Children’s Book Festival

Roland Harvey was born in Melbourne and has always loved drawing. He trained as an architect but is best-known for his distinctive books, calendars and greeting cards. Roland enjoys watching people at work and at play, mentally sketching them while they go about their business. He has always loved t... Read more

Bob Graham has written and illustrated many children’s picture books. He was born in Sydney, and studied at the Julian Ashton Art School. His books are well known for their simplicity and humour, told from children’s perspectives, including Oscar’s Half Birthday, Buffy, (Smarties Book prize si... Read more

Elizabeth Honey is an award-winning author whose playful humour, originality, and energy strike a chord with children everywhere. Her books include novels 45 & 47 Stella Street, Don’t Pat the Wombat! and Remote Man, poetry Honey Sandwich, and Mongrel Doggerel and picture books Not a Nibble!, T... Read more

Boori Monty Pryor is an indigenous Australian born in Townsville, North Queensland in 1950. His father is from the Birri-gubba Nation of the Bowen region and his mother’s tribal group from Yarrabah, near Cairns, is the Kunggandji. Boori travels extensively as a performer and public speaker for sch... Read more

Anne Spudvilas is a multi award-winning illustrator of children’s books and an established portrait painter. Her work concentrates on portraying character and expression in people, both in commissioned portraits or children’s books with a strong character base. Anne works predominantly in oils w... Read more

Mem Fox has written over 38 books for adults and children including Possum Magic, which has sold over three million copies and is the bestselling picture book ever in Australia. Mem has been presented with many awards including an AM in the 1993 Australia Day Honours for services to the cultural li... Read more

Leigh Hobbs is the Australian Children’s Laureate (2016–2017). He is best known for his children’s books featuring his characters Old Tom, Horrible Harriet, Fiona the Pig and Mr Chicken, as well as the Freaks and their teachers in 4F for Freaks and Freaks Ahoy. Old Tom&... Read more

Chris Morphew was born in Sydney in 1985. He spent his childhood drawing comic books and writing stories about dinosaurs and time machines. During high school, Chris read a lot of YA science fiction, and his collection of all fifty-four Animorphs books still has pride of place on his bookshelf. Afte... Read more

Judy Horacek is a freelance cartoonist, illustrator and writer. Her work has appeared in the Age, the Australian and the Canberra Times, and her pointy noised characters can be found on fridges and toilet doors all over the world. Eight collections of her cartoons have been published. Random Li... Read more

Elise Hurst has written five children’s books and illustrated over fifty. Some of her picture books (which she also wrote) are The Elephants’ Big Day Out, A Dream of Bunyips Dancing and The Night Garden, which was shortlisted for the CBCA’s Book of the Year: Early Childhood award in 2008. ... Read more

Terry Denton has been creating children’s books for over 30 years. He has worked with many of Australia’s top authors, written much-loved picture books and junior fiction novels, won more than 40 children’s choice awards and been shortlisted many times in the Children’s Book Council of ... Read more

Andrew McLean is a painter and illustrator; Janet is a kindergarten teacher. The McLeans have won popularity and acclaim for their picture books. His spirited illustrations and Janet’s friendly stories encourage young children to look and listen and think. Andrew grew up in the Victorian country t... Read more

Janet is a kindergarten teacher. She and Andrew have won popularity and acclaim for their picture books. Janet grew up in Essendon, an outer Melbourne suburb. As a child she loved reading and enjoyed browsing through the books in her father’s extensive library. She spent many hours with the neighb... Read more

John Nicholson graduated in architecture from Melbourne University in 1973. He worked as an architect, graphic designer and illustrator before beginning to write and illustrate children’s books in 1990. John lives in the Victorian bush with his partner Jenny and their daughter Freda in an idiosync... Read more

Sally is the Australian Children’s Laureate for 2024 – 2025. She is Australia’s highest-selling female author and has written over 100 books for children and young adults, many of them award-winning, including the popular Billie B Brown and Hey Jack! series, and the Polly and Buster tr... Read more