‘I am so thrilled to be able to meet with people all across the country during my Laureateship to talk about how best to engage kids with reading,’ Sally Rippin. Photo: Sister Scout Studio.
The Australian Children’s Laureate Foundation (ACLF) has just announced Sally Rippin as the eighth Australian Children’s Laureate. Rippin is the country’s highest-selling female author and has written more than 100 books for children and young adults, including the Billie B Brown series, with 10 million books in print.
As Children’s Laureate, Rippin’s role will comprise the championing of reading, writing and creativity. As well as engaging with Australian children, she will liaise with the educational community, members of local, state and federal governments, librarians and parents, in both metropolitan and regional communities across the country.
Thuy On is the Reviews and Literary Editor of ArtsHub and an arts journalist, critic and poet who’s written for a range of publications including The Guardian, The Saturday Paper, Sydney Review of Books, The Australian, The Age/SMH and Australian Book Review. She was the books editor of The Big issue for 8 years. Her debut, a collection of poetry called Turbulence, came out in 2020 and was released by University of Western Australia Publishing (UWAP). Her second collection, Decadence, was published in July 2022, also by UWAP. Her third book, Essence, will be published in 2025.
Twitter: @thuy_on Instagram: poemsbythuy