The Awards recognise and celebrate the indie booksellers as the number one supporters of Australian authors. What makes our Indies uniquely placed to judge and recommend the best Aussie books of the past year to their customers and readers, is their incredible passion and knowledge, their contribution to the cultural diversity of the Australian reading public by recommending books beyond the big brands, and their love of quality writing.
OVER WINNER: BOOK OF THE YEAR:
There Was Still Love by Favel Parrett (Hachette Australia)
FICTION:
There Was Still Love by Favel Parrett (Hachette Australia)
NON-FICTION:
Tell Me Why by Archie Roach (Simon & Schuster Australia)
DEBUT FICTION:
Allegra in Three Parts by Suzanne Daniel (Macmillan Australia)
ILLUSTRATED NON-FICTION:
The Lost Boys by Paul Byrnes (Affirm Press)
CHILDREN’S:
The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Ugly Animals by Sami Bayly (Lothian Children’s Books)
YOUNG ADULT:
The Surprising Power of a Good Dumpling by Wai Chim (Allen and Unwin Children’s)
The Indies are considered the forerunners of all major Australian book awards. Since the Awards inception in 2008, the Indies have a well-deserved reputation for picking the best of the best in Australian writing. Past Book of the Year winners have gone on to be bestsellers and win other major literary awards. Previous winners include: Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend, The Dry by Jane Harper; The Natural Way of Things by Charlotte Wood; The Bush by Don Watson; The Narrow Road to the Deep North by Richard Flanagan; The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman; All That I Am by Anna Funder; The Happiest Refugee by Anh Do; Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey; Breath by Tim Winton; and last year’s winner, Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton.