The Readings Teen Advisory Board
The Readings Teen Advisory Board (TAB) is a volunteer group of teenagers that meets once a month to learn about careers in the book industry, chat about recent and forthcoming young adult books, talk with authors, write blog posts and short reviews, and provide feedback to Readings staff members and publishing industry people on a range of subjects.
The Teen Advisory Board are also given the opportunity to judge the Gab Williams Prize for young adult books and attend an in-person work experience day at a publishing house. Select books will be provided free of charge to the board throughout the year and posted out to individual members.
Applications for the 2024 Readings Teen Advisory Board have now closed.
Our advisory board began in April 2024 and will run until early 2025, when we will recruit a new board.
The board will be run primarily online via Zoom, and we welcome applications from teenagers aged 14–19 from anywhere in Australia. We are an equal opportunity bookshop and aim to nurture an inclusive environment for our teen volunteers. We encourage applications from, including but not limited to, First Nations people, those with a disability, and LGBTQIA+ applicants.
Meetings take place online from 4.30pm-6pm on the third Tuesday of every month.
Testimonials from past board members…
The Readings Teen Advisory Board is an incredible program. Over the course of a year, it generously introduced us to different publishers, editors, authors, illustrators, and so many more creatives involved in the book industry. As well as providing proof copies of young adult novels for us to consider, every month I was excited to talk about books with other passionate teen readers. We were privileged to be the judges of the inaugural Gab Williams Young Adult prize. The absolute highlight for me was our work experience day at Allen and Unwin which showcased careers in sales, marketing, PR, editing and publishing. As an avid reader and creative writer, I cannot speak highly enough of this opportunity, of Readings who created it, and of Angela Crocombe who leads it. – Poppy, 2023-24
The Readings Teen Advisory Board has been, to put it simply, marvellous - opportunities like this one come rarely! I'm so grateful to have been involved in a group of such well-read, intelligent and worldly individuals, hearing from experienced and knowledgeable professionals of the book industry, and exploring some fantastic new Australian YA fiction. We've all made some lovely friendships along the way; it's such an affirming and wonderful feeling to work closely with teens who share your passion for reading. –Ione, 2023-24
Inspiring, fullfilling and with so much passion, the Teen Advisory Board made the world of books incredibly real. Walking into a bookshop now, I can see the effort it takes to get one book on the shelf! The TAB was a deep-dive into publishing and editing, into careers that take you across the world and to book festivals, publishing houses and to people who are just as appreciative of the written word! I am grateful for the TAB for being such a central part of my year, as it served as the best space to learn, share and talk much about books! – Alina, 2023-24
This was a great experience, and I am delighted I signed up for the teen advisory board to rekindle my love for books and make friends with those with similar passions! –Navya, 2023-24
The Teen Advisory Board was such an amazing learning experience for me. Not only did I get to make some incredible new friends and read new books every month, but I also got to meet so many authors and influential people that work in the publishing industry. This helped me finalise what I really want to do in life and reminded me why I fell in love with reading in the first place. I will forever be grateful for this opportunity and all that it has taught me! – Shania, 2022-23
TAB has been an experience full of learning, community and of course, great reads. I have such a complete perspective of the industry and am very grateful that Angela brought in people with diverse experiences. It has been so much fun talking to like-minded teens about what we love so much, books! If I ever write something, they will definitely be my beta readers. It's also expanded my reading list to Australian authors, authors of diverse backgrounds and smaller publishers. Overall, it's an opportunity that gives more than you could get anywhere else and I'm so incredibly grateful. – Soleil, 2022-23
Below, you can see the books that our current board members have been reading and recommending throughout their tenure.
