Children's Book of the Year Awards 2024

The Winners & Honour Books Younger Readers (Ages 0-6 Years)

Voting has been completed and winners in all categories announced for younger readers.  As always there were SO many great books. Glad I'm not a judge this year! I should point out that this year we have the appointed judges of the awards, and for some reason there a group of 'Appointed Judges' also suggest winners. 

In this post I will review nominations and the winners in the 'Early Childhood' & 'Picture Book of the Year' Awards.

 

1. Early Childhood (0-6)

And the winner is....

'Gymnastica Fantastica!' Briony Stewart 

And what a worthy winner! 

Quick! Come and see! Something fabulous, it’s . . . me!

Gymnastica Fantastica! is a joyful and exuberant picture book about a child discovering and attempting new physical skills and putting on wonderfully imperfect shows for whoever will watch them.

Gymnastica is a small person with big energy, as they bend and balance, bounce and roll, attempt a cartwheel and a spectacular trapeze flip-out finale. Written in playful rhyming text and with brightly energetic and appealing illustrations, this is a book that kids and parents alike will find irresistible to read aloud and delight in its energy and humour.

The CBCA judges commented…

This book conveys so much energy and life which children will connect with immediately. The young child’s voice permeates the tight, joyful rhyming text which includes a rich assortment of verbs, nouns and adjectives. Pencil, ink, crayon, gouache, and digital illustrations are filled with zoom in action and movement matching the equally energetic text.

And the 'Shadow Judging' winner is...

'The Concrete Garden' Bob Graham

Bob Graham is one of our finest writers and illustrators. Once again he doesn't disappoint! The judges said of this book:

"An exuberant group of children spill out from the confines of a grey apartment block, finding joy in a simple box of chalk. The power of creativity and strength in community shine...  The language is simple and succinct... and rich in imagery."

 As always, his illustrations have the usual use of watercolour, pastel colours, gentleness and warmth. The illustrations are so sensitively created in watercolour, pencil and pastel colours. And as always Graham leaves the reader with a view of how the world should be.

Honour Books

'Bear and Duck are Friends' Sue deGennaro

Now here is an unlikely pairing! And an even more unlikely dance pairing.

Bear and Duck are best friends, but they are very different. Duck likes to try new things, and Bear ... well, Bear likes not to.

When Duck needs a friend for her dance class, Bear reluctantly agrees. Bear’s big size causes problems at first, but he soon discovers that he might just be a very good dancer.

 'Grace and Milligan' Caz Goodwin & Illustrated by Pip Kruger

Grace lives next door to old Mr Milligan and his goat Charlie. They are the best of friends. But when Mr Milligan’s beloved goat dies, everything changes. Will Grace be able to help her friend overcome his sadness?

Grace and Mr Milligan is a heart-warming story of grief, love and the healing power of friendship.

2. Book of the Year Picture Books (Ages 0-18 Years)

Entries in this category should be outstanding books of the Picture Book genre, in which the author and illustrator achieve artistic and literary unity or, in wordless picture books, where the story, theme or concept is unified through illustrations. Ages 0-18 years.

Note: Some of the books in this category may be for more mature readers

Winner Picture Book

'Timeless' by Kelly Canby

Emit (whose parents turned back time to name him) is surrounded by busyness. Dad's too busy to read stories, Mum is too busy to play games and Emit’s brother and sister are simply too busy doing nothing, to do anything at all. Emit tries everything he can think of to get more time... but it’s not until Emit tries to 'buy' some time, that he learns the secret which is, if you want time, you have to make it.

Note: This award is for picture books that are relevant and of interest for readers 0-20 years of age.

BUT: Amazon lists it as suitable for children 0-8. Parent discretion should be exercised.

And the Shadow Judging Winner is...

'Every Night at Midnight' by Peter Cheong

A little lone werewolf prowls the nights on his own until he finds friendship in the most unexpected of places. This is a  whimsical and tender picture book in the spirit of Julie Fogliano’s 'My Best Friend'.

Every night at midnight, Felix turns into a wolf. His hands and feet turn into velvety paws, his senses become sharper, and he grows a long, furry tail. Felix loves exploring on four legs, and he has the nighttime world to himself. There’s no one else like him.

During the day, Felix is human, but it still feels like there’s no one like him. The other kids used to invite him to play, but now they keep their distance. That’s fine, though, Felix doesn’t need anyone else. But after a chance encounter, Felix the little lone wolf starts to wonder whether he might find his pack after all.

 There were other awards as usual in additional categories:

3. Book of the Year: Eve Pownall Award

This award is for factual books.

Entries in this category should be books which have the prime intention of documenting factual material with consideration given to imaginative presentation, interpretation and variation of style. Ages 0-18 years.

Winner: 'Country Town' Isolde Martyn & Robyn Ridgeway (Illust: Louise Hogan)

 'Timeless' by Kelly Canbee

Happy times, sad times, boom times and gloom times!
From the First Peoples camp at the river crossing in the 1820s through to Carols by Candlelight at the showground in
today’s world, this is a decade by decade wonderfully illustrated story of a small country community.

AUTHORS

Isolde Martyn and Robyn Ridgeway co-authored Country Town, each providing a unique perspective of Australian
history.

Isolde Martyn’s earlier career was in academia and publishing. She is the author of nine historical novels and her debut novel won a top award in the USA and Australia.

Country Town has been a long-term project and she hopes it encourages young readers and their families to enjoy
history in a really fun way.

Summing Up

I hope you will agree that there are some wonderful books recognized this year on the long list. as well as the winning and commended books.