The longlists for the 2019 Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIAs) have been announced. The ABIAs celebrate the best books of the year, as judged by Australian book industry members.
The titles in each category are…
General fiction book of the year
- Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty
- Scrublands by Chris Hammer
- The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart by Holly Ringland
- The Lost Man by Jane Harper
- The Nowhere Child by Christian White
- The Other Wife by Michael Robotham
- The Ruin by Dervla McTiernan
- The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris
Literary fiction book of the year
- Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton
- Bridge of Clay by Markus Zusak
- In the Garden of the Fugitives by Ceridwen Dovey
- Shell by Kristina Olsson
- The Children’s House by Alice Nelson
- The Shepherd’s Hut by Tim Winton
- Too Much Lip by Melissa Lucashenko
- Wintering by Krissy Kneen
General nonfiction book of the year
- Any Ordinary Day by Leigh Sales
- Boys Will Be Boys by Clementine Ford
- Dear Santa edited by Samuel Johnson
- No Friend But the Mountains: Writing from Manus Prison by Behrouz Boochani, translated by Omid Tofighian
- The Arsonist by Chloe Hooper
- The Land Before Avocado by Richard Glover
- Welcome to Country: A Travel Guide to Indigenous Australia by Marcia Langton
- Woo’s Wonderful World of Maths by Eddie Woo
Biography book of the year
- Back, After the Break by Osher Günsberg
- Butterfly on a Pin by Alannah Hill
- Challenge Accepted! by Celeste Barber
- Eggshell Skull by Bri Lee
- Johnathan Thurston: The Autobiography by Jonathan Thurston
- One Hundred Years of Dirt by Rick Morton
- Speaking Up by Gillian Triggs
- Teacher by Gabbie Stroud
Book of the year for older children (ages 13+)
- Amelia Westlake by Erin Gough
- Between Us by Clare Atkins
- Catching Teller Crow by Ambelin Kwaymullina & Ezekiel Kwaymullina
- Hive by A.J. Betts
- Jane Doe and the Cradle of All Worlds by Jeremy Lachlan
- P is for Pearl by Eliza Henry Jones
- Small Spaces by Sarah Epstein
- Tales from the Inner City by Shaun Tan
Book of the year for younger children (ages 7-13)
- Lenny’s Book of Everything by Karen Foxlee
- Ninja Kid: From Nerd to Ninja by Anh Do & Jeremy Ley
- Polly and Buster: The Mystery of the Magic Stones by Sally Rippin
- Real Pigeons Fight Crime by Andrew McDonald & Ben Wood
- The 104-Storey Treehouse by Andy Griffiths & Terry Denton
- The Bad Guys Episode 7: Do-You-Think-He-Saurus?! by Aaron Blabey
- The Tales of Mr Walker by Jess Black & Sara Acton
- Wundersmith: The Calling of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend
Children’s picture book of the year (ages 0-6)
- All the Ways to be Smart by Davina Bell & Alison Colpoys
- Cicada by Shaun Tan
- Claris: The Chicest Mouse in Paris by Megan Hess
- Go Go and the Silver Shoes by Jane Godwin & Anna Walker
- If I Was Prime Minister by Beck & Robin Feiner
- Love Makes a Family by Sophie Beer
- Macca the Alpaca by Matt Cosgrove
- Pig the Grub by Aaron Blabey
Illustrated book of the year
- A Painted Landscape: Across Australia from Bush to Coast by Amber Creswell Bell
- Chromatopia: An Illustrated History of Colour by David Coles
- Family: New Vegetable Classics to Comfort and Nourish by Hetty McKinnon
- Flour and Stone: Baked for Love, Life & Happiness by Nadine Ingram, photos by Alan Benson
- Mirka & Georges by Lesley Harding & Kendrah Morgan
- Resident Dog: Incredible Homes and the Dogs That Live There by Nicole England
- Special Guest by Annabel Crabb & Wendy Sharpe
- The Cook’s Apprentice by Stephanie Alexander
International book of the year
- Becoming by Michelle Obama
- Circe by Madeline Miller
- Fear: Trump in the White House by Bob Woodward
- Less by Andrew Sean Greer
- Lost Connections by Johann Hari
- Milkman by Anna Burns
- Normal People by Sally Rooney
- Ottolenghi SIMPLE by Yotam Ottolenghi
Small publishers’ adult book of the year
- A Superior Spectre by Angela Meyer
- Blakwork by Alison Whittaker
- Deep Time Dreaming by Billy Griffiths
- Growing Up Aboriginal in Australia edited by Anita Heiss
- The Bookshop of the Broken Hearted by Robert Hillman
- The Geography of Friendship by Sally Piper
- The Western Front Diaries of Charles Bean edited by Peter Burness
- Wild Sea: A History of the Southern Ocean by Joy McCann
Small publishers’ children’s book of the year
- Alfred’s War by Rachel Bin Salleh & Samantha Fry
- Black Cockatoo by Carl Merrison & Hakea Hustler
- Empty by Andrew Pratley & Angel McMullan
- Heads and Tails: Insects by John Canty
- I Had Such Friends by Meg Gatland-Veness
- Night Walk by Alison Binks
- Rhyme Cordial by Antonia Pesenti
- The Extremely Weird Thing that Happened in Huggabie Falls by Adam Cece
- Whisper by Lynette Noni
The Matt Richell award for new writer of the year
- Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton
- The Nowhere Child by Christian White
- Eggshell Skull by Bri Lee
- One Hundred Years of Dirt by Rick Morton
- Teacher by Gabbie Stroud
- The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart by Holly Ringland
- The Ruin by Dervla McTiernan
- The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris
The 2019 shortlists will be announced on 11 April, with the winners to be announced at a ceremony at the Sydney International Convention Centre on 2 May. For more information, please visit the ABIA website.
