Children's Book Council of Australia facts for kids
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| Non-profit organization | |
| Industry | Children's literature |
| Founded | 1946 |
The Children's Book Council of Australia (CBCA) is a special group that helps connect people with amazing books for young Australians. It's a not-for-profit organisation, meaning it doesn't aim to make money. Each year, the CBCA gives out the Children's Book of the Year Awards. These awards celebrate great books that add to Australia's collection of children's literature.
Contents
How the CBCA Started: A Brief History
The idea for the Children's Book Council of Australia came from Lena Ruppert and Mary Townes Nyland. They were in Australia with the U.S. Information Library. They encouraged teachers, librarians, booksellers, and publishers to start a "Children's Book Week" in Australia. This idea was inspired by a similar event held every year in the United States.
What is Children's Book Week?
In 1945, Children's Book Week happened for the very first time across Australia. Its theme was "United Through Books." This week is a big celebration of books and reading for kids and teens.
The Famous CBCA Book Awards
The Children's Book Council of Australia was officially formed in 1945. The first Australian Children's Book of the Year Award was given out in 1946. Back then, there was only one award category. This award is now known as the CBCA Book of the Year: Older Readers Award.
Over the years, more award categories were added:
- In 1952, an award for Picture Books was created.
- In 1982, a category for Younger Readers was added.
- The Eve Pownall Award for Information Books (non-fiction) started in 1993.
- The Early Childhood Award was created in 2001.
- In 2019, the New Illustrator Award was added. This award used to be called the Crichton Award.
This means there are now six different categories for the CBCA Book of the Year Awards!
How the Awards are Funded
At first, the awards received money from the government (from 1966 to 1988). Later, they were supported by donations from individuals and companies. A big five-year partnership with the Myer Group gave $50,000 each year.
When this partnership ended, the CBCA decided to create its own fund. This fund, called the CBCA Awards Foundation, was set up in 1996. It successfully raised over one million dollars! This money is invested, and the earnings from these investments now pay for the award prizes forever. People who donate a lot of money to the foundation are always thanked on CBCA materials.
How the CBCA is Organised
The CBCA is a national organisation, meaning it has branches in every state and territory across Australia. Some of these branches even have smaller sub-branches. Each branch mostly runs itself, but they all follow general rules set by the National Board.
The National Board was created in 2012. It has representatives from every CBCA branch. This Board is in charge of the annual Book of the Year Awards and giving out the prizes. They also organise Children's Book Week, manage their merchandise, and oversee their online review journal called Reading Time. The Board also plans the National Conferences, which happen every two years.
Other Special CBCA Awards
Besides the Book of the Year Awards, the CBCA also presents other important awards:
- Dame Annabelle Rankin Award – This award celebrates people who have done great things for children's literature in Queensland.
- Nan Chauncy Award – This national award is given every two years. It recognises someone's outstanding contribution to children's literature in Australia.
- Crichton Award for Children's Book Illustration – This award (given from 1988 to 2018) recognised new and talented illustrators of Australian children's books. It is now part of the New Illustrator Award.
- Leila St John Award – This award is for services to children's literature in Victoria.
- Lady Cutler Award – This award is given for distinguished services to children's literature in New South Wales (NSW).
The National Centre for Australian Children's Literature
The National Centre for Australian Children's Literature is a huge collection of books and other materials. It's all about Australian authors, illustrators, publishers, and their creative works for children. It used to be known as the Lu Rees Archives.
This amazing collection includes:
- Over 40,000 books, with about 4,000 of them translated into 58 different languages.
- More than 510 research files.
- Important collections of papers, manuscripts, and artwork from authors, illustrators, and publishers.
The Centre's main goal is to help people appreciate Australian children's literature even more. They do this by collecting, keeping safe, and sharing these resources through programs, events, and exhibitions.
The idea for this collection came from Lu Rees in 1974. She was the first President of the ACT Branch of the CBCA. She wanted a collection of research files about Australian children's authors and illustrators, along with their books. In 1980, this collection was moved to the University of Canberra Library so everyone could access it. The Centre is now run by a special Board. Many of the items in the collection were donated by CBCA members.
See also
- List of CBCA Awards
- List of Australian literary awards
