All the winners of coveted CBCA award gold stickers in 2026
A bittersweet story about a tree that becomes a pencil and a novel about a teenage boy who defies his toxic dad are among the winners at Australia's top children's book awards.
In 2026, three notable books won the CBCA award gold stickers. Zeno Sworder's picture book, Once I Was a Giant, which tells the story of a tree turned into a pencil, won the Picture Book of the Year award. Other winners include Barry Jonsberg's Darkest Night, Brightest Star, named Book of the Year for Older Readers, Karen Wasson's Inked, which won Book of the Year for Younger Readers, and Rae Tan's The Emperor's Egg, which took out Early Childhood Book of the Year.
This marks the 80th CBCA Awards, established in 1946. Sworder, who has won the CBCA award twice, describes the win as a huge honor, emphasizing it as a guiding post for him as a reader. The story of Once I Was a Giant is inspired by Sworder's childhood memories of spending time outdoors, climbing trees, and talking to them. The book explores themes of interconnection, metamorphosis, and the relationship between urban and natural worlds.
Sworder likens writing a picture book to writing poetry, emphasizing the need for directness and emotional impact within a limited word count. The illustrations in Once I Was a Giant complement the text, telling a larger emotional story.
Written by urgent.news from ABC News AU's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
