Local and international authors are being recognised for their brilliant novels as the 2026 Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIA) shortlist has been announced.
Food writer and television personality Melissa Leong’s novel Guts has been nominated for The Biography Book of the Year, alongside countless powerhouse names in the Australian publishing world.
As for who will determine the winner from each category, this will be decided by over 50 judges from journalists, publishing houses, distributors, booksellers and more.
The 26th ceremony will be held at The Grounds of Alexandria in Warrane/Sydney on May 21, 2026.
Without further ado, below are all the nominees for the 2026 ABIA. See if your favourite novel made the shortlist!
The 2026 Australian Book Industry Awards nominees:
Audiobook of the Year
- Gravity Let Me Go, Trent Dalton; narrated by Trent Dalton (4th Estate, HarperCollins Publishers)
- How They Get You, Chris Kohler; narrated by Chris Kohler (Penguin Random House Australia Audio, Penguin Random House); produced by Sound Kitchen
- Mad Mabel, Sally Hepworth; narrated by Hannah Fredericksen, Jenny Seedsman (Macmillan Australia Audio, Pan Macmillan Australia)
- The Mushroom Tapes, Helen Garner, Chloe Hooper, Sarah Krasnostein; narrated by Helen Garner, Chloe Hooper, Sarah Krasnostein, Caroline Craig (Penguin Random House Australia Audio, Penguin Random House on behalf of Text Publishing); produced by Sound Kitchen
- The Unquiet Grave, Dervla McTiernan; narrated by Aoife McMahon (HarperCollins Publishers, HarperCollins Publishers)
- Unstuck, Dr Emily Musgrove; narrated by Dr Emily Musgrove (Penguin Random House Australia Audio, Penguin Random House); produced by Sound Kitchen
Biography Book of the Year
- Always Home, Always Homesick, Hannah Kent (Picador, Pan Macmillan Australia)
- Average at Best, Astrid Jorgensen (Simon & Schuster Australia)
- Destination Moon, Kate Reid (Simon & Schuster Australia)
- Gather Up Your World in One Long Breath, S. Shakthidharan (Powerhouse Publishing)
- Guts, Melissa Leong (Murdoch Books)
- Memorial Days, Geraldine Brooks (Hachette Australia)
Book of the Year for Older Children (ages 13+)
- Cruel is the Light, Sophie Clark (Penguin, Penguin Random House)
- This Dream Will Devour Us, Emma Clancey (Allen & Unwin)
- A Murder Is Going Down, Kate Emery (Allen & Unwin)
- Sonny & Tess, Nova Weetman (University of Queensland Press)
- This Stays Between Us, Margot McGovern (Penguin, Penguin Random House)
- Wandering Wild, Lynette Noni (Penguin, Penguin Random House)
Book of the Year for Younger Children (ages 7–12)
- Caution! This Book Contains Deadly Reptiles, Corey Tutt, illustrated by Ben Williams (Allen & Unwin)
- Inked, Karen Wasson, illustrated by Jake A. Minton (Figment Books, Hardie Grant Children’s Publishing)
- Mega Rich Guinea Pigs, Kate and Jol Temple (HarperCollins Publishers)
- Oceanforged 1: The Wicked Ship, Amelia Mellor (Affirm Press Kids, Simon & Schuster Australia)
- Spirit of the Crocodile, Aaron Fa’Aoso and Michelle Scott Tucker with Lyn White (Allen & Unwin)
- There’s a Prawn in Parliament House: The Kids’ Guide to Australia’s Amazing Democracy, Annabel Crabb, illustrated by First Dog on the Moon (Allen & Unwin)
Children’s Picture Book of the Year (ages 0–6)
- Dropbear, Philip Bunting (Walker Books Australia)
- Here Come the Cousins, Maggie Hutchings, illustrated by Sarah Zweck (Thames & Hudson Australia)
- How to Help When You Really Want to Help, Davina Bell, Hilary Jean Tapper (Lothian Children’s Books, Hachette Australia)
- Once I was a Giant, Zeno Sworder (Thames & Hudson Australia)
- The Train at the End of My Street, Tom Jellett (Affirm Press Kids, Simon & Schuster Australia)
- Where Would You Go?, Alison Lester, Jane Godwin (Allen & Unwin)
General Fiction Book of the Year
- The Detective, Matthew Reilly (Macmillan, Pan Macmillan Australia)
- Last One Out, Jane Harper (Macmillan, Pan Macmillan Australia)
- Mad Mabel, Sally Hepworth (Macmillan, Pan Macmillan Australia)
- One Hundred Years of Betty, Debra Oswald (Allen & Unwin)
- The Unquiet Grave, Dervla McTiernan (HarperCollins Publishers)
- The Wolf Tree, Laura McCluskey (HarperCollins Publishers)
General Nonfiction Book of the Year
- The Australian Wars, Rachel Perkins, Henry Reynolds, Stephen Gapps, Mina Murray (Allen & Unwin)
- Broken Brains, Jamila Rizvi & Rosie Waterland (Penguin, Penguin Random House Australia)
- Conspiracy Nation, Ariel Bogle and Cam Wilson (Ultimo Press, Hardie Grant Publishing)
- The Mushroom Tapes, Helen Garner, Chloe Hooper, Sarah Krasnostein (Text Publishing)
- The Power of Choice, Neale Daniher (Macmillan, Pan Macmillan Australia)
- She Shapes History, Sita Sargeant (Hardie Grant Explore, Hardie Grant Publishing)
Illustrated Book of the Year
- The Art of Kaylene Whiskey: Do you believe in love?, Kaylene Whiskey, Natalie King (Thames & Hudson)
- Baking and the Meaning of Life, Helen Goh (Murdoch Books)
- Planting for Native Birds, Bees and Butterflies, Jaclyn Crupi, illustrated by Clare Mosley (Murdoch Books)
- THAI, Nat Thaipun (Hardie Grant Books, Hardie Grant Publishing)
- A Woman’s Eye, Her Art, Drusilla Modjeska (Penguin, Penguin Random House Australia)
- Wild By Design, Tim Pilgrim (Murdoch Books)
International Book of the Year
- Alchemised, SenLinYu (Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House)
- A Different Kind of Power, Jacinda Ardern (Penguin, Penguin Random House NZ)
- Heart the Lover, Lily King (Canongate)
- Nobody’s Girl, Virginia Roberts Giuffre (Doubleday, Penguin Random House)
- Onyx Storm, Rebecca Yarros (Piatkus, Little Brown)
- Perfection, Vincenzo Latronico (Text Publishing)
Literary Fiction Book of the Year
- Chosen Family, Madeleine Gray (Summit Books, Simon & Schuster Australia)
- Eros, Zoe Terakes (Hachette Australia)
- I Want Everything, Dominic Amerena (Summit Books, Simon & Schuster Australia)
- Pissants, Brandon Jack (Summit Books, Simon & Schuster Australia)
- Tenderfoot, Toni Jordan (Hachette Australia)
- Wild Dark Shore, Charlotte McConaghy (Penguin, Penguin Random House Australia)
Small Publishers’ Adult Book of the Year
- Ankami, Debra Dank (Echo Publishing)
- Defiance: Stories from Nature and Its Defenders, Bob Brown (Black Inc.)
- Nock Loose, Patrick Marlborough (Fremantle Press)
- The Rot, Evelyn Araluen (University of Queensland Press)
- A Savage Turn, Luke Patterson (Magabala Books)
- Unsettled: A Journey Through Time and Place, Kate Grenville (Black Inc.)
Small Publishers’ Children’s Book of the Year
- Between, Anna Walker (Scribble, Scribe)
- The First Sunrise, Vanessa Stevens, Paul Seden (Magabala Books)
- Hello Cocky, Hilary Bell, Antonia Pesenti (Scribble, Scribe)
- Little Bones, Sandy Bigna (University of Queensland Press)
- Ningaloo, Tim Winton, illustrated by Cindy Lane (Fremantle Press)
- Sundays under the Lemon Tree, Julia Busuttil Nishimura, illustrated by Myo Yim (Scribble, Scribe)
Social Impact Book of the Year
- The Australian Wars, Rachel Perkins, Henry Reynolds, Stephen Gapps, Mina Murray (Allen & Unwin)
- Eros, Zoe Terakes (Hachette Australia)
- Gather Up Your World in One Long Breath, S. Shakthidharan (Powerhouse Publishing)
- A Piece of Red Cloth, Leonie Norrington, Merrkiyawuy Ganambarr-Stubbs, Djawa Burarrwanga, Djawundil Maymuru (Allen & Unwin)
- The Power of Choice, Julian Kingma (NewSouth, NewSouth Publishing)
- The Power of Choice, Neale Daniher (Macmillan, Pan Macmillan Australia)
The Matt Richell Award for New Writer of the Year (for an author’s first book, regardless of genre)
- Eros, Zoe Terakes (Hachette Australia)
- I Want Everything, Dominic Amerena (Summit Books, Simon & Schuster Australia)
- Melaleuca, Angie Faye Martin (HQ, HarperCollins Publishers)
- The Heir Apparent, Rebecca Armitage (HarperCollins Publishers)
- Very Impressive for Your Age, Eleanor Kirk (Allen & Unwin)
- Wait Here, Lucy Nelson (Summit Books, Simon & Schuster Australia)
