What are you reading at the moment? Anything interesting? Anything you’d like to share ?
Yesterday the Australian Book Industry Awards made their recommendations in the form of awards honouring and recognising authors, booksellers and publishers. Winners in various categories were chosen by an academy of booksellers and publishers.
Book of the Year was presented to Anh Do for his book The Happiest Refugee (he also won Newcomer of the Year and joint Biography of the Year).
Other categories recognised were:
Illustrated Book of the Year 2011 – Our Family Table by Julie Goodwin
Literary Fiction Book of the Year 2011 –Bereft by Chris Womersley
Book of the Year for Younger Children 2011 – Noni the Pony, written and illustrated by Alison Lester
Book of the Year for Older Children 2011 – Conspiracy 365 by Gabrielle Lord
Biography of the Year 2011 – joint winner, The Happiest Refugee by Anh Do and How to Make Gravy by Paul Kelly
General Non-Fiction Book of the Year 2011 – True Spirit by Jessica Watson
General Fiction Book of the Year 2011 –The Distant Hours by Kate Morton
Wow, quite a stunning reading list. But there’s more – check out the shortlists.
General Non-Fiction Book of the Year 2011
Here on Earth by Tim Flannery
The Political Journey of Kevin Rudd by David Marr
Street Fight in Naples by Peter Robb
The Changi Brownlow, by Roland Perry
True Spirit, by Jessica Watson
Literary Fiction Book of the Year 2011
How it Feels by Brendan Cowell
Rocks in the Belly by Jon Bauer
That Deadman Dance by Kim Scott
The Legacy, by Kirsten Tranter
General Fiction Book of the Year 2011
After America by John Birmingham
At Home with the Templetons by Monica McInerney
Campaign Ruby by Jessica Rudd
I Came to Say Goodbye by Caroline Overington
The Distant Hours by Kate Morton
Newcomer of the Year (debut writer) 2011
Into the Woods: The Battle for Tasmania’s Forests by Anna Krien
Poh’s Kitchen by Poh Ling Yeow
The Bark Cutters by Nicole Alexander
The Family Law by Benjamin Law
Book of the Year 2011 #
Bereft by Chris Womersley
How to Make Gravy by Paul Kelly
I Came to Say Goodbye by Caroline Overington
Lazarus Rising by John Howard
The Family Law by Benjamin Law
The Happiest Refugee by Anh Do
Illustrated Book of the Year 2011
A Food Lover’ s Pilgrimage to Santiago De Compostela by Dee Nolan
Bill’s Basics by Bill Granger
Quay by Peter Gilmore
Real Food Companion by Matthew Evans
Yiwarra Kuju: the Canning Stock Route, by the National Museum of Australia
Biography of the Year 2011
Lazarus Rising by John Howard
The Family Law by Benjamin Law
Have you read any of these books? What are you reading right now and would you recommend it ?
Top Comments
Mennonite In A Little Black Dress by Rhoda Janzen is very amusing - she has a lovely line in self deprecation. Also, the Spellman series by Lisa Lutz is a lot of laughs. Anything by Kerry Greenwood...
The happiest refugee is a great, accessible read. I wonder though on what merits the book is judged in terms of 'best' book. I say this as the writing style is simple, almost too simple (daily telegraph simple) for my liking. Perhaps 'best' is determined in just in terms of the most 'enjoyable or beloved' read, in which it certainly delivers in spades. Or is it simply in sales??
I know I sound like a horrid bookish snob (which I admit I am) but find it hard to believe this is the 'best' Aussie book.