Nancy Bentley wins ACT Writing and Publishing Awards 2012- Children's section

At the ACT Writers Centre Christmas party in late December 2012, I was thrilled to hear my name announced as the winner of the ACT Writing and Publishing Awards 2012- Children's Section. 

My beautiful, true, story of six year-old, Nancy Bentley The First Australian Female Sailor was chosen as the winning entry. It was a marvellous moment, and the prize of a gift voucher from Paperchain Bookstore, Manuka, was a pleasant surprise. 
Best of all- I received hundreds of fabulous gold stickers to place on my books. I have never valued stickers so much in my life.

Illustrated by my friend and a very talented illustrator- Jacqui Grantford. Published by New Frontier Publishing

The ACT Writers Centre Christmas party was a delightful evening. After the Awards I got to meet with the other winning authors for a photo-shoot.

Winners of the ACT Writing and Publishing Awards- 2012

Me celebrating my win. I was very excited.

My book and the Award

The Gold stickers

This the beautiful floral arrangement I received from my publisher-  New Frontier Publishing. The arrangement arrived a few days later and was such a wonderful surprise. My dearest thanks to Sophia and Peter Whitfield, who own, and run a fabulous Publishing House and treat their Authors like family.

Chief Minister's Reading Challenge 2012

Exciting news:

 Nancy Bentley, The First Australian Female Sailor  has been selected for the ACT Chief Minister's Reading Challenge 2012.

Below is a lovely book review from the Kid's Book Review.

http://www.kids-bookreview.com/2012/09/review-nancy-bentley.html

Book Review: Nancy Bentley

When I picked up Nancy Bentley, I expected to learn about a grown woman sailing around the world in the style of Amelia Earhart. Nothing could have prepared me for the tale of little girl who was bitten by a deadly whip snake in 1920.

Medical help was too far away. The poison was racing through Nancy’s veins. What would you do to save your daughter? Row out to a naval ship anchored in the harbour? Who would have guessed that females were prohibited from even boarding naval vessels in those days?
Lucky for Nancy, the captain was quick to render assistance. He even had a solution for Nancy’s unusual predicament. Can you guess how Nancy was saved? How did she manage to become Australia’s first female sailor?

I won’t spoil the suspense. Go on. Read Nancy Bentley and find out for yourself.

Nancy Bentley is simply written with illustrations tinged with an old world charm. Grounded in fact and condensed for pre-schoolers to enjoy, Nancy Bentley is a keeper.

Title: Nancy Bentley: The First Australian Female Sailor
Author: Tracey Hawkins
Illustrator: Jacqui Grantford
Publisher: New Frontier Publishers, $24.95 RRP
Publication Date: January 2012
Format: Hard Cover
ISBN: 9781921042768
For ages: 4 +
Type: Picture Book

Announcement from New Frontier Publishing

Congratulations to Peter Carnavas and Tracey Hawkins

Congratulations to Peter Carnavas and Tracey Hawkins.

Both The Great Expedition and Nancy Bentley have been shortlisted for the Speech Pathology Book of the Year Award in the Lower Primary category.

Each year, Speech Pathology Australia awards three Australian authors the “Best Book for Language Development” in the categories – Young Children, Lower Primary, Upper Primary and Indigenous Children.  

The awards aim to promote literacy and the need for good literacy skills, while building a library of resources that speech pathologists, teachers and parents can use to help promote literacy and reading.

These awards are very special to us at New Frontier and we are delighted that two of our authors feature prominently on the shortlist.

June 12, 2012 at 9:25pm

www.newfrontier.com.au

Nancy Bentley- Shortlisted for Australia's Speech Pathology Awards 2012

 

                  

Speech Pathology Australia’s Book of the Year Awards 2012 – Shortlist Announced

 Nancy Bentley has been listed on the Speech Pathology Book of the Year Awards shortlist for 2012.

Congratulations to all the authors shortlisted.

Secret of the Swords: Sword Girl 1	Frances Watts	Allen & Unwin
The Little Refugee	Anh and Suzanne Do	Allen & Unwin
Ships in the Field	Susanne Gervay	Ford Street Publishing
Billie B Brown: The Little Lie	Sally Rippin	Hardie Grant Egmont
The Great Expedition	Peter Carnavas	New Frontier Publishing
Nancy Bentley: The First Australian Female Sailor	Tracey Hawkins	New Frontier Publishing
Ready, Set, Boris	Andrew Joyner	Penguin Group (Australia)
Ted Goes Wild	Michael Wagner	Penguin Group (Australia)
Our Gags	Catriona Hoy	Walker Books
Violet Mack’s Remarkable Recovery	Anna Branford	Walker Books
Walker Stories: Lollylegs	Pamela Freeman	Walker Books
Sam the Cat	Sam Bowring & Andrew McLean

Book of the Year Awards 2012

Each year, Speech Pathology Australia awards three Australian authors the “Best Book for Language Development” in the categories – Young Children, Lower Primary, Upper Primary and Indigenous Children.  

Each award is based on the book’s appeal to children, interactive quality and ability to assist speech pathologists and parents in communication and literacy development.

The intention of Speech Pathology Australia’s Book of the Year Awards is to:

• Enhance people’s awareness of the role speech pathologists play in literacy development.
• Gradually develop a nationally recognised pool of books that speech pathologists can recommend for the development of oral language and speech and/or sound awareness.
• Promote the Association with the Book of the Year Awards ceremony.

The 2012 Shortlist has been announced. Winners will be awarded at a ceremony on 16 October.

                                                                                  Previous winners 2011

At last I enter the new age!

Jacqui Grantford, Allan Jones (Nancy's grandson) and Tracey displaying the book at the launch- Nov 26th, 2012

Hello and welcome to my first blog post.


To begin, I would like to introduce my newest picture book.

'Nancy Bentley, The First Australian Female Sailor' illustrated by Jacqui Grantford, and published by New Frontier Publishing Nov 2011. 


This is the beautiful and true story of six year old Nancy Bentley, who was bitten by a whip snake in the penal colony of Port Arthur in 1920. Desperately ill and far from medical help, Nancy's father rowed her out to the H.M.A.S Sydney which fortunately happened to be docked in the harbour. Nancy was
taken on board the ship and treated by the Ship's surgeon. In 1920, the King's Regulations and Admiralty Instructions didn't allow for women to be on board a naval ship. In order for Nancy to remain on the ship and seek medical assistance, she had to be enlisted into the Royal Australian Navy. One month after her 6th birthday, Nancy Bentley became Australia's first female sailor.

On the 25th November, 2011, alongside Jacqui Grantford, and Sophia Whitfield (NF Publishing) we celebrated the launch of this wonderful book. Surrounded by a large gathering of Nancy's family,  it made for a remarkable launch filled with many stories and memories passed down to the family of Nancy's exceptional 8 days in the Navy.

The opening page from the book

Jacqui showing the audience some illustrative technique and tips.

Jacqui's teddy bear



Jacqui and Tracey showing illustrations and photographs that are in the book.

Tasmanian author Norma Spaulding, joined Jacqui , SophiaWhitfield (New Frontier Publishing) and myself to celebrate the launch.

Jacqui, Sophia, and Tracey at lunch after the launch enjoying a wine.