Most Underrated Book Award (MUBA) shortlist 2017

The Small Press Network (SPN) have announced the four titles shortlisted for the 2017 Most Underrated Book Award (MUBA). Open to all members of the Small Press Network, the MUBA is designed to highlight hidden gems – wonderful books that deserve to find a wider audience.


The Invisible War by Ailsa Wild, Briony Barr, Gregory Crocetti, Ben Huchings & Jeremy Barr

France, 1916. While treating a patient with dysentery, Sister Annie Barnaby encounters a strain of lethal bacteria. As the invaders journey deep into her gut, the resident microbes must fight to survive. Annie’s life hangs in the balance. Enter the phage, deadly predators, ready to wage war to protect their host. Created by a team of scientists, artists, educators, writers & historians, The Invisible War is a graphic novel like no other.

The Invisible War is published by Scale Free Network.


Loopholes by Susan McCreery

This collection of microfiction provides glimpses into the everyday challenges of family life, relationships, ageing and loss. The characters are typical humans – flawed, vulnerable, frustrating and frustrated. Told with empathy and wit, and honed with a wordsmith’s skill, Loopholes makes us see ourselves and each other differently.

Loopholes is published by Spineless Wonders.


The Island Will Sink by Briohny Doyle

This work of science fiction is set in the not-too-distant future in which we are perpetually on the brink of collapse, and catastrophe is our most popular entertainment. The energy crisis has come and gone. EcoLaw is enforced by insidious cartoon panda bears and their armies of viral-marketing children. The world watches as Pitcairn Island sinks into the Pacific, wondering if this, finally, will be the end of everything. And in the midst of it all, Max Galleon, anxious family man and blockbuster auteur, lives a life that he cannot remember.

The Island Will Sink is published by Brow Books.


Horse Island by Christina Laidley Kennedy and Jason Busch

Horse Island, the private retreat of Christina and Trevor Kennedy, sits tucked away in an estuary of Tuross Lake on the South Coast of NSW. It is a stunning location but what is most surprising in this place of great natural beauty is the remarkable garden created by Christina, featuring only Australian indigenous plants. This book is the author’s inspiring gardening story, and features gorgeous photography by Jason Busch.

Horse Island is published by Zabriskie Books.


The MUBA 2017 is sponsored by the Australian Booksellers Association. The winner will be announced during SPN’s Independent Publishing Conference in Melbourne on Friday 17 November 2017. Find out more here.

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Cover image for The Island Will Sink

The Island Will Sink

Briohny Doyle

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