About the Awards

Since 1999 Storylines has produced an annual list of outstanding books for children and young people published by New Zealand authors and illustrators during the previous calendar year.

This annual list of Storylines Notable Books ensures that children, whanau, teachers, librarians and the public are all made aware of the large range of high quality New Zealand books being published.

Books are categorised as: Picture Book, Junior Fiction, Young Adult, Non Fiction and Te Reo Māori. There are up to ten awards in each category.

Storylines Notable Books are selected by expert panels in each category. These panels include children’s and YA librarians, authors, illustrators, teachers, academics and whanau; several members have served as judges for the previous AIM, New Zealand Post and LIANZA Book Awards.

From 2020, the Storylines Notable Book Awards are being presented at Storylines’ annual event in November at which the Storylines Better Gilderdale Award for services to children’s literature is also presented. (Until 2020 they were presented at the annual Storylines Margaret Mahy National Awards Day each April.) Details for the 2020 event will be announced as soon as possible – watch the website and Storylines’ monthly newsletters.

Call for 2021 Judges

Thank you for the many expressions of interest s in being a judge for the annual Storylines Notable Books Awards. The Storylines Awards administrator will be in touch with all applicants to advise them if they have been successful.

Storylines invites submissions to the Storylines Notable Book Awards 2021.

While entries do not close until 31 August 2021, we encourage you to submit titles already published from 1 January 2020, and other titles as they are published. With the change of timing for Storylines Notable Book Awards, the 2021 Awards cover an 18-month period for this year only, for books published between 1 January 2020 and 31 July 2021.

Please read the eligibility criteria (below) and then complete an entry form for each submission. If in doubt regarding the eligibility of a book, please seek clarification by emailing the Awards Administrator at childlitnz@storylines.org.nz.

The entry fee is $30 per title (incl. GST)
For print books, THREE copies of the submitted title are required
For e-books, please provide details on the entry form to enable access.

Please read the eligibility criteria below and complete an entry form for each submission.

Eligibility Criteria:

Books that are not eligible:

• An e-book created out of an earlier print book
• Series or boxed sets are not considered as single, stand-alone book entries, and are therefore not eligible, unless submitted as individual titles
• Books in English published primarily for an educational market (e.g. textbooks, resource kits, literacy texts, reading schemes etc. (except for the Te Reo Māori category where educational material is eligible.)
• Reprints and re-issues of previously published works
• Books by deceased authors or illustrators, unless the death occurred after the book has been submitted

Please note:Once the judging process has been completed Storylines will use your submitted copies to distribute to deserving schools, kura kaupapa, early childhood centres, kohanga reo and libraries, and to thank Storylines’ volunteers for their support.

The Storylines Notable Books judging panels reserve the right to invite submissions. No correspondence regarding the Awards will be entered into.

Links and documents: ​

• Printable Call for entries/ Entry Form for Notable Books Awards
• Eligibility Criteria
• Online Entry Form
• Judging ​Criteria for Notable Books
• Online Payments using a credit card