Bookstore supports Australian authors

A Umina bookstore is amongst a group of independent Australian booksellers showing support for Australian authors with the launch of a new prize, The Indie Award.

Umina bookstore Book Bazaar owner Ms Mandi McIntosh said she was proud to be participating in the award, having donated a share of the overall prize money.

Ms McIntosh said: "We've always served our local community's reading needs and also done our best to support Australian books.

"This is a great opportunity to help an Australian author as well as highlight the best books of 2008 for our customers."

The $18,000 prize will honour an Australian author for the best book of the past 12 months, with the winner to be announced on Monday, October 6.

The award will demonstrate independent booksellers' commitment to Australian books and writers, with over 120 bookshops working together to sponsor this annual award.

Over 100 titles have been submitted to The Indie Award panel in the categories of Fiction, Debut Fiction, Non Fiction and Children's Books.

Book Bazaar is on the judging panel for Children's Books and Ms McIntosh said she was "madly reading through the 20 titles in that category".

"The quality of the books submitted for the children's category has been outstanding and it is proving very difficult to narrow the field down to my top five," Ms McIntosh said.

The winner from each of the four categories is to be announced on August 25.

The winner of The Indie Award for the book of the year will be chosen by the booksellers from the four category winners and announced on Monday, October 6.

Press release, 30 Jun 2008 Mandi McIntosh, Book Bazaar