Australian Independent Booksellers are thrilled to announce Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend (Hachette Australia) as their favourite Australian book from last year and the winner of The Indie Book Awards 2018 Book of the Year.
This is the first time a children’s book has won the overall award, made even extra special given 2018 marks the tenth year of the awards.
The Awards recognise and celebrate the indie booksellers as the number one supporters of Australian authors. What makes our Indies uniquely placed to judge and recommend the best Aussie books of the past year to their customers and readers, is their incredible passion and knowledge, their contribution to the cultural diversity of the Australian reading public by recommending books beyond the big brands, and their love of quality writing.
The individual category winners in Fiction, Debut Fiction, Non-Fiction, Illustrated Non-Fiction, Children’s and Young Adult were also announced. From these five category winners, the independent booksellers selected the best of the best – The 2018 Indie Book of the Year.
FICTION WINNER:
The Choke by Sofie Laguna (Allen & Unwin)
NON-FICTION WINNER:
Saga Land by Richard Fidler & Kári Gíslason (ABC Books, HarperCollins Australia)
DEBUT FICTION WINNER:
Wimmera by Mark Brandi (Hachette Australia)
ILLUSTRATED NON-FICTION WINNER:
Native: Art & Design with Australian Plants by Kate Herd & Jela Ivankovic-Waters (Thames & Hudson Australia)
CHILDREN’S WINNER:
Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend (Hachette Australia)
YOUNG ADULT WINNER:
Wilder Country by Mark Smith (Text Publishing)
The Indies are considered the forerunners of all major Australian book awards. Since the Awards inception in 2008, the Indies have a well-deserved reputation for picking the best of the best in Australian writing. Past Book of the Year winners have gone on to be bestsellers and win other major literary awards. Previous winners include: The Dry by Jane Harper; The Natural Way of Things by Charlotte Wood; The Bush by Don Watson; The Narrow Road to the Deep North by Richard Flanagan; The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman; All That I Am by Anna Funder; The Happiest Refugee by Anh Do; Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey; and Breath by Tim Winton.
