Welcome to a new year! 2020 was a testing time for CBCA and there are still challenges ahead. After several changes at National Board level and the recent resignation of Kate Flamsteed, our Executive Officer based in Queensland, we are looking to the future and invite suitably qualified individuals to apply for two Independent Board Director positions. Please advertise these opportunities widely to anyone in your networks who might be interested.
The WA Branch is in a more fortunate position than most and can still hold face to face meetings, host our annual events, attend book launches and conduct business pretty much as usual.
Membership renewals were sent out on 4 Jan, and you will be pleased to note there is no increase in fees. We rely on your support in renewing promptly and hope you will take advantage of the member discount on your ticket for A Night with our Stars (ANWOS).
ANWOS tickets have also been pegged at last year's prices and, with an exceptional line-up of talent, they offer great value. Treat yourself, your friends and colleagues to a great night out and count it towards your Professional Learning for the year. Places are restricted owing to COVID-19 regulations so don’t delay your booking or you risk missing out. Once again Westbooks are offering a generous discount on pre-orders and there will be a Karen Blair original art work for silent auction.
CBCA Book Week 2021 returns to the normal August location and we are looking forward to seeing Shaun Tan’s designs on the theme Old Worlds, New Worlds, Other Worlds and unveiling the official merchandise very soon. Stand by for the announcement of the Notables on Tuesday 23 February which is always an exciting time.
Save the date for our WA Branch AGM Wednesday 21 April 2021 – when it is time for me to step down and hand over the reins to a new WA Branch President.
Best wishes and I hope to see you at a CBCA WA Branch event soon.
Jan Nicholls
CBCA WA Branch President
CBCA WA New Website
Work has been happening feverishly behind the scenes ahead of a new website for the WA Branch of the CBCA. We are looking at a February launch date, so stay tuned for further information and be ready to update your bookmarks!
This original charcoal and watercolour sketch is signed by the artist Karen Blair and will be offered for sale via silent auction in the lead up to A Night with our Stars 2021. It is based on her winning CBCA Honour Book When Billy was a Dog written by Kirstie Murray and published by Allen & Unwin. This exquisite framed piece measures 43cm x 33cm.
The CBCA WA Branch thanks Karen for her ongoing generous support.
CBCA WA Branch AGM - Save the Date!
Our AGM will be held at Oasis House and is scheduled for
Wednesday 21 April
More details will be coming soon!
CBCA Book Week 2021
CBCA Book Week returns to its regular spot this year, running from 21-27 August.The official CBCA WA Branch Book Week Opening and Dinner and the Book of the Year announcement will be on Friday 20 August 2021.
The CBCA Book Week theme for 2021 is:
We were lucky to see a preview of the 2021 theme towards the end of last year. If you haven't seen the short video, you can view it here. The artwork has been illustrated by Shaun Tan, Winner, 2019 CBCA Picture Book of the Year for Cicada and, if his past designs are anything to go by, they will be exquisite.
CBCA Book Week Themes for 2023
Always planning ahead and looking to the future, we are seeking your ideas and suggestions and invite your nominations for the CBCA Book Week theme for 2023. Branch members have nominated fabulous themes in past years and you can view the list here.
Ideally the theme should be original, memorable and linked to books, reading and literature. Those of you working with school students or young people are especially encouraged to invite enthusiastic young readers to participate and suggest themes.
Please send your suggestions to wa@cbca.org.au using THEME in the email subject line. The deadline for submissions is Friday 19 March. We look forward to reading many creative ideas.
Make Your Own Story Book 2021
The competition is open to all students from Pre-primary to year 8 in Western Australia.
It is an opportunity for students to showcase their narrative writing and illustrative talents through the creation of a picture or story book. Students can enter through their school or send individual entries from their home address.
Competition closing date: Friday June 11th
Prizes include book vouchers, Healthway Go for 2 & 5 bags and CBCA Book Week merchandise.
The 2021 Make Your Own Story Book Competition flyer with entry form will appear on the new CBCA WA website when it is launched.
Hints pages and guiding videos made by WA author and illustrator Sean E Avery will also be found on the new website.
Schools and libraries will receive an emailed copy of the entry form at the end of February.
Congratulations to the following who have been selected as Book of the Year Judges for the 2022/2023 season. We thank them in advance for their time and effort and wish them happy reading! A special welcome to Claire Kierath, our WA representative. Thank you to everyone who expressed interest in these positions.
Early Childhood Katherine Burbeck NT
Bronwyn Joseph VIC
Gabrielle Anderson QLD
Younger Readers Colleen Caddey ACT
Danielle Miller QLD
Claire Kierath - WA
Older Readers Carol Fuller TAS
Kathryn Eyre NSW
Michael Earp VIC
Picture Book Sarah Mayor Cox VIC
Margot Lindgren NSW
Sarah Forrest SA
Eve Pownall Sheryl Cootes NSW
Alex Wharton NSW
Margaret Bromley ACT
Travelling Suitcase
The Book Links Travelling Suitcase is available for loan from the CBCA WA Branch with preference given to WA Branch member schools.
It contains:
laminated newspaper articles and information about Jackie French
A3 posters promoting series such as Phredde the Fairy and individual titles including ARose for the ANZAC boys
a collection of Jackie’s books – both picture books and novels
magazines with author articles
a USB and DVD with ideas and author information
roughs and final copies of artwork by Sue de Gennaro, who illustrates some of Jackie’s texts
folders containing display and activity ideas, rough drafts and storyboards
realia such as cards, postcards and bookmarks
a soft toy hairy-nosed wombat.
The Travelling Suitcase can be used as:
- a display to showcase the works of a great Australian author
- an encouragement for students to read high quality Australian literature
- a resource for an extension group studying an Australian author
- a resource for individual classes by interested teachers using the teaching ideas
- a resource for a lunchtime club
The opportunities are many.
It is suitable for primary and lower secondary aged students. Quite a few of Jackie’s books have a Lexile number. American Accelerated Reader titles are under Jackie French Koller. Country school libraries are responsible for the transport of the suitcase.
If you would like to borrow the Travelling Suitcase for your library or school please contact the coordinator Sue Stopher via stophers@iinet.net.au or 0417 990 031
The content is part of the Booklinks Travelling Suitcase Program which was loaned around Australia when Jackie French was the Australian Children’s Laureate in 2014-2015.
Penny Hutchens Memorial Fund
Can you suggest a worthy recipient? This year an organisation that cares for children will receive $1000 worth of books from the CBCA WA Branch through the Penny Hutchens Memorial Fund.
In the last newsletter, a call was sent out for donations of books to complete the WA Branch collection of Book of the Year winners from 1946 – 1981. Most of these books have been out of print for some time so I was delighted to hear from collectors who had held on to some of these treasures and were willing to part with them. Heartfelt thanks to the following:
Lesley Reece donated two books by Nan Chauncy which she was given after receiving the CBCA Nan Chauncy Award for outstanding contribution to Australian Children’s Literature in 2010.
Margaret Hamilton, also a recipient of the CBCA Nan Chauncy Award in 2004, donated three books from her collection at Pinerolo, The Children’s Book Cottage in the Blue Mountains.
Peter Williams, the first recipient of the WA Branch’s Muriel Barwell Award for Distinguished Service to Children’s Literature in 2006 and collector extraordinaire, donated a copy of Ash Road, inscribed by the author Ivan Southall.
Three more books from this category have been discovered in a second-hand book shop in excellent condition.
In this newsletter, we are calling for donations from the Eve Pownall and the Older Reader categories.
If you have any of these books and would like to donate them, please contact me at gailspiers@iinet.net.au.
Gail Spiers
EVE POWNALL AWARD
1993
GREENE, Gracie and Joe TRAMACCHI told by Kukatja Illus. Lucille Gill
Tjarany Roughtail: The Dreaming of the Roughtail Lizard and other stories
Magabala Books
1995
STEWART, Robin E.
New Faces: The Complete Book of Alternative Pets
Agmedia
1996
NICHOLSON, John
The First Fleet: A New Beginning in an Old Land
Allen & Unwin
1997
CHEERS, Gordon and Julie SILK
Illus. Marjorie Crosby-Fairall
Killer Plants and How to Grow Them
Penguin
1999
EDWARDS, Yvonne and Brenda DAY
Going for Kalta
IAD Press
2000
NICHOLSON, John
Fishing for Islands: Traditional Boats and Seafarers of the Pacific
Allen & Unwin
2001
BLACKLOCK, Dyan
Illus. David Kennett
Olympia: Warrior Athletes of Ancient Greece
Omnibus
2002
PAPUNYA SCHOOL
Papunya School Book of Country and History
Allen & Unwin
2003
TUCKER, Alan
Iron in the Blood: Convicts and Commandants in Colonial Australia
Omnibus
2006
DAVIDSON, Leon
Scarecrow Army
Black Dog
2008
WATTS, Frances
Illus. David Legge
Parsley Rabbit’s Book About Books
ABC
2009
HALL, Lincoln
Alive in the Death Zone
Random House
2011
DUBOSARSKY, Ursula
Illus. Tohby Riddle
The Return of The Word Spy
Viking
2012
LESTER, Alison & Coral Tulloch
One Small Island: The Story of Macquarie Island
Penguin
2013
WEIDENBACH, Kristin
Illus. Timothy Ide
Tom the Outback Mailman
Lothian
2014
FAILLE, Christopher
Illus. Danny Snell
Jeremy
Working Title Press
2016
REEDER, Stephanie Owen
Lennie the Legend: Solo to Sydney by Pony
National Library of Australia
2017
NEWTON, Gina M
Amazing Animals of Australia’s National Parks
National Library of Australia
2018
BEN-BARAK, Idan
Illus. Julian Frost
Do Not Lick This Book
Allen & Unwin
2019
VASS, Coral
Illus. Dub Leffler
Sorry Day
National Library of Australia
2020
PASCOE, Bruce
Young Dark Emu: A Truer History
Magabala Books
BOOK OF THE YEAR: OLDER READERS
2000
EARLS, Nick
48 Shades of Brown
Penguin
2001
CLARKE, Judith
Wolf on the Fold
Allen & Unwin
2002
HARNETT, Sonja
Forest
Viking
2005
BAUER, Michael Gerard
The Running Man
Omnibus
2008
HARTNETT, Sonya
The Ghost’s Child
Viking
2009
TAN, Shaun
Tales from Outer Suburbia
Allen & Unwin
2011
HARTNETT, Sonya
The Midnight Zoo
Viking
2012
GARDNER, Scot
The Dead I Know
Allen & Unwin
2019
ATKINS, Clare
Between Us
Black Inc
2020
WAKEFIELD, Vikki
This is How We Change the Ending
Text
Congratulations!
Congratulations to Rebecca Newman, previous CBCA WA Branch Newsletter editor, featured in this wonderful anthology published by Bloomsbury – the same publisher as JK Rowling no less! This little book is exquisite on so many levels. It’s the perfect size and shape to hold, is filled with magical poems and delightful illustrations however the absolute best thing about it, in my unbiased opinion, is the poem on page 97 Potion Problems. Grab your copy now from Paper Bird.
Jan Nicholls
Congratulations to Dr Robyn Sheahan Bright, President of IBBY Australia, who has been awarded Member (AM) in the General Division of the Order of Australia for significant service to children's literature, and to the promotion of reading.
Book Discussion Group
The Book Discussion Group ended 2020 on a high with a fantastic presentation from Rebecca Higgie about her Fogarty Award Winning book, The History of Mischief. Rebecca will also be one of our presenters at A Night with our Stars on 12 March 2021.
Meetings will continue to be held at Oasis Lotteries House, Hampden Rd Nedlands at 7.00pm on the 4th Wednesday of the month until further notice.
28 April - CBCA Book of the Year Shortlist Discussion
National News from Wendy Rapee,
Board Chair, 20 January 2021
Welcome back to all Members. I am sure I am not alone crossing everything and hoping this year is going to be easier than the last. I will not be the only person writing to you who is craving increased, constructive personal contact at meetings, events, and within our own personal communities. It has been hard and challenging. 2020, we must also acknowledge, was hard for our CBCA, there were challenges and change. I hope, as the CBCA Chair, I can alleviate any concerns around the changes within the CBCA, while acknowledging that the broader social context has definitely added a layer of complexity. I have heard from many individuals and organisations that they feel a bit disconnected, they are tired. Some people, and organisations, were better able to somersault and land perfectly, while others are still feeling a little off balance. I think that is true within our community of CBCA Members, we all experience stresses, challenges, and change differently. My drive this year on the Board and with working with you, our Members, is to create a stronger focus on common goals and purpose, and to effectively communicate these.
Unfortunately, we have started 2021 with the immediate challenge of having Kate Flamsteed in our office resign. The Board with regret accepted this, and must now carefully consider a way forward. We acknowledge the tremendous contribution Kate gave to the organisation. Within the office we have Shannon King (Merchandise) and Anne Varnes (Awards), who are proceeding apace with their areas of responsibility, both have the support and guidance of Sarah Mayor Cox as their Sub Committee Convenor and the Board.
The 2021 Shaun Tan merchandise will be shared with you over the next week. Shannon is moving this all along with our designer intern, Hannah. We are really delighted to announce that we have agreed to ask Jasmine Seymour, we hope she accepts, letter on the way....to be our 2022 Merchandise illustrator. Perhaps this will help you rank your top 10 suggestions for a theme for her to work with!
The Book of the Year Awards 2021 judging is in full swing. All meetings are being carried out via zoom in panels, they are all meeting this week to finalise Notables, and then on the weekend of February 5-7 the remaining hard work will be done. A huge thank you to Sarah Mayor Cox and Christine Oughtred for undertaking this huge job.
The Board this week has started two important, and really intertwined, processes. Our budget and our strategic thinking. One really informs the other. You will receive a draft discussion paper around strategy from Karys McEwen. Unfortunately, we require a lot longer to discuss this as a group—one of the real challenges of COVID zoom meetings. There is no attempt to create a new strategic plan, but we are attempting to really focus on who we are and what we need to do—a real challenge meeting this way. The budget is still a work in progress, but there is no doubt the organisation is particularly feeling the revenue pain because we have had been unable to have a Conference since 2019. It will have to happen in 2022, but we must start now to build it. Over the next week we will put out a ‘call sheet’ for Members to volunteer for this and other Sub Committees.
Attached to this “from the desk” however are the advertisements for two critical Independent Directors, one in Finance, and one for legal/governance/company secretary. We urge you to disperse these within your communities. They remain open until March 1st.Please view the links below.
There was further discussion at this meeting around the Awards Foundation, and we are having to work through, with their CoRP, some residual governance clarity. So for now the Independent Director from the foundation is on hold.
We approved at the Board meeting the go ahead for us to apply, on behalf of the whole organisation, for a grant from the Australia Council, within their Reimagine Collaborate scheme. It was suggested, and was accepted, that will attempt to create a Shadow Judging program across all states and territories. I will send a separate request for information, and input for this... very soon as applications close at the end of February—unfortunately we need to longer to write this—but we are going to give it a red hot go!
Finally, the Partnerships Sub Committee is working on a new prospectus, we will be asking you all for data, photos and information on your events and programs, so we can offer potential partners a better and fuller picture of the value of engaging with us.
As always, the Board is open to your questions and inputs.
Wendy Rapee
Chair
Little Street Library
The Little Street Library is situated near seating in a new playground in Kendenup township. There are over 1300 residents around a shop, hall, and primary school. The Hall, playground and skating park are being revamped to bring a greater community vibe.
As I filled the box with new books and DVDs for adults and children, a little group gathered. A mum said, ‘Our Scarlett (six years old) has already found the box and wanted to know why it was empty. She’ll be really pleased to find books now.’ We will be monitoring the library weekly, making sure its contents are refreshed and community information flyers kept up to date.
Thank you again for your gifting of this library and your patience as we organised its installation.
Kathryn Dye
Manager Library & Information Services
Mount Barker Public Library
Western Australian Premier's Book Awards
Entries are almost closed for the Western Australian Premier's Book Awards 2020.
Closing date to submit entries for the Western Australian Premier's Book Awards 2020 is 5pm (WST) 8 February 2021.
To enter, or for further information please click here.
WAYRBA Shortlist 2021
The 2021 shortlists have been announced. Please click here to view all the titles, download PDFs, order merchandise, and nominate and vote.
Congratulations to all the writers, illustrators and publishers nominated!
Perform Education
Little Book Bites
Bev’s Poem (circa 1936) Good books are really truly friends They help us in our play. They teach us how to live and work And how to pass the day.
They bring us friends we cannot meet Who come to be so dear. Those books that introduce such folk We look for far and near.
Companions they may always be Whenever we’re inclined, And by the books we like to read ‘Tis fair to judge the mind.
So chose the books that help you live To make your love more deep, That after you have read them through, You’re glad they’re yours to keep.
This poem was recently quoted to me from memory by my 86-year-old sister-in-law, who explained that when she was 4 years old, her mother used to find suitable poetry in The Methodist Magazine, and teach them to Bev to recite on public occasions.
Although the poetry may be rather quaint, the sentiments and advice are still quite charming and relatable, hopefully even to modern children!
Chloe Mauger
If you have a picture of a child, family member, pet or any other interesting reader you'd like to feature in our electronic newsletter, we'd love to see it! Please email it to beckborona@gmail.com.
New Releases from WA Authors, Illustrators and Publishers
Nadia L King
Illustrated by Nelli Aghekyan The Lost Smile
Dixi Books
October 2020
Teniele Arnold
Illustrated by Bronwyn Blackwell The Adventures of: Ellie's Wellies
Peacock Press
November 2020
Rebecca J Palmer Monkey Mind
Little Pink Dog Books
November 2020
Ambelin Kwaymullina Billie and the Blue Bike
Magabala Books
February 2021
Sally Morgan Welcome, child!
Magabala Books
March 2021
Helen Milroy Backyard Bugs
Fremantle Press
March 2021
Danny Parker
Illustrated by Ruth de Vos Shine
Fremantle Press
March 2021
Sonya Hartnett
Illustrated by Gabriel Evans Blue Flower
Penguin Boos
March 2021
Dates for Your Diary
Please check our social media - Facebook and Instagram - for the most current information about these events.
CBCA WA Branch Committee Members President - Jan Nicholls, Vice President - Natalya Hawrylak,
Liz Allen, Nola Allen, Beck Borona, Sharon Coppin, Mary Gimondo,
Felicia Harris, Lorraine Horsley, Sarah Klass, Tania Longman,
Sheena Matthews, Chloe Mauger, Tyshana McEwen, Trish Montgomery, Denise Robins,
Gail Spiers, Jane Stanton, Sue Stopher, Kris Williams,
Tracey Willis, Sally Woffenden.
National Board Director: Tania Longman Newsletter Editor: Beck Borona Website Manager: Sarah Klass WA Book of the Year Judges: Sandi Parsons, Jan Pocock