CELEBRATE TEEN FICTION: Indigo Owl publication day

Today we are celebrating the publication of new teen novel Indigo Owl, the long-awaited second book from Charlie Archbold. Charlie's debut Mallee Boys was awarded Honour Book in the Children's Book Council Book of the Year Awards 2018. Indigo Owl is smart, thoughtful YA fiction for modern teens. Equal parts thrilling entertainment and thought-provoking social commentary, Indigo Owl discusses the 'what ifs' around the future of the human race.

BEHIND THE BOOK: Anne Black on George Isaacs

In a new series on the Wakefield Press blog, we've asked authors to write about the background, inspiration, research and work that goes into writing a book. This week features Anne Black, author of Pendragon: The life of George Isaacs, Colonial wordsmith. Anne writes about her first encounter with little-known literary icon George Isaacs, and the death certificate that sparked an obsession and a biography.

POETRY SPOTLIGHT: 'this is coal don’t be afraid' by Ali Whitelock

In hard times, it is good to look at different ways to express ourselves, our thoughts and our feelings.This always makes me think of poetry. When things are hard to say, it sometimes helps to find someone else who can say it for you. This is exactly what happened recently during the peak of the fire crisis in Australia. Poet Ali Whitelock found a way to express her own jumbled thoughts and feelings about that… Continue reading

Wakefield Press and Love Your Bookshop Day

Love Your Bookshop Day is all about celebrating what makes local bookshops so great (and so important)! Here at Wakefield Press, we're celebrating by opening our shop on Saturday 10 August, but the celebration is about more than just one day. As our fearless leader, Michael Bollen, considers the daunting 'For Official Use Only' headers that have plagued his inbox as late, he also ponders his own official use as a publisher. In Diary of a Publisher, a brilliant…

An Interview With: Poppy Nwosu

In this latest author interview series, work experience student Sian Beatton interviews Poppy Nwosu, author of Making Friends with Alice Dyson. Poppy's story came runner up for the 2018 Adelaide Festival Unpublished Manuscript Award, but here at Wakefield press we thought her story too good to go unnoticed. Poppy's book is a romantic story about rumours, friendship, and discovering who you really are. How do you keep a book interesting? This is a great question! For me, I…

Extract: The Australian War Memorial

In The Australian War Memorial: A century on from the vision, Steve Gower, the highly successful director of the Australian War Memorial from 1996 to 2012, gives a comprehensive account of the development of the Memorial from its inception just over a century ago. The book recounts the many challenges in establishing the Memorial and then in developing further its galleries and displays, the extensive collection, associated events and the overall supporting facilities. It also goes behind…

ANZAC Day titles for the historian in us all

ANZAC Day is a solemn reminder to generations young and old of the pain and loss of war. But with the number of surviving veterans declining, it's important for younger generations to keep their memory alive. With that in mind, here are five historical titles to read this ANZAC Day. Don Longo, Pens and Bayonets: Letters from the Front by soldiers of Yorke Peninsula during the Great War Pens and Bayonets gives voice to the young Australia…

Book Review: Making Friends with Alice Dyson

Our intern Jessica Hartman reviews debut author Poppy Nwosu's Making Friends With Alice Dyson, the first in Wakefield Press's dedicated Young Adult Fiction list led by Margot Lloyd. Whilst reading this text I have fallen in love with, become exasperated by, and completely related to Alice Dyson, the protagonist Poppy Nwosu has so artfully created. The text delves into issues of social anxiety, peer pressure and bullying, self-identity, the feeling of being trapped on a…

An Interview with: Claire Morey, Intern

Meet our wonderful intern, Claire, who recently completed her Honours degree in history (and then plunged right into a two-week stint at Wakefield Press!). Claire talks about the importance of self-aware history writers and the impact university has on reading habits. What is the first book you ever read? One of the first novel-sized books I can remember reading is probably Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl. It seems to be the most…

Stephen Orr on growing up in suburban Adelaide

The #tenyearchallenge has been dominating social media for the past few weeks, but today author Stephen Orr looks even further back in this 2006 article about his childhood in the suburbs of 1970s Adelaide. Keep an eye out for Stephen's next novel, This Excellent Machine, which will be released in April 2019. Smith Street I want to tell you about the street I grew up in. We’ll call it Smith…