The judges have selected six titles as the best in new Australian fiction for the NSW Premier's Literary Awards 2009. And now the people of New South Wales can have their say. By casting a vote and signing up for the newsletter, you will have the chance to win some fantastic prizes. For voting terms and conditions go to http://www.pla.nsw.gov.au/peoples-choice-award. Once at the website you can vote by clicking on your favourite book and submitting your details. And the nominees are:

The Good Parents by Joan London

The Lieutenant by Kate Grenville

Disquiet by Julia Leigh

A Fraction of the Whole by Steve Toltz

The Spare Room by Helen Garner and

Breath by Tim Winton.

Drum roll ...............five novels are on the Miles Franklin Literary Award Shortlist announced today:

Breath by Tim Winton

Ice by Louis Nowra

The Pages by Murray Bail

The Slap by Christos Tsiolkas and

Wanting by Richard Flanagan

Congratulations to all the shortlisted authors. To find out more about each novel and to read the Judges comments please visit the Miles Franklin Trust website at www.trust.com.au The winner will be announced on 18 June – who do you think it will be?

The Children's Book Council of Australia has just announced its 2009 Awards Shortlist.

Picture Book of the Year (some may be for mature readers): Sunday Chutney by Aaron Blabey; Collecting Colour by Kylie Dunstan; Home and Away by Matt Ottley, text by John Marsden; Nobody Owns the Moon by Tohby Riddle; Captain Congo and the Crocodile King by Greg Holfeld and text by Ruth Starke; The Big Little Book of Happy Sadness by Colin Thompson.

Book of the Year: Younger Readers: The Wish Pony by Catherine Bateson; Polar Boy by Sandy Fussell; Then by Morris Gleitzman; Audrey of the Outback by Christine Harris and illustration by Ann James; Perry Angel's Suitcase by Glenda Millard and illustration by Stephen Michael King; and The Wizard of Rondo by Emily Rodda.

Book of the Year: Older Readers (these are for mature readers): Monster Blood Tattoo Book Two: Lamplighter by D.M Cornish; Into White Silence by Anthony Eaton; A Rose for the Anzac Boys by Jackie French; Finnikin of the Rock by Melina Marchetta; Kill the Possum by James Moloney; Tales from Outer Suburbia by Shaun Tan.

For the Early Childhood and Eve Pownall Award for Information Books shortlist and more details about the awards go to the Children's Book Council of Australia website: http://cbca.org.au/shortlist.htm Winners will be announced on 21 August. Children's Book Week will be held from 22 – 28 August and the theme is Book Safari (which sounds familiar – does the Tamworth conference ring a bell anyone?)

The Judges' List of contenders for the 2009 Man Booker International Prize has also been announced. "The Man Booker International Prize differs from the annual Man Booker Prize for Fiction in that it highlights one writer's continued creativity, development and overall contribution to fiction on the world stage. It is awarded every two years." This year 14 authors from 12 different countries have been included on the list: seven of the authors are writers in translation. The authors are: Peter Carey (Australia), Evan S. Connell (USA), Mahasweta Devi (India), E.L. Doctorow (USA), James Kelman (UK), Mario Vargas Llosa (Peru), Arnošt Lustig (Czechoslovakia), Alice Munro (Canada), V.S. Naipaul (Trinidad/India), Joyce Carol Oates (USA), Antonio Tabucchi (Italy), Ngugi Wa Thiong'O (Kenya), Dubravka Ugresic (Croatia), Ludmila Ulitskaya (Russia). The winner will be announced in May 2009.

You will never guess the name of the Best Book in the South-East Asia and Pacific region of the Commonwealth Writers' Prize – well you might if you keep up with Pageturners and here's a hint – it is an insight into suburban life and features a child called Hugo. Yes – The Slap by Christos Tsiolkas won. Winner of the Best First Book was The Year of The Shanghai Shark by Mo Zhi Hong of New Zealand. Check out all the shortlisted titles in each region at the Commonwealth Foundation website: http://www.commonwealthfoundation.com/culturediversity/writersprize/cwp/2009%20prize/2009list/. The overall winner of the Best Book and Best First Book prizes (chosen from the winners in each region) will be announced in May 2009.

Arts NSW report that at a lunchtime ceremony today held at the Mint, Premier Nathan Rees announced the shortlist for 2009 NSW Premier's Literary Awards, and the introduction of a new People's Choice Award to mark the 30th anniversary of Australia's first Premier's Literary Awards. Read more about the awards and writers on the shortlist at the Premier's Literary Awards website http://www.pla.nsw.gov.au/ and vote for your favourite title in the People's Choice Awards. Here are some of the nominated writers:

** 2009 The Christina Stead Prize for Fiction shortlisted writers are...

Helen Garner - The Spare Room

Kate Grenville - The Lieutenant

Joan London - The Good Parents

Steve Toltz - A Fraction of the Whole

Tim Winton - Breath

** 2009 Douglas Stewart Prize for Non-Fiction shortlisted writers are...

James Boyce - Van Diemen's Land

Robert Gray - The Land I Came Through Last

Chloe Hooper - The Tall Man: Death and Life on Palm Island

Dmetri Kakmi - Mother Land

Jacqueline Kent - An Exacting Heart: The Story of Hephzibah Menuhin

Christina Thompson - Come on Shore and We Will Kill and Eat You All

** 2009 Kenneth Slessor Prize for Poetry shortlisted writers are...

Michael Brennan - Unanimous Night

David Brooks - The Balcony

Sarah Holland-Batt - Aria

LK Holt - Man Wolf Man

Kerry Leves - A Shrine to Lata Mangeshkar

Alan Wearne - The Australian Popular Songbook.

The 2009 winners will be announced on May 18.

A total of 55 books were submitted for this year's award Miles Franklin Literary Award, Australia's first and most prestigious literary award, established in 1954 with a bequest from the author Miles Franklin. She was concerned to see Australian literature flourish and knew first hand the struggles most authors have in Australia. The ten novels selected for the longlist are:

Addition by Toni Jordan

A Fraction of the Whole by Steve Toltz

Breath by Tim Winton

Fugitive Blue by Claire Thomas

Ice by Louis Nowra

One Foot Wrong by Sofie Laguna

The Devil's Eye by Ian Townsend

The Pages by Murray Bail

The Slap by Christos Tsiolkas and

Wanting by Richard Flanagan.

Which books do you think will make it onto the short list to be announced on 16 April?

Carol and Marion from Cowra Library were guests at a recent Rotary Dinner to receive a Certificate of Appreciation for collecting money for a Shelterbox – it brings shelter and beds to people who have become homeless and these boxes are distributed all over the world. Shelterboxes are sent worldwide to disaster areas and usually contain thermal blankets, a tent, tools and other survival equipment, light and heat and cooking aids. Since 2000, more than 600,000 people in some 46 countries have been assisted by ShelterBox ... and the demand continues to exceed supply. Central West Libraries is now the proud sponsor of Shelterbox No. 4874 and everyone can follow up with the Shelterbox Website to see where it will be allocated - go to www.shelterbox.com.au click on honour roll and CWL is at the top of the list. Congrats to Carol and Marion for their unique fundraising idea – counting steps.

ABC Radio news reports hip hop artist and poet Omar Musa from Queanbeyan has won this year's Australian Poetry Slam competition, held at Sydney Opera House last night. Poetry slam is a style of performed poetry which takes its influences from rap and hip hop. After the 18 state and territory finalists performed on topics such as going to the dentist and football, there was a tie between Omar Musa from Queanbeyan, south-east of Canberra, and Mark Lloyd from Western Australia. Mr Musa ultimately won the $5,000 prize. More than 600 people entered this year's competition, many with political themes such as the global financial crisis, war and women's rights. Regina Sutton from the State Library says there has been a resurgence of interest in poetry. "People are not only using their libraries more, reading more, they are really getting into poetry and great literature," she said. Read more about Poetry Slam contestants http://www.abc.net.au/local/features/poetryslam/default.htm

Melbourne-raised writer Nam Le has taken out the $140,000 Dylan Thomas Prize for his short story collection The Boat. The prize, named after Welsh poet Dylan Thomas is awarded to the best writer in the English language under 30. The Boat is a collection of short stories which take reader from the slums of Colombia to the streets of Tehran; from New York City to Iowa City; and from a tiny fishing village in Australia to a foundering vessel in the South China Sea. In the opening story, a young writer is urged by his friends to mine his father's experiences in Vietnam and it becomes an exploration of homeland, and the ties between father and son. For details about the prize go to: http://www.thedylanthomasprize.com/news-events.htm