above the clouds in a haven of technology, wanting for nothing, yet knowing there must be something more. Their paths are fixed, in a barren world that has forgotten nature… until Ivy makes a discovery that changes everything.’
Also for middle-grade readers, for those aged 8 to 12, in Marion and the Forty Thieves (Sarah Luke, NLA Publishing), Marion’s life is anything but ordinary. The daughter of the principal, Captain Neitenstein, she is the only girl aboard a magnificent floating boys’ school, anchored permanently in Sydney Harbour in the late 1800s. ‘Based on the real-life Marion Neitenstein, this middle-grade “faction” offers an immersive and historically accurate experience of an unusual 19th-century institution for neglected boys’, in which ‘Marion’s middle-class life is contrasted with Sydney slum life and wharf culture’. Says the publisher: ‘This book is perfect for readers looking for a rollicking adventure set in turn-of-the-century Sydney, strong female characters and a diverse cast of characters.’
Graphic novels
Inked (Karen Wasson, illus by Jake A Minton, Hardie Grant Children’s Publishing, April), for children aged 8 and above, is the first release from new imprint Figment, Hardie Grant’s new dedicated graphic novel list launching in 2025. Says Pintado: ‘This hilarious enemies-to-besties middle-grade graphic novel explores the unlikely friendship between a stubborn, extraverted octopus called Otto and a lonely 12-year-old kid called Sid, who does not want to be seen talking to him—and it’s a riot from start to finish, packed full of heart and funny banter and hijinks … It’s giving Woody and Buzz, Bert and Ernie, Frasier and Niles! It’s the best. Readers of Remy Lai’s Pawcasso and Raina Telgemeier’s Sisters will love it.’
For a younger audience, the Miles & Jones series (Sam Smith & César Lador, Hachette) is a junior graphic novel series for readers aged 5 to 8. ‘These action-packed adventures are a cross between The Bad Guys and Indiana Jones,’ says the publisher. ‘Each book sees best friends Shackleton and Amelia take on evil ultra-villains and tricky curses, and each solution is something which primary school–aged readers will recognise as a skill they are learning in real life. With timeless artwork, dyslexic-friendly fonts, and funny, relatable text, even the most reluctant readers will want to jump in.’
YA
Comes the Night (Isobelle Carmody, A&U, November), for readers aged 14 to 18, is a ‘superb epic quest set in the near future, full of secrets, high stakes, peril, deceptions and dreamwalkers’ and comes with a recommendation from Dark Rise author C S Pacat, who says: ‘The queen of YA fantasy has done it again. Delicious twists and deceptions fill this high-stakes tale where dreams will entice you. You won’t be able to sleep until you hit the last page.’
Also from A&U in YA is Darkest Night, Brightest Star (Barry Jonsberg, A&U, March 2025), for readers aged 12 to 16. ‘Morgan Pickford is keen to make a friend and to please his dad. But sometimes the simplest of things are the hardest to achieve,’ says A&U, which describes the story as ‘a life-affirming, unique and compelling novel that explores different kinds of masculinity, friendship and family, with Morgan and his new friend, Gray, carrying the story beautifully through to a wonderfully satisfying and hopeful ending.’
Children’s nonfiction
In nonfiction, A&U has Volcano (Claire Saxby & Jess Racklyeft, April 2025), a picture book for ages 5 to 10. Says the publisher: ‘More volcanoes erupt under water than exist on land. Deep in the ocean, far beyond the reach of even the brightest sun, the earth quakes. Hagfish scatter and snailfish flutter. Lava pillows flash and fade, rumpling the seabed as a new volcano births a mountain … Combining deep scientific research, lyrical language and stunning illustrations, the award-winning team behind Iceberg and Tree explore underwater volcanos.’
Finally, from Melbourne Books, How Do Fish Hear: An A–Z of Animal Acoustics (Oonagh Macken, October) investigates the ‘curious hearing capabilities’ of a specific animal in each chapter—including ‘A for axolotl’, ‘B for bat’, and so on—as well as ‘honourable mentions’ peppered throughout. The book includes an introductory section that ‘provides readers [with] an overview of human ear anatomy and the way we process sound’. Says the publisher: ‘Macken, audiologist and hearing-enthusiast, walks readers through the delightful auditory worlds of fish, insects, deep-sea creatures, birds, snakes, and so many other kinds of animals—all with a unique way of processing the sounds of the world around them!’
Pictured (L–R): Davina Bell and Shane Jenek.
Category: Think Australian feature
