Historical and indigenous themes have dominated the shortlist for an Australian children's book award.
More than 416 books were entered into this year's Children's Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Book of the Year Awards.
The prevalence of historical and indigenous themes showed the publishing industry was supporting the need for quality content for the new Australian national curriculum, organisers said.
CBCA national chair Angela Briant said the council was excited about the diversity and quality of Australian children's books published in 2013.
"An increase in both the number of entries and quality requires careful judging so that our list of both notable and short listed books represents the cream rising to the top," Ms Briant said in a statement.
"This task is more difficult when the overall pool of entries includes many great works from our Australian authors, illustrators and publishers."
The winners will be announced in Canberra on August 16 to launch Children's Book Week.
CHILDREN'S BOOK COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA SHORTLISTED BOOKS:
Book of the Year: Older Readers
* The Incredible Here and Now - Felicity Castagna (Giramondo Publishing)
* Life in Outer Space - Melissa Keil (Hardie Grant Egmont)
* The First Third - Will Kostakis (Penguin Group Australia)
* Fairytales for Wilde Girls - Allyse Near (Random House Australia)
* Wildlife - Fiona Wood (Pan Macmillan Australia)
* The Sky so Heavy - Claire Zorn (University of Queensland Press)
Book of the Year: Younger Readers
* Violet Mackerel's Possible Friend - Anna Branford and Sarah Davis (Walker Books Australia)
* Song for a Scarlet Runner - Julie Hunt (Allen & Unwin)
* City of Orphans: A Very Unusual Pursuit - Catherine Jinks (Allen & Unwin)
* My Life as an Alphabet - Barry Jonsberg (Allen & Unwin)
* Light Horse Boy - Dianne Wolfer and Brian Simmonds (Fremantle Press)
Book of the Year: Early Childhood
* I'm a Dirty Dinosaur - Janeen Brian and Ann James - Puffin Books (Penguin Group Australia)
* Baby Bedtime - Mem Fox and Emma Quay (Viking, Penguin Group Australia)
* Banjo and Ruby Red - Libby Gleeson and Freya Blackwood (Little Hare, Hardie Grant Egmont)
* Kissed by the Moon, Alison Lester - Viking, Penguin Group (Australia
* The Swap - Jan Ormerod and Andrew Joyner (Little Hare, Hardie Grant Egmont)
* Granny Grommet and Me - Dianne Wolfer and Karen Blair (Walker Books Australia)
Picture Book of the Year:
* The Treasure Box - Freya Blackwood and Margaret Wild (Puffin Books, Penguin Group Australia)
* King Pig - Nick Bland (Scholastic Press, Scholastic Australia)
* Silver Buttons Bob Graham (Walker Books Australia)
* Parachute - Matt Ottley and Danny Parker (Little Hare, Hardie Grant Egmont)
* The Windy Farm - Craig Smith and Doug MacLeod (Working Title Press)
* Rules of Summer - Shaun Tan (Hachette Australia)
Eve Pownall Award for Information Books:
* Jeremy - Christopher Faille and Danny Snell (Working Title Press)
*Ice, Wind, Rock - Peter Gouldthorpe (Hachette Australia)
* Jandamarra - Mark Greenwood and Terry Denton (Allen & Unwin)
* Yoko's Diary : The Life of a Young Girl in Hiroshima - Paul Ham (HarperCollins Publishers)
* Meet... Captain Cook - Rae Murdie and Chris Nixon (Random House)
* Welcome To My Country - Burarrwanga, Laklak and Family (Allen & Unwin)
Crichton Award for New Illustrators
* Big Red Kangaroo - Graham Byrne and Claire Saxby (Walker Books Australia)
* The Bloodhound Boys Book 1: The Great Blood Bank Robbery - Andrew Cranna (Walker Books Australia)
* I've An Uncle Ivan - Ben Sanders (Thames & Hudson)
* The Nerdy Birdy - David Snowdon, Danielle Wheeldon (Danielle Wheeldon & David Snowdon)
