Presenting, Michael Wagner and the Grownups:

You might recognise Michael (centre) from such children’s books as Dog Wars and The Undys series. Pictured above with his band, 80s rock group the Grownups, Michael appears to have come a long way from tight black tshirts and biker jackets. How did we not know just how cool Muso-Michael was?? We love Children’s-Author-Michael just the same, but we absolutely love this song and want to hear more! Michael – send us a CD! Or maybe a cassette tape? Or would it actually be vinyl…

Here’s us this morning, totally captivated watching one of his music videos:

So. Cool.

Read about Sheree Marris, one of Australia’s youngest environmental ambassadors, in the November 2009 RACV RoyalAuto magazine. After reading, marvel at the breathtaking underwater photography! Following this, be sure to book the Aquatic Scientist/Motivational Speaker for your next event.

buying office furniture in a chat room

Then

Our third congrats for the month goes to Mister Morris Gleitzman!

Then – the second installment of Felix and Zelda’s story – has been shortlisted for the UK Guardian children’s fiction prize.

Go you bloody good thing!

A small free kiss in the dark

Big ups to Glenda Millard for taking out the Young Adult prize in the Queensland Premier’s Literary Awards!

This debut YA from an already much-loved author was a really big office hit and rated by at least one Booked Out staffer as their fav YA read of 09.

And just to rub it in a bit further, Glenda won this year’s CBCA Younger Readers Book of the Year Award for Perry Angel’s Suitcase.

We love you Glenda! xxooxx

Lia Hills is over at CYL’s Inside a Dog website as this month’s resident blogger. She’s bringing her own flavour to it, by turning it into a ‘philosophical blog’.

Check it out!

P.S. The German has no relevance. Don’t worry, you didn’t miss a crucial reference. In fact, if anything the title should have been in French because Lia is a translator of French fiction.

One of Booked Out’s favourite books for 2009 has just won the prize for young adult fiction in the Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards.

A big congratulations to Sue Saliba, for winning this award.  She was up against some equally outstanding novels, including The Beginner’s Guide to Living, by Lia Hills and The Two Pearls of Wisdom, by Alison Goodman.

We at Booked Out are all very chuffed!

On Tuesday 25 August, all of us Booked Outers left the sanctuary of our office (all except Simon, left to his own devices, Macauley Culkin styles) and trekked into the windy city only to be blown away by the crème de la crème of Australian children’s writers.

It was our one-day seminar, Books for a Better World.

At the risk of rambling endlessly on the infinitely talented and inspiring line-up, enjoy the following summary:

To begin, Andy Griffiths made us put cellophane over our eyes in his gleeful presentation, ‘Books, brains and cellophane: How reading colours our world’. Then, Tony ‘Shakespeare’ Thompson declared himself an emo and urged teachers to teach books that they themselves love. In a panel discussion, Amra Pajalic, Alice Pung and Robert Hillman talked about finding inspiration in the worlds of other people and cultures. Rounding off the morning session, Isobelle Carmody reminisced on the origins of her writing career and explored the rich potential for understanding our own world through fantasy writing.

After lunch and a book buying/booksigning frenzy, we all freestyled with Tony Eaton on the what the best titles are for Australian classrooms. Then, rousing gales were met with a rousing final address from Morris Gleitzman, who ruminated on exactly why we write.

Those of us game enough to brave the impending apocalyptic winds stuck around for champagne, cheese and a chat to Morris, who introduced to us his newest novel, Grace.

Thanks to all for coming, it was truly an amazing day! We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did and trust you can take some new ideas on literature back to the classroom.

Continuing on from Tony Eaton’s ‘Canon for 2010′ session, we would love all of you who attended to post a comment here with your recommended books for the classroom (and any other feedback).

* * *

Up next, we’re coming back to Sydney for Visual Literacy – featuring Shaun Tan and Tohby Riddle!

Visual Literacy, State Library NSW, Wednesday 16 September 2009.

REGISTER HERE

Last Thursday 13 August, Booked Out hosted Maggie Hamilton, Evelyn Field, Randa Abdel-Fattah, Alice Pung, Emily Maguire and Lucy Howard-Taylor in a seminar held at the gloriously sun-drenched State Library of NSW. What’s Happening to Our Girls? welcomed school teachers, welfare officers and even a few parents in a day of education and inspiration.

The welfare of young girls was the focus of the day with issues like cyber-bullying, body image and the early sexualisation of girls discussed by speakers. To have such an amazing group of women come together and speak so passionately to an equally impassioned group of teacher professionals showed us just how important it is to talk about these issues – how important it is to talk to our girls and, perhaps more importantly, to listen to them.

From moving personal reflections to practiced expertise, it seemed as though everyone came away with a renewed energy and heaps of new ideas to implement in the classroom. That glorious Sydney sun was simply a bonus.

Emily Maguire, Emily & Esther from Booked Out and Lucy Howard-Taylor enjoying a bit of 'girl talk'

One satisfied customer says:

“Just wanted to thank you for the superb seminar that I attended last Thursday. It was informative, educative, entertaining and above all… validation that so many others are experiencing exactly the same problems as I am!!!!!!!!!!!! I was inspired by your chosen speakers and in awe of their knowledge and eloquence, more than one of them has kissed the Blarney Stone!!!!!!!!!!!” (Booked Out has not tampered with number of !’s.)

Esther chats to Lucy Howard-Taylor, Alice Pung, Emily Maguire and Maggie Hamilton

Thanks to everyone who attended and, of course, to all of our wonderful speakers. Up next, we celebrate the importance of reading at Books for a Better World, smack bang in the middle of Book Week.

P.S. After talking about the media impact on girls and their attraction to materialism, Emily and Esther regret to have succumbed to an epic day of shopping on Oxford Street. 20 Hail Marys!

Congrrrraaatulations to the nominees of the Vic Premier’s Literary Awards, especially in The Prize for Young Adult Fiction, Booked Outers Sue Saliba and Lia Hills! Both books are office faves, so no alarms and no surprises. Yawn, actually. How predictable that awesome writers would be nominated for an awesome award.

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