Children's Book Week 2026 | Symphony of Stories

Children's Book Week

In 2026, the Children's Book Council of Australia proudly marks the 80th year of the Book of the Year Awards.

Since 1946, these awards have recognised the incredible talent and imagination that fuel the books our young readers cherish, and the creators who continue to shape our understanding of childhood, curiosity and compassion through story.

2026 Book of the Year Awards

Older Readers
Of Flame and Fury, Mikayla Bridge (Macmillan Australia)
Darkest Night, Brightest Star, Barry Jonsberg (Allen & Unwin)
This Stays Between Us, Margot McGovern (Penguin Random House Australia)
We Saw What You Started, Carla Salmon (Pan Australia)
Golden, Jade Timms (Text Publishing)
Unhallowed Halls, Lili Wilkinson (Allen & Unwin)

Younger Readers
Run, Sarah Armstrong (Hardie Grant Children's Publishing)
Something Terrible: Tim Tie-Your-Shoelaces, Sally Barton, illustrated by Christopher Nielsen (Walker Books Australia)
Little Bones, Sandy Bigna (University of Queensland Press)
Spirit of the Crocodile, Aaron Fa'aoso & Michelle Scott Tucker with Lyn White (Allen & Unwin)
The Paperbark Tree Committee, Karys McEwen (Text Publishing)
Inked, Karen Wasson, illustrated by Jake A Minton (Figment Books)

Early Childhood
The Thing About Christmas, Jo Dabrowski, illustrated by Briony Stewart (Little Book Press)
Derek, Anne Donaldson, illustrated by Matt Shanks (Little Hare)
Frogs Are Our Friends, Toni D'Alia, Madeline White (Bright Light)
My Nonno Loves, Adelle Frittitta, illustrated by Claudia Frittitta (Little Hare)
The Colours of Home, Sally Soweol Han (Thames and Hudson Australia)
The Emperor's Egg, Rae Tan (Lothian Children's Books)

Picture Book of the Year
Bob and Dob, Sean E Avery (Walker Books Australia)
Tiwi in Paris, Glen Farmer Illortaminni (Thames and Hudson Australia)
Dear Broccoli, Cate James, text by Jo Dabrowski (Affirm Press)
Dawn, Marc Martin (Walker Books Australia)
The Frog's First Song, Jason Phu, text by Jazz Money (University of Queensland Press)
Once I was a Giant, Zeno Sworder (Thames and Hudson Australia)

Eve Pownall Award
There's a Prawn in Parliament House: The Kids' Guide to Australia's Amazing Democracy, Annabel Crabb, illustrated by First Dog on the Moon (Allen & Unwin)
A Loo of One's Own, Eleri Harris (Allen & Unwin)
Peculiar Parents, Stephanie Owen Reeder, illustrated by Ingrid Bartkowiak (NLA Publishing)
The Thylacine and the Time Machine, Renee Treml (Allen & Unwin)
Caution! This Book Contains Deadly Reptiles, Corey Tutt, Ben Williams (Allen & Unwin)
Ningaloo, Tim Winton, illustrated by Cindy Lane (Fremantle Press)

New Illustrator
Save the Gum Trees, Bees and Big Blue Seas, Luke John Matthew Arnold (Scholastic Press)
Beyond the Shore, Mark Chester Harding, text by Kirli Saunders (Scholastic Press)
A Loo of One's Own, Eleri Harris (Allen & Unwin)
Prayer for a River, Uncle Glenn Loughrey, text by Andrew Kelly & Uncle Glenn Loughrey (Wild Dog Books)
A Farm by the Sea, Jillian Packer (Berbay Publishing)
Being Indy, Estee Sarsfield, text by Zoe Gaetjens (WestWords Children's)

Submissions are now open for the 2027 Book of the Year Awards.

2026 is a Symphony of Stories!

The 2026 Children's Book Week theme is 'Symphony of Stories'.

Our talented illustrator is the fabulous Briony Stewart, award-winning author-illustrator of 'Gymnastica Fantastica' and other children's books. Just wait until you meet all the wild characters she's created.

'I decided to try and show what stepping into a symphony of stories might be like. A huge colourful collection of characters bursting out of a book representing their different stories with weird and wonderful instruments.' - Briony Stewart



Children's Book Week | Saturday 22 August to Friday 28 August 2026!