Well, the winners of this year’s Children’s Book of the Year Awards have been announced. I only managed to predict two out of five (see my post below) – but knew as I made the predictions that I couldn’t possibly get them all right – as I hadn’t read some of the books, and was voting from the heart rather than from the selection criteria that the judges use. Still, as well as two right, two of the other three I tipped were named honour books – kind of like being runners up.

Congratulations to the five winning books:
Older Readers – Red spikes, by Margot Lanagan
Younger Readers – Being Bee, by Catherine Bateson
Early Childhood – Amy and Louis, by Libby Gleeson
Picture Book – The Arrival, by Shaun Tan
Information Books – The penguin book: birds in suits, by Mark Norman

I don’t envy the judges their job at all. Australian publishers and creators continue to produce brilliant books, with the standard rising every year. Well done to the judges and to all the winners and honour books.