The Australian Book Industry Awards Academy has announced the ABIA Book shortlists for 2017. For the first time, the fastest-growing book publishing segment in the world is acknowledged with an ABIA for Audiobook of the Year.
Congratulations to all the authors, illustrators, narrators, and publishers.
Australian Women’s Weekly General Fiction Book of the Year
- Truly Madly Guilty by Liane Moriarty (Macmillan Australia, Pan Macmillan Australia)
- The Chocolate Tin by Fiona McIntosh (Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House)
- The One Who Got Away by Caroline Overington (HarperCollins, HarperCollins Publishers)
- The Dry by Jane Harper (Macmillan Australia, Pan Macmillan Australia)
- The Birdman’s Wife by Melissa Ashley (Affirm Press)
Literary Fiction Book of the Year
- The Good People by Hannah Kent (Picador Australia, Pan Macmillan Australia)
- The Last Painting of Sara de Vos by Dominic Smith (Allen & Unwin, Allen & Unwin)
- An Isolated Incident by Emily Maguire (Picador Australia, Pan Macmillan Australia)
- Goodwood by Holly Throsby (Allen & Unwin, Allen & Unwin)
- Between a Wolf and a Dog by Georgia Blain (Scribe Publications)
Matt Richell Award for New Writer of the Year
- The Dry by Jane Harper (Macmillan Australia, Pan Macmillan Australia)
- The Midnight Watch by David Dyer (Hamish Hamilton, Penguin Random House)
- Fight Like a Girl by Clementine Ford (Allen & Unwin, Allen & Unwin)
- Music and Freedom by Zoe Morrison (Vintage Australia, Penguin Random House)
- Goodwood by Holly Throsby (Allen & Unwin, Allen & Unwin)
General Non-fiction Book of the Year
- Talking to my Country by Stan Grant (HarperCollins, HarperCollins Publishers)
- Fight Like a Girl by Clementine Ford (Allen & Unwin)
- The Barefoot Investor by Scott Pape (Wrightbooks, John Wiley & Sons)
- Girl Stuff for Girls Aged 8-12 by Kaz Cooke (Viking, Penguin Random House)
- The Road to Ruin: How Tony Abbott & Peta Credlin destroyed their own Government by Niki Savva (Scribe Publications)
Biography Book of the Year
- Songs of a War Boy by Deng Adut with Ben Mckelvey (Hachette Australia, Hachette Australia)
- Life As I Know It by Michelle Payne & John Harms (Melbourne University Publishing, Melbourne University Publishing)
- The Hate Race by Maxine Beneba Clarke (Hachette, Hachette Australia)
- Working Class Boy by Jimmy Barnes (HarperCollins, HarperCollins Publishers)
- Victoria: The Queen by Julia Baird (HarperCollins, HarperCollins Publishers)
Audible International Book of the Year
- Commonwealth by Ann Patchett (Bloomsbury Publishing, Bloomsbury)
- Harry Potter and The Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling (Little Brown, Hachette Australia)
- The 8-Week Blood Sugar Diet by Michael Mosley (Simon & Schuster Australia, Simon & Schuster Australia)
- The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate – Discoveries From a Secret World by Peter Wohlleben (Black Inc., Schwartz Publishing)
- The North Water by Ian McGuire (Scribner, Simon & Schuster Australia)
Small Publishers’ Adult Book of the Year
- Offshore: Behind the Wire on Manus and Nauru by Madeline Gleeson (NewSouth, NewSouth Publishing)
- Saltwater by Cathy McLennan (University of Queensland Press)
- Position Doubtful: Mapping Landscapes and Memories by Kim Mahood (Scribe Publications)
- Poum and Alexandre by Catherine de Saint Phalle (Transit Lounge, Transit Lounge Publishing)
- The Australian Native Bee Book by Tim Heard (Sugarbag Bees)
Illustrated Book of the Year
- The Bikini Body 28-Day Healthy Eating & Lifestyle by Kayla Itsine (Macmillan Australia, Pan Macmillan Australia)
- Smith & Daughters: A Cookbook (That Happens to be Vegan) by Shannon Matinez & Mo Wyse (Hardie Grant Books, Hardie Grant Publishing)
- Penguin Bloom by Cameron Bloom & Bradley Trevor Greive (ABC Books, HarperCollins Publishers)
- Basics to Brilliance by Donna Hay (HarperCollins, HarperCollins Publishers)
- New York by Megan Hess (Hardie Grant Books, Hardie Grant Publishing)
Book of the Year Older Children (age range 8 to 14 years)
- Wormwood Mire: A Stella Montgomery Intrigue by Judith Rossel (ABC Books, HarperCollins Publishers)
- The Bone Sparrow by Zana Fraillon (Lothian, Hachette Australia)
- Artie and the Grime Wave by Richard Roxburgh (Allen & Unwin Children’s, Allen & Unwin)
- Words in Deep Blue by Cath Crowley (Pan Australia, Pan Macmillan Australia)
- WeirDo #7 Mega Weird! by Anh Do & Jules Faber (Scholastic Press, Scholastic Australia)
Book of the Year for Younger Children (age range 0 to 8 years)
- Circle by Jeannie Baker (Walker Books, Walker Books)
- The 78 Storey Treehouse by Andy Griffiths & Terry Denton (Pan Australia, Pan Macmillan Australia)
- Mr Chicken Arriva Roma by Leigh Hobbs (Allen & Unwin Children’s, Allen & Unwin)
- Charlie and the War Against the Grannies by Alan Brough (Pan Australia, Pan Macmillan Australia)
- What Do They Do With All the Poo from All the Animals at the Zoo? by Anh Do, Simon Mello & Laura Wood (Scholastic Press, Scholastic Australia)
Small Publishers’ Children’s Book of the Year
- My Sister is a Super Hero by Damon Young & Peter Carnavas (University of Queensland Press)
- The Secrets We Keep by Nova Weetman (University of Queensland Press)
- Steve Goes to Carnival by Joshua Button & Robyn Wells (Magabala Books)
- Crabbing with Dad by Paul Seden (Magabala Books)
- Even Mummy Cries by Naomi Hunter & Karen Erasmus (Empowering Resources)
Audiobook of the Year
- Fight Like A Girl by Clementine Ford (Audible Studios, Audible Australia)
- Make It Happen: Live Your Best Life by Michelle Bridges (Audible Studios, Audible Australia)
- The 78-Storey Treehouse by Andy Griffiths & Terry Denton (Narrator: Stig Wemyss) (Bolinda audio, Bolinda Publishing)
- The Good People by Hannah Kent (Narrator: Caroline Lennon) (Bolinda audio, Bolinda Publishing)
- True Girt: The Unauthorised History of Australia by David Hunt (Audible Studios, Audible Australia)
