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Prime Minister's Literary Awards 2025

The 2025 Prime Minister's Literary Awards went to Critical Care: Nurses on the frontline of Australia's AIDS crisis by Geraldine Fela (Australian History), Leo and Ralph by Peter Carnavas (Children's Literature) and Theory & Practice by Michelle de Kretser (Fiction), with winners in 3 more categories. 30 books made the shortlist across 6 categories.

Winners

Australian History

  1. Critical Care: Nurses on the frontline of Australia's AIDS crisis by Geraldine Felasource (opens in a new tab)

Children's Literature

  1. Leo and Ralph by Peter Carnavassource (opens in a new tab)

Fiction

  1. Theory & Practice by Michelle de Kretsersource (opens in a new tab)

Non-fiction

  1. Mean Streak by Rick Mortonsource (opens in a new tab)

Poetry

  1. The Other Side of Daylight: New and Selected Poems by David Brookssource (opens in a new tab)

Young Adult Literature

  1. The Invocations by Krystal Sutherlandsource (opens in a new tab)

Shortlist

Australian History

  1. Australia in 100 Words by Amanda Laugesensource (opens in a new tab)
  2. Näku Dhäruk The Bark Petitions by Clare Wrightsource (opens in a new tab)
  3. The Wild Reciter: Poetry and Popular Culture in Australia 1890-the Present by Peter Kirkpatricksource (opens in a new tab)
  4. Warra Warra Wai by Darren Rix and Craig Cormicksource (opens in a new tab)

Children's Literature

  1. A Leaf Called Greaf by Kelly Canbysource (opens in a new tab)
  2. Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About the Tooth Fairy (And Some Things You Didn't) by Briony Stewartsource (opens in a new tab)
  3. Raymaŋgirrbuy dhäwu When I was a little girl by Kylie Gatjawarrawuy Mununggurrsource (opens in a new tab)
  4. We Live in a Bus by Dave Petzoldsource (opens in a new tab)

Fiction

  1. Always Will Be: Stories of Goori sovereignty from the futures of the Tweed by Mykaela Saunderssource (opens in a new tab)
  2. Highway 13 by Fiona McFarlanesource (opens in a new tab)
  3. Juice by Tim Wintonsource (opens in a new tab)
  4. Rapture by Emily Maguiresource (opens in a new tab)

Non-fiction

  1. Cactus Pear for My Beloved by Samah Sabawisource (opens in a new tab)
  2. Deep Water by James Bradleysource (opens in a new tab)
  3. Fragile Creatures: A Memoir by Khin Myintsource (opens in a new tab)
  4. The Pulling by Adele Dumontsource (opens in a new tab)

Poetry

  1. Companions, Ancestors, Inscriptions by Peter Boylesource (opens in a new tab)
  2. Makarra by Barrina Southsource (opens in a new tab)
  3. That Galloping Horse by Petra Whitesource (opens in a new tab)
  4. rock flight by Hasib Houranisource (opens in a new tab)

Young Adult Literature

  1. Anomaly by Emma Lordsource (opens in a new tab)
  2. My Family and Other Suspects by Kate Emerysource (opens in a new tab)
  3. The Anti-Racism Kit by Sabina Patawaran and Jinyoung Kimsource (opens in a new tab)
  4. Thunderhead by Sophie Beersource (opens in a new tab)

About the Prime Minister's Literary Awards

Winners and shortlists from Creative Australia's per-year winners, shortlist and judges pages (2008-2024) and its 2025 shortlist and winners media releases. Year is the award year. Fiction and non-fiction run from 2008, children's and young adult from 2010, poetry and Australian history from 2012 (the earlier standalone Prime Minister's Prize for Australian History is excluded). Joint winners appear as separate Winner rows. Fallbacks and fixes: 2017 fiction comes from Wikipedia because the official 2017 page repeats the 2018 fiction shortlist; the 2023 history winner is cited to the 2023 winners release because the official page doesn't mark it; author-name typos and misattributions on the official pages are corrected (e.g. Bill Gammage, Evie Wyld, K. M. Kruimink); the TV series Immigration Nation on the 2012 history shortlist is excluded as not a book, so expected counts cover books only.

Organization: Creative Australia. Years are award years, which can differ from publication years. Official site (opens in a new tab)

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