In-person VCE Twilight Seminars are back for 2021, with more authors to inspire and educate.

Running after school on Thursday afternoons in March, our program directly connects students to the authors of the books they’ll be studying, providing a unique opportunity to deepen their understanding, meet the authors and ask all their burning questions.

Now is the time to register your interest and stay tuned for the full announcement of the program details in early Term 1 2021.

Taking place in a convenient central city location, all seminars will be Covid-Safe and welcome to all.

Please share this news far and wide — works by these authors appear on the VCE English and Literature curriculum and will be studied by thousands of students in 2021.

Feedback for previous seminars:

“My students were very positive about the experience of meeting Maxine, and her presentation was very useful to them as they start their Creative SAC. I was particularly pleased by the way Maxine gave the students useful and concrete strategies for starting their own writing which we will use in our classroom, and I was grateful at how generous Maxine was in signing books, and taking photos after the session.”
​– Nossal High School, 2018

“Cate Kennedy was excellent!  She was engaging, warm and suggested useful, practical strategies that the students can use in their own writing. The students said they found her presentation really interesting … the kids were really engaged for the full hour.”
– Camberwell High School, 2018

Confirmed authors for 2021

• Maxine Beneba Clarke — Foreign Soil
• Cate Kennedy — Like A House On Fire
• Rosalie Ham — The Dressmaker
• Toni Jordan — Nine Days
• Ceridwen Dovey — Only The Animals (online)

Register your interest by emailing us and we will be in touch in early 2021 with further details of the program.

Today is International Day of People with Disability (IDPwD), a time to increase public awareness, understanding and acceptance of people with disability and celebrate their achievements and contributions.⁣⁣

One in five Australians has a disability, yet disabled people are still underrepresented in the media and in literature. Thankfully, that is starting to change with recent publications such as Unseen by Jacinta Parsons, Say Hello by Carly Findlay, and the 2018 anthology Meet Me at the Intersection, a collection of writing by diverse authors.

Our friends at Black Inc. have put together another anthology in the bestselling ‘Growing Up’ series, Growing Up Disabled in Australia, set for release in February next year. The collection has been edited by Carly Findlay and features writing and artwork from 46 contributors, including Booked Out’s Astrid Edwards and Jessica Walton.

You can pre-order the book now through Black Inc..

It’s an understatement to say how enthusiastic we are about the work of our authors. From new releases to stage adaptations, we’re always thrilled to see familiar names and faces in the news, and are never surprised to see our speakers kicking goals.

In particular, the new release of When We Say Black Lives Matter by Maxine Beneba Clarke has struck a chord in our office. Written and illustrated by Maxine, this is a terrific triumph in creating a beautiful and critical work to start educating young ones early about the impact of racism. We’re rapidly buying up copies to give for Christmas, and spread Maxine’s important message for kids 3 and up.

Excitingly, Alice Pung’s excellent 2014 YA novel, Laurinda, will be on stage! Adapted by the Melbourne Theatre Company, Laurinda will be adapted by the writer and comedian Diana Nguyen, and directed by Petra Kalive. We can’t be more excited about this news, and look forward to seeing Lucy Lam in the big lights. Click here to read more.

According to new figures, less students are studying literature in VCE as it drops from the top 20 most popular VCE subjects. We were disappointed to hear this, as (unsurprisingly) the booking coordinators each have very fond memories of literature class at school.

Aside from the enjoyment of reading, literature provided us with valuable life lessons. The subject is about more than simply studying writing craft. It’s about understanding larger concepts and ideas, developing critical analysis and honing interpretation skills. It’s about both understanding the world we live in, and engaging with experiences outside our own worlds. It’s about contemplating broader themes of history, philosophy, politics, relationships and more.

Stories help us make sense of the world.

We encourage future VCE students to consider literature studies, a valuable and complimentary subject for any career path, and we hope you find as much joy, wisdom and life in books as we do.

Ah, bookshops. Where would we be without these amazing destinations full of kind-hearted souls and life-changing titles stacked high?

As a Melbourne-based agency, our return to beloved bookshops has been sweet and joyous. Which is why we’re very excited to spread the word about #VicBookshopBingo!

To play, you can download your bingo card here, and give yourself a good excuse to visit bookshops a little further afield than your normal fare (think secondhand, poetry and never-been-before…)

And to top it off, if you email a picture of your completed card to the Melbourne City of Literature, you’ll be in the running for a prize of $200 of books from your fave bookstore (ends Dec. 21st).

There’s no time to lose – only time to hustle across town and get readin’!

Award alert!

The 2020 Prime Minister’s Literary Awards Shortlist has been announced, and as expected, it’s full of incredible titles from a wide range of diverse authors who have tackled many difficult and important topics.

After a challenging year, the shortlist is intended to offer a “selection of thoughtful, inspiring and entertaining books to help us momentarily escape.”

Some familiar faces include

• Neil Grant — The Honeyman and the Hunter
• Jess Hill — See What You Made Me Do

With the very talented judges,

• Sally Warhaft
• Demet Divaroren

To read about each of the 30 shortlisted books, you can click here.

Congratulations to all the fantastic shortlisted authors – we’re looking forward to reading all the shortlisted titles we can get our hands on.

Yesterday, at 11.ooam on the 11th of November, thousands of students across Australia observed a minute’s silence to remember those who have died or suffered in wars and armed conflicts. This tradition is an important moment for the many Australians affected by war, and also a way of engaging young people in Australia’s history.

Many of our speakers deal with war in their writing and have sessions dedicated to helping students understand these heavy topics and themes:

Ruth Clare

In author Ruth Clare’s session The Vietnam War And Its Impact, she opens up about her story of growing up with a father who fought in the Vietnam War but never spoke about it, and explores the psychological repercussions of war on veterans and their families.

Ruth also penned a moving article for The Age this week: Remembrance Day: Mourning the father I lost.

Way Back When Historians

Way Back When Consulting Historians offer a session on their book Annie’s War, a children’s book that explores what life was like for seven-year-old Annie Slade and her family in Kew, Melbourne during World War I.

Michael Camilleri

Illustrator Michael Camilleri’s book One Minute’s Silence (written by David Metzenthen) explores the WW1 experience with comics, maps and technical illustrations of war machinery. His presentation is packed with visuals, including a slideshow reading of the book, snippets of sound effect and animation.

Andrew Plant

The Poppy by Andrew Plant, a beautiful picture book telling a story of of remembrance and commemoration. In his session, Andrew outlines the story in a non-confronting way for younger students, focusing on the French village of Villers-Bretonneux and Australian National Memorial.

Simon O’Carrigan

Simon O’Carrigan is a good friend of Booked Out and though he doesn’t do school sessions, he illustrated picture book Never Forget (written by Clare Hallifax) which is a great resource for teachers as a sensitive and historically accurate portrayal of WW1. Simon was inspired by the extraordinary works of Australian artists painting the First World War as it happened around them spent months researching archives for the illustrations for this book.

Happy NAIDOC Week ❤️ 💛 🖤⁣
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This year’s theme ‘Always Was, Always Will Be’ recognises that First Nations people have occupied and cared for this continent for over 65,000 years.⁣
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In a country where sovereignty has never been ceded, it is so important to be educating ourselves on the true history of this nation. Here are some of our favourite books by Indigenous writers to get you started.⁣
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Always Was, Always Will Be.⁣

October was a very busy month for our speakers–not only were they zooming around the country for Book Week sessions, but many of them were picking up special awards along the way! The following speakers received a well-earned acknowledgment of their hard work:

Felice Arena was the recipient of the YABBA Graham Davey Citation for 2020 for his impressive body of work as an author, playwright and actor.

Way Back When Historians won The Historical Interpretation Award at the Victorian Community History Awards for their book Annie’s War: The story of one Boroondara family’s wartime experience.

Tristan Bancks won a YABBA Fiction Award for Years 7-9 for his book Detention.

Christian White won the 2020 Ned Kelly Award for Best Crime Fiction for his book The Wife and the Widow.

And these speakers received honourable mentions at this year’s CBCA Awards:

Lisa Fuller – Honour Book for the CBCA 2020 Book of the Year: Older Readers for her YA novel Ghost Bird.

Marc McBride – Honour Book for the CBCA 2020 Book of the Year: Younger Readers for his book The Glimme (illustrator)

Congratulations to all these wonderful authors and illustrators, keep up you amazing work!

You made it! To all the teachers, speakers and students, Book Week 2020 is officially over.

A huge congratulations is in order for the hardworking people who make each booking a success, inspiring hundreds of thousands of readers across Australia each year. Give yourself a pat on the back for getting through another brilliant (albeit tough) year.

And for those who aren’t regular readers of The Alpine Observer, you may have missed a brilliant article about Tristan Bancks’ online visit to Mt Beauty Secondary College. Tristan’s virtual sessions have been a huge success in many schools across Victoria this Book season, with oodles of rave feedback.

Congratulations again to everyone involved in making this year so fantastic – here’s to a brilliant 2020 Book Week, and many more years to come. 🥳 ⭐ 📚