A Very Special Day in Sydney: Celebrating the CBCA Book of the Year Awards

Last Friday Claudia and I found ourselves at the CBCA Award Ceremony Sydney 2026!

For us, the day was about so much more than an awards ceremony. It was a chance to celebrate books, creativity, illustration, storytelling and the incredible community of people who make Australian children’s literature what it is.

The CBCA Book of the Year Awards have been celebrating Australian children’s literature since 1946, and in 2026 the awards marked their 80th year.

It felt pretty special to be there together.

Claudia and I have always loved making things together, but creating My Nonno Loves was a particularly meaningful experience. Seeing our little book become part of the CBCA conversation – and being shortlisted – was something we could never have imagined when we first started working on it! Never!

The awards ceremony was filled with so many AMAZING creatives from the world of children’s books — authors, illustrators, publishers, editors, booksellers, librarians and people who work tirelessly behind the scenes to bring stories to children.

And, of course, there were so many wonderful books to celebrate.

One of my favourite things about being part of this community is the LOVE and UNDERSTANDING. There is such a genuine excitement about other people’s stories and creative work. Everyone in the room understands just how much time, thought, persistence and heart goes into creating a children’s book.

For Claudia and me, being shortlisted for My Nonno Loves was already an enormous honour. Sitting together at the ceremony, looking around the room and thinking about how far our little story had travelled was something I will remember for a very long time.

And perhaps the most special part was doing it together.

It is a collaboration between words and pictures, but also between people.

Our Sydney trip gave us a chance to pause and appreciate that.

To celebrate!

And to celebrate each other!

And to celebrate all the people who love and champion Australian children’s stories.

We came home tired, happy and very grateful.

Grateful to have made My Nonno Loves.

Grateful to have shared the experience with each other.

And incredibly grateful to everyone who has read the book, shared it with a child, recommended it, invited us into their schools and libraries, or simply taken the time to tell us what the story means to them.

And what a privilege it is to celebrate Australian children’s literature alongside the people who make it happen.

Thank you, CBCA, for a very special day. ❤️

You can find out more about the CBCA Book of the Year Awards and this year’s winning and Honour books on the CBCA website.