The Children’s Book Council of Australia announced their Book of the Year shortlist for 2016 on Friday. I get so excited waiting for this every year!

Congratulations to all the authors and illustrators of these wonderful books!

I am looking forward to reading as many as I can. Unfortunately there never seems enough time to get through all of them.

In the early childhood category;

• Piranha’s Don’t Eat Bananas by Aaron Blabey
• The Cow Tripped Over the Moon by Tony Wilson and illustrated by Laura Wood
• My Dog Bigsy by Alison Lester
• Mr Huff by Anna Walker
• Perfect by Danny Parker and illustrated by Freya Blackwood
• Ollie and the Wind by Ghosh Ronojoy

In the picture book category;

• My Dead Bunny by James Foley with text by Sigi Cohen
• Suri’s Wall by Matt Ottley  with text by Lucy Estela
• And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda by Bruce Whatley with text by Eric Bogle
• One Step at a Time by Sally Heinrich with text by Jane Jolly
• Ride, Ricardo, Ride! by Shane Devries with text by Phil Cummings
• Flight by Armin Greder with text by Nadia Wheatley

In the younger readers category;

• Molly and Pim and the Millions of Stars by Martine Murray
• Soon by Morris Gleitzman
• Run, Pip, Run by J. C. Jones
• Star of Deltora: Shadows of the Master by Emily Rodda
• Sister Heart by Sally Morgan
• The Cleo Stories: A Friend and a Pet by Libby Gleeson and illustrated by Freya Blackwood

In the older readers category;

• The Flywheel by Erin Gough
• Cloudwish by Fiona Wood
• The Pause by John Larkin
• Inbetween Days by Vikki Wakefield
• Freedom Ride by Sue Lawson
• A Single Stone by Meg McKinlay

Information books;

• Phasmid: Saving the Lord Howe Island Stick Insect by Rohan Cleave and illustrated by Coral Tulloch
• The Amazing True Story of how Babies are Made by Fiona Katauskas
• Ancestry: Stories of Multicultural Anzacs by Robyn Siers and illustrated by Carlie Walker
• Lennie The Legend: Solo to Sydney by Pony by Stephanie Owen Reeder
• We are the Rebels: the Women and Men who made Eureka by Clare Wright
• The White Mouse: The Story of Nancy Wake by Peter Gouldthorpe

I am quite keen to read The Flywheel, it sounds interesting. I’m also looking forward to sharing the early childhood and picture books with my kids, they are always worth a read. We already love The Cow Tripped Over the Moon and Piranhas Don’t Eat Bananas, so now I am excited to discover the others.

Which of these books have you read? Which ones do you think will be Book of the Year?