The purpose of the Teen Advisory Board is to give young people between the ages of 14 and 19 the opportunity to learn more about books, authors, and the book industry. Find out more here.

In late July, we were delighted to welcome a new group of teens who will be on the advisory board until June 2020. It was, as always, a very difficult decision to choose the final shortlist for the board, but I am thrilled that we have such a diverse group of teens from Melbourne and surrounds, some of whom are home schooled and others who have even finished high school. Everyone got along well and we chatted very enthusiastically about books, our favourite authors, and opportunities for writing and reading whilst on the board. We also went through a Code of Conduct for our meetings.

The teens will be meeting once a month at the Readings head office with myself and other key Readings staff, and we will also have regular visitors dropping in to tell us more about the industry. The first visitor in August will be the debut author of the current Readings Young Adult Book of the Month, It Sounded Better in My Head, Nina Kenwood.

The teens left laden with proof copies of books and many new friendships were formed. Welcome Ananyaa, Siena, Broedy, Amy, Carolyn, Riley, Thea, Sasha, Claire and Chenuli – we’re looking forward to a year of discovering more about the exciting world of publishing and books on the Teen Advisory Board!

Angela Crocombe is the manager of Readings Kids.