An Amputee Elephant, a Zombie Bunny, and a Vego Piranha: Investigating Culture within Award-winning Australian Children’s and Young Adult Literature

Abstract

The Children’s Book Council of Australia was founded in 1945 with a vision "to be the premier voice on literature for young Australians and to inform, promote critical debate, foster creative responses, and engage with and encourage Australian authors and illustrators to produce quality literature" (n.d.a). The establishment of the CBCA and its awards in Australia was, according to children’s book critic and academic Mark MacLeod (2010), linked to developments in Australian librarianship at this time and a growing community concern over the need to establish libraries for children in Australia and educate parents and teachers on the value of reading for the child (p. 17).