Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley (Pan Macmillan) won the Prime Minister’s Literary Award for young adult fiction in 2011. Her fifth book is a beautifully crafted novel about friendship and identity.
Love-shy, the latest by Lili Wilkinson (Allen & Unwin), follows a student determined to become an investigative journalist. Her 2009 novel, Pink (Allen and Unwin), is a powerful read about sexuality and evolving friendships.
The Midnight Zoo by Sonya Hartnett (Viking Books) won the Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) 2011 book of the year for older readers award. The author also won the 2008 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, the world’s biggest prize for children’s and youth literature.
The Life of a Teenage Body-Snatcher by Doug MacLeod (Penguin Books) received honours in the CBCA 2011 book of the year for older readers.
The Kath & Kim script editor’s latest book, The Shiny Guys (Penguin), is a dark and sometimes funny love story set in a psychiatric ward.
The Wrong Boy by Suzy Zail (Walker Books) is a gripping read loosely based on the experiences of her father, a child survivor of the Holocaust.
Preloved by Shirley Marr (Black Dog Books). Published this month, Marr’s latest novel has already earned high praise from book industry guide Bookseller and Publisher Magazine.
Love Notes from Vinegar House by Karen Tayleur (Black Dog Books) is due in May. Marketed as a ‘‘gothic romance thriller’. If it has the believable voice, engrossing plot and twists of her previous book, Chasing Boys, it’ll be a hit.
Sea Hearts by Margo Lanagan (Allen & Unwin). Writers speak of Lanagan in reverential tones.
A Confusion of Princes by Garth Nix (Allen & Unwin). Nix is best known for his enduringly popular Keys to the Kingdom series. His latest book, out this month, is packed with twists and turns, and explores what it means to be human.
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (Random House) is better known as a book for adults. Those who enjoyed the well-crafted novel may like The Messenger, which won the CBCA book of the year in 2003.
