Reading Australia is a few months away from turning five, so today we are looking back at which books have been the most popular since we first launched the Reading Australia initiative in 2013. Below you will find the top ten secondary and top ten primary titles; to view the full units of work, simply click on the book title. How many of these books have you taught to your students?
Secondary titles
It was always going to be a tough job taking out the top spot, but is it any surprise that Melina Marchetta’s classic YA novel is sitting at number one? Australian plays seem to be a popular choice, with four plays being featured on this list, compared with the single visual text which of course is Shaun Tan’s The Arrival, a particular favourite among high school teachers (and students).
- Looking for Alibrandi by Melina Marchetta
- Blackrock by Nick Enright
- Away by Michael Gow
- The Arrival by Shaun Tan
- Cloudstreet by Tim Winton
- Follow the Rabbit-proof Fence by Doris Pilkington
- Stasiland by Anna Funder
- No Sugar by Jack Davis
- Swallow the Air by Tara June Winch
- The One Day of the Year by Alan Seymour
Primary titles
Turns out primary teachers love classics just as much as high school English teachers! The primary list is dominated by picture books, though two novels, Little Brother and My Girragundji, are featured. Alison Lester’s Are We There Yet? is teachers’ choice month after month, and Libby Gleeson is the only author to feature twice in the top ten.
- Are We There Yet? by Alison Lester
- Little Brother by Allan Baillie
- My Place by Nadia Wheatley and Donna Rawlins
- The Rainbow Serpent by Dick Roughsey
- Where the Forest Meets the Sea by Jeannie Baker
- My Girragundji by Meme McDonald and Boori Pryor
- Big Rain Coming by Katrina Germein and Bronwyn Bancroft
- Who Sank the Boat? by Pamela Allen
- Amy and Louis by Libby Gleeson and Freya Blackwood
- The Great Bear by Libby Gleeson and Armin Greder