2011 Caleb Prize winners

Omega Writers has the utmost pleasure in announcing the category winners of the 2011 CALEB Prize for faith-inspired writing.

Chuck Colson said, ‘Good literature has the power to change people’s thinking and change people’s lives.’

Not many months ago the Wall Street Journal stirred up controversy with their assessment of current YA literature. The articleDarkness Too Visible describes it as ‘depraved’.  Even some of the better Aussie teen literature has its harrowing edge: a high school student on the Gold Coast recently tried to asphyxiate himself, admitting he copied the hero of a classroom novel. 

We’re delighted therefore that the CALEB Award Grand Prize winner for 2011 is a book that explores hope in difficult circumstances:Paula Vince’s fine family drama, Best Forgotten.

Back-to-back winners in 2010/11 have been Kiwi author, Rosie Boom, in the Children’s Category for Where Arrows Fly and Mal Austin in the Devotional Category for the exquisitely-produced Jewels. 

Austin won overall in the non-fiction section.

Other winners in this section were Vikki Roubin for Wobbly: One Woman’s Journey Onward and Upward (Memoir) and Lynne Baker for Counselling Christian Women on How to Deal with Domestic Violence (General).

Joint poetry winners were Kathryn Hamann for A Slight Fuzzing of Perspective and Andrew Lansdown for Far From Home.

Nick Vujicic was a finalist in three categories. His biography of how to live what he calls ‘a ridiculously good life’ (even without limbs) took out Reviewer’s Choice for Life without Limits.

Claire Osborne’s delightful picture book, Birds and Fish, illustrated by Heidi Hendriks, took out a new category, Bookseller’s Choice.

In the Unpublished Manuscript category, three first places were awarded (this includes an offer of publication by Even Before Publishing) Natalie Lonsdale for Boondaburra  (children’s), Lisa Taylor for Motive Games  (YA) and Jo Wanmer for Though the bud be bruised (Adult).