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Children's Picture Book of the Year (2018-)
Subcategory of Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIA)
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Latest Winners / Recipients

Year: 2024

winner y separately published work icon A Life Song Jane Godwin , Anna Walker (illustrator), Melbourne : Puffin , 2023 26510360 2023 single work picture book children's

'From the award-winning team that created classics such as Don’t ForgetAll Through the YearTilly and Starting School, comes an exquisite, universal and captivating picture book that carries us through a child's life journey on the magical metaphor of song.

'When you are born, you make up a song
It doesn’t rhyme, and it isn’t long
A song of everything you hold dear
It’s your own tune, it’s loud and clear
'And your whole world is in it…

'A musical journey from the time a child's life song first begins, through all its modulations, adding new verses and extra voices through the years, until it becomes their own unique composition - and one that is ultimately a part of the beautiful, grand and glistening score of the world.' (Publication summary)

Year: 2023

winner y separately published work icon What to Say When You Don't Know What to Say Davina Bell , Hilary Jean Tapper (illustrator), Sydney : Lothian , 2022 24411136 2022 single work picture book children's

'From the award-winning author of All the Ways to Be Smart, comes a warm and whimsical guide to negotiating new experiences and big emotions with empathy, kindness and words from the heart.

'I'm not brave enough today. Maybe next time.
You're hurting my feelings right now.
Want to join in?

'A warm and whimsical guide to negotiating life's little moments and big emotions with empathy, kindness and words from the heart.

'From award-winning and much-loved author Davina Bell and exciting new illustrator, Hilary Jean Tapper.' (Publication summary)

Year: 2022

winner y separately published work icon Somebody's Land : Welcome to Our Country Adam Goodes , Ellie Laing , David Hardy (illustrator), Crows Nest : Allen and Unwin , 2021 22585006 2021 single work picture book children's

'An accessible picture book for young children that introduces First Nations history and the term 'terra nullius' to a general audience, from Australian of the Year, community leader and anti-racism advocate Adam Goodes and political adviser and former journalist Ellie Laing, with artwork by Barkindji illustrator David Hardy.

'For thousands and thousands of years,
Aboriginal people lived in the land we call Australia.

The land was where people
built their homes,
played in the sun,
and sat together to tell stories.

When the white people came,
they called the land
Terra Nullius.
They said it was nobody's land.
But it was somebody's land.

'Somebody's Land is an invitation to connect with First Nations culture, to acknowledge the hurt of the past, and to join together as one community with a precious shared history as old as time.

'Adam Goodes and Ellie Laing's powerful words and David Hardy's pictures, full of life, invite children and their families to imagine themselves into Australia's past - to feel the richness of our First Nations' history, to acknowledge that our country was never terra nullius, and to understand what 'welcome to our country' really means.'(Publication summary)

Year: 2021

winner y separately published work icon Our Home, Our Heartbeat Adam Briggs , Kate Moon (illustrator), Rachael Sarra (illustrator), Richmond : Hardie Grant Children's Publishing , 2020 18582055 2020 single work picture book children's

'Adapted from Briggs’ celebrated song 'The Children Came Back'Our Home, Our Heartbeat is a celebration of past and present Indigenous legends, as well as emerging generations, and at its heart honours the oldest continuous culture on earth.

'Readers will recognise Briggs' distinctive voice and contagious energy within the pages of Our Home, Our Heartbeat, signifying a new and exciting chapter in children's Indigenous publishing.' (Publication summary)

Year: 2020

winner y separately published work icon The Beach Bluey : The Beach Melbourne : Puffin , 2019 18743284 2019 single work picture book children's

'While Mum is off for a walk along the beach, Bluey discovers a beautiful shell. She runs to show Mum and has a series of encounters that will both excite and test her in unexpected ways.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

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