How would you like to win Australia’s Top 50 Children’s Books for 2020?

by 109 Comments

How would you like to win 50 of Australia’s favourite children’s books?

Just by voting, you’ll go into the draw!

In 2019, I was thrilled to see Alice-Miranda at School in at number 9 and Kensy and Max: Breaking News at number 12 but the books only got there because of all the amazing support from you – the readers. I’d love to see them there in 2020 but I need your help again (of course you don’t have to vote for my titles – but if you’d like to, I’d really appreciate it!).

Make sure that when you vote you use the full title of the book, not just the series.

Simply by voting, you’ll go into the draw to win the 50 books that make the list. Imagine having all those beautiful stories to read and share with your friends.

CLICK ON THIS LINK OR THE PICTURE BELOW TO CAST YOUR VOTE!

Voting closes Monday 10 August at 5pm so make sure you cast your vote early (so you don’t forget!).

Good luck!

Best wishes,

Jacqueline xx

Comments

  1. Hi Mrs Jacqueline Harvey!
    Of course! I will definitely vote for your books! They are fantastic!!! I do hope others will also vote for your books!! Looking for for your NEXT book coming out!!! Feels like the adventures never end!

    Reply

    • Hi Lydia,

      Thankyou – Kensy and Max 6: Full Speed, will be released this year in September. The next Alice-Miranda will be out June 2021!

      Hope you enjoy them 🙂

      Happy reading,

      Jacqueline

      Reply

      • I voted for your newest Alice-Miranda book, Alice-Miranda in the Outback! I think it’s your best one yet!! Can’t wait for the rest. You know that I think Alice-Miranda and Neville are meant to be but I could help liking the Hayden and Alice-Miranda romance in your book.

        Reply

        • Alice-Miranda is such a friendly and kind girl I think Hayden admires those things about her and her courage and get up and go. Thanks for voting Stella. It means a lot to me :).

          Best wishes,
          Jacqueline

          Reply

          • Hi Jacqueline
            I voted K and M free fall and breaking news. I also did am at School. Great books hope u win

          • Hi
            I have been trying for you to answer my comment for so long!
            I wanted to ask you if you are going to be making a kensy and max movie.
            And when is the next kensy and max book coming out?
            I have been reading your books since I was in 3rd grade. Keep up the good work!

          • Hi Lilly,

            Sorry, I’m super busy at the moment trying to get the draft for Kensy and Max 7 finished and haven’t had any time to look at the blog or answer emails etc. I would love for someone to make a movie of Kensy and Max but we don’t have any offers at the moment. Hopefully, it will happen one day as I think the stories would make great films.

            Thanks for reading my books.

            Best wishes,
            Jacqueline

    • yeah i will too jacqueline harvey i LOVE ALICE MIRANDA AT SEA!!!, i think whitely prendergast is having no fun in prison.

      from a nine year old 0th fan!!!!!!

      Reply

  4. Sorry Jacqueline,
    I can’t vote.
    I don’t think Mum would be happy about what I’m doing.
    But if you took out the phone number and postal code, I’d DEF vote for one of your books!

    Reply

    • That’s very sad! My mum gave me permission, but I think that it still means a lot to Jacqueline knowing that you tried!

      Reply

      • That’s really kind of you to say Lydia and yes I am touched that Abigail wanted to but couldn’t.

        Best wishes,
        Jacqueline

        Reply

    • Hey Jacqueline
      I Wanted to ask what’s the code under the chapters in book 2 and 3 of Kensy and max
      Ps I have all your books and I llllllllllllllllloooooooooooovvvvvvvvvvvvvveeeeeeeeeeeee u sssssssooooo much

      Reply

      • Hi Matilda,

        The codes are all written in the back of the book so you can decipher the chapter headings. Book 2’s code is The Pigpen Cipher and Book 3 is The Atbash Cipher.

        Good luck decoding them all.

        Best wishes,
        Jacqueline

        Reply

        • Me and my friends decided to learn the Atbash Cipher of by heart, so now we can read the code like we are reading a book. We also learned to write it of by heart. It was a really fun experience.
          P.S The teachers probably do not know any codes so it’s pretty useful to learn these.

          Reply

          • That’s awesome. You’ll be able to write notes to each other and no one will know other than you and your friends 🙂

    • Hi Jess,

      Yes I think the terms and conditions require that you live in Australia to be eligible for the prize.

      Best wishes,
      Jacqueline

      Reply

  11. Hi Ms Jacqueline Harvey,
    What if you do not want the prize but you want to vote? I am asking because I haven’t gotten permission from my mum (yet) and I do not think she will be pleased if I have 50 more books to add to my huge collection. If I could vote, I would and I would love to see your books make it to the top 10 (or more. I don’t really understand how this works) If there was a way to not go into the draw but still vote, I would definitely vote.

    Reply

    • Hi Pratha,

      I’m sure that if you won, you could donate the books either to your school library or a library in need or perhaps a community centre. I think there are lots of people in need at the moment who would appreciate such a wonderful prize and I know being able to do something like that would make me feel super dooper too!

      Best wishes,
      Jacqueline

      Reply

  12. So exciting! My mum’s considering giving me permission at the moment. I hope that at least one of your books get a high place!

    Reply

  14. Hi Ms Harvey, I am voting for your newest book Alice-Miranda in the Outback and I hope you get one of your books in top five because you deserve it!!!

    Reply

  15. Dear Jacqueline Harvey
    I voted for Alice-Miranda in Paris it was very hard to decide but I thought the dog on the front cover was very cute.
    Hope you win
    Love
    From Henrietta

    Reply

  16. Dear Mrs outstanding Jacqueline Harvey writer,

    I am the most enormous fan of you better than 1st has to be 0th.
    I would want to vote 10000,0000 for each book but I can’t.
    You have to be the world’s most thoughtful story writer for kensy and max, clementine rose and alice miranda series, i hope you can make more different kinds of series for your story’s and the thing i want you to have most of all is to keep writing interesting books for us kids to read and enjoy and be happy.

    p.s i already have all the books you wrote at home and still having trouble reading them, i am a proud nine year old girl.

    xoxo isabella lin

    Reply

  17. Dear mrs fantastic Jacqueline Harvey,
    I am your number 1 fan but to me you are my 0th favourite fan.
    I voted for your alice miranda at the palace she might be the best book yet.
    On my side there are no a lot of alice miranda books because they only have six different kinds and for the clementine rose book, only 8.
    looking forward for you to reply.

    isabella lin

    Reply

  18. I already voted for Kensy and Max 4 out of sight I loved the book especially the romance of Max and Autumn they are so cute! I can’t wait for book 6 It comes out 4 days before my birthday (how dare you mother making me wait for days until my bday) and Alice miranda is so kind and funny I can’t wait to see all the new lucinta a(Lucas and Jacinta) moments in book 19!

    Reply

    • Thanks Jaya. I can’t wait for you to read the next Kensy and Max book too. It’s really action packed and fun. Thanks for voting 🙂

      Reply

  19. Dear Jacqueline,
    I love your Clementine Rose and Alice-Miranda books.My favourite book is the Clementine Rose and the ballet break-in.My sister,Sanasri loves your Alice-Miranda books.What is your favourite book that you made?

    From Lishithaa

    Reply

    • Thanks for your lovely message. I don’t have a favourite book – though I did really love writing Alice-Miranda in the Outback. I’m currently working on some new projects so hopefully you’ll get to enjoy them too.

      Best wishes,
      Jacqueline

      Reply

  22. Dear Ms. Harvey,

    I just want to thank you for your books. My teacher reads (when she can) each one of your books and we’ve read every single one except for Alice-Miranda in Outback which I am going to look forward to see how my fellow classmates are going to act. (Yes, I got it!!!)

    I was just wondering. . .
    If you’re going to visit any schools in New South Wales when restrictions lift, can Sherwood Ridge Public School be on your list?

    P.S. Please come before 2022, because in that year I’ll be in high school

    Yours Dearly,
    Abi

    Reply

  24. Oooh!
    Can I just say, you inspires you to write the most?

    My three idols are

    1. Katherine Goble Johnson
    2. Mary Jackson
    3. Dorothy Vaughan

    What’s yours?

    Reply

  25. Hi Mrs Harvey!
    I really love your books, my favorite book in the Alice Miranda series is properly ‘Alice Miranda in Hollywood’
    You are practically my favorite Author ever! I am writing a book too, it’s called ‘The Time Crimes’ it just wont end!
    Please reply soon
    From Holly (age 10)

    Reply

  27. Hi Mrs. Harvey,
    I love the Alice-Miranda series! The adventures and mysteries are so intriguing and I absolutely love the characters you create! I cherish Alice-Miranda’s positivity, friendliness, and problem-solving tendencies, Sloane’s snarky side and how she’s not afraid to say what she thinks, Lucas’s caring tendencies, especially towards his friends, and Sep’s bad jokes and kindness.
    But I’d have to say my favorite characters are Millie and Jacinta. I adore Millie’s sarcasm and her jokes (like how in AM shows the way, when they were searching for Fern’s mother’s grave, Sloane asks if they’re supposed to hold their breath and Millie gives the incredibly humorous answer that they would END UP in the cemetery if they did that) and that she’s so protective of AM and her other friends and I always look forward to seeing Jacinta’s brutal honesty and how ambitious and funny she can be (and her romance with Lucas only adds to her character development! They are so adorable! <3) I really love their friendship dynamic too. They don’t always get on well but it’s clear that they care about each other’s well-being and are always supporting each other.
    Anyway, I’m probably boring you by going on and on about Millie and Jacinta 🙂
    I really wish I could get AM in the Outback, but the problem is that my parents already bought me the kindle version of AM Keeps the Beat (which I didn’t put down for a week because I kept re-reading it and wasting the battery amount in my iPad… which led to my mom taking it away for a week but that’s another story) and it seems a bit ungrateful to ask for another one so soon. Oh well. Just have to wait until my birthday or Christmas!
    I hope you don’t stop writing Alice-Miranda books anytime soon ! 😀

    Reply

    • I love Alice-Miranda and i started reading it last year i love millie and jacinta too and i am hoping the libraries open up so i an read the books they have (again if they don’t) and i am hoping i can maybe buy a kindle version on my ipad. (i read so much AM books on my ipad too! 😀 ) I think millie is pretty funny and i like jacinta alot (do you know how old she is?).I am in melbourne but im not sure my parents will let me vote but if i could id vote for Alice-Miranda keeps the beat, Alice-Miranda at the palace and Alice-Miranda at japan and for Kensy and Max, I’d vote for freefall and breaking news.

      Reply

      • Um in AM 1, Alice-Miranda was 7 and in AM 19 she’s 10… and if the same logic applies to Jacinta, who was 11 in AM 1, she’s around 14 in the most recent AM. Wow, time flies by fast! 🙂
        I can’t vote 🙁 since I live outside of Australia (in a different time zone too!) AM in Japan is one of my favorites too, along with AM in Paris! I also love Kensy and Max freefall and disappearing act.

        Reply

        • Wow where I live it’s 11:41 AM but on this page it seems I’ve posted the comment before this one at 4:39 AM. Whoops~ 🙂

          Reply

          • I love Millie and Jacinta too! Their dynamic is very realistic but I felt so bad for Jacinta when Millie accused her of “pretending to be nice when she was really the same spoilt brat” in AM Shines Bright. I don’t know if she just said that because she was angry but Jacinta is literally the LEAST spoiled of the lot and Millie really shouldn’t throw around “brat” like that 🙁

  28. Hi Ms. Harvey,
    I really wish I could vote but I don’t think I can.. 🙁 I adore your books and my favorite one is Alice-Miranda in Scotland. I really would like to see an Alice-Miranda in South Korea (because I am also from there but I’m also French and American) Alice-Miranda in Italy, or an Alice-Miranda in Turkey. I have a question, which character do you like with Alice-Miranda? (I like Alice-Miranda and Sep) I hope you are having a lovely day and stay safe!

    Reply

    • Hi Samantha,

      That is ok! I’m thrilled to hear that you enjoy reading Alice-Miranda, I love writing about the adventures she has. Thank you for the suggestions, I love hearing where my readers would like to see Alice-Miranda go next. I hope you are staying safe as well.

      Happy reading,

      Jacqueline 🙂

      Reply

    • That is ok you can’t enter! Thank you for your kind words, I’m thrilled to hear you love my books.

      Jacqueline 🙂

      Reply

  30. Hi Jacqueline. I’ve just started f
    Re-reading Alice Miranda in the outback. I think it’s your best one yet! Is there any way you could give a tiny clue about what your going to call the final AM book Book 20? Just a lil Clue. PLEASE PLEASE!?!??? You don’t have too. But if you can just a lil clue.

    Reply

  31. Hi Jacqueline!
    I’m a HUGE fan of the Kensy and Max and Alice-Miranda series! I love the twisted mysteries and plots you create in both of them and I adore Max and Autumn. I love how Max got so flustered when Kensy brought up Autumn (“I DON’T LIKE HER” ;)) I was laughing so hard when I read that.
    But LUCINTA has my top spot. They went from worst enemies to become an item (Remember when they met when Lucas threw stones at AM and ‘Cinta? Turns out the 2 girls he threw stones at turned out to be his future cousin and future girlfriend. Even better, Jacinta’s boyfriend turned out to be the boy she called a ‘monster’ and Lucas’ girlfriend is the girl he called a ‘rich spoilt brat’. Whoops~ :)) and the way that they understand and care about each other just gets to me every time (their flirting is adorable too! :P).
    I noticed that after Jacinta broke her toe in Paris, Lucas started liking her, and that led to them becoming bf-gf. But can someone please explain why Lucas suddenly got *as I like to call it* un-dumb and began to see Jacinta in a different way AFTER she broke her toe? What relevance does a broken toe have to liking someone? So if Jacinta hand’t hurt herself, Lucas would’ve never gotten un-dumb? Deep thoughts…. 😉
    I can’t wait to read AM in the Outback and Kensy and Max: Full Speed!

    Reply

    • Hi Lea,

      Thank you for your kind message! I’m thrilled to hear you enjoy reading about the little romances and crushes as well as the plotlines of both the Alice-Miranda and Kensy and Max series.

      It didn’t really have much to do with just her breaking her toe. They both had changed a lot since they first met and I think they would have ended up together eventually as they grew into two personalities that were meant for each other. 🙂

      I hope you enjoy AM in the Outback and Kensy and Max: Full Speed!

      Happy reading,

      Jacqueline

      Reply

  32. Hi Mrs. Harvey,
    I’ve just finished reading AM in the Outback and I LOVED IT. I was born in Alice Springs and moved to the US but the Outback is my home and I was ecstatic when I learned AM’s next adventure was there. I was so glad that all the main and reoccurring characters were fine and dandy in this one, and as for Sprocket… that guy is ICONIC and every bit with him gave me a good laugh. I loved the inclusion of Matilda in this book. My best friend is deaf so we were both delighted when we were first introduced to her (Lucas knows sign language! 🙂 ) and it’s great to make these kinds of conditions accepted by more people! Along with other books, the AM series has helped me mentally. I have an anxiety disorder and reading has always been my safe space, where I can see what it’s like in the shoes of other people (this is probably why I really like acting lol) AM reminds me to stay positive and ALWAYS KEEP GOING because as my therapist says, “Anxiety won’t take over your life- unless you let it.” My favorite character would be Jacinta. I love how resilient and brave she is, not to mention brutally honest. She and Lucas are my OTP (one true pairing) and every cute scene that they have puts a huge smile on my face.
    I hope you don’t stop writing the series at book 20! I know about 25 people (including myself!) that will be devastated. Maybe for some other locations you could use India (my family’s country of origin 😀 ), Spain (Madrid and Barcelona are amazing! And you could include Neville!), or Hawaii or Singapore (both have so many things to do and don’t even get me started on Hawaii sunsets) but I’ll be excited about any other setting. I hope you continue staying safe at this odd time!

    Reply

    • Hi Allie,

      I’m thrilled to hear that you loved reading Alice-Miranda in the Outback!

      Sprocket is quite a funny character, I really enjoyed creating his eccentric characteristics to create a bit of humour for the kids and adults when they met him 🙂

      Yes, it is very important that everybody is included because if everyone is the exact same it would make the world we live in VERY boring. Is your best friend Mark? I just replied to Mark before this comment 🙂

      That makes me so happy to hear that Alice-Miranda has helped you mentally, she is such a kind girl and her adventures are a very good way to take yourself from reality if it is very stressful sometimes.

      I love Jacinta as a character she shows readers that it is possible to change behaviour and that people may have a reputation of you but it is ok to change for the best and create a new reputation for yourself! Lucinta is quite a cute little romance and it is nice to see how far they have both come since they first met.

      Thank you for the great suggestions for a possible future Alice-Miranda adventure, it is great hearing from readers where they would like to see Alice-Miranda’s go next…

      Happy reading,

      Jacqueline

      Reply

      • Yep, Mark’s my best friend. Though he hasn’t read the whole book, as soon as I read the part about Matilda, I was like “I gotta show this to him!” 🙂
        That’s exactly why I love Jacinta- she’s changed her reputation by choice and willpower. That’s incredible, doing that is no mean feat. But does being reminded about her old status bother her? Her friends talk about it and I’ve seen on a few occasions that teachers talk about how they hope “the old Jacinta” isn’t coming back- if I were her, I’d find that bothersome- She’s changed, so why the need to keep bringing it up? Can’t they trust her? But we’ve all got different perspectives.
        I agree- the world would be an extremely boring place if EVERYONE were the same. I don’t see why people are so hesitant to accept different identities- it just makes life more exciting!

        Reply

        • Or as Aditi says, “We’re all human, and some people are more unique. That’s no excuse to avoid them- if anything, it’s an invitation to get to know them better!” 🙂
          There’s a reason we call her “Our Californian version of Alice-Miranda” lol.

          Reply

    • Omg- I have an anxiety disorder too- I feel like I just stumbled upon a unicorn! Isn’t it so annoying? And panic attacks- oh dear god. Do our therapists share a brain? She uses the exact same quote- she even uses, (Because her kids read AM and she’s read them aloud so many times she’s practically memorized them) “You can only take people as you find them.” Okay, point taken.
      I’m a huge Lucinta fan too, but who isn’t? And I love AM’s positivity- though she can be a bit naive sometimes 🙂 AM in Spain or India sounds awesome- I’d especially love to see a choir trip again!

      Reply

  33. I’ve created a blurb 🙂

    Alice-Miranda in New Zealand
    It’s the school holidays and Alice-Miranda and her friends are traveling to New Zealand. Kennington’s is opening up a new branch of stores, Lawrence Ridley has to film for his new movie, and Jacinta’s family has invited the group to stay with them in their gorgeous old house, which they happen to be restoring.
    The property has loads of things to do, from four-wheeling to parkour, and there’s an abundance of extraordinary characters- like Eleni and Betty, Jacinta’s grandmother and her dear motorcycle, and Ossie, a witty man with an amputated leg. But soon enough, Alice-Miranda feels that something fishy is going on. Who’s the strange man who loiters around the house, and where are the rumors that threaten to break Kennington’s reputation coming from? Mix in a series of threatening notes, a secret vault, and a festival- and there may be much more trouble going around than expected. With the help of her friends- and of course, some new ones, can Alice-Miranda solve this mystery?

    Reply

    • Omg I’d love to read that book! And Jacinta’s granny making an appearance sounds awesome. I mean… she has a friend with an amputated leg (OSSIE!), she has a butterfly tattoo, and she used to own a gramophone (I’ve been keeping track of all the times she’d been mentioned by Jacinta in books lol)! I don’t know about everyone else, but I’d love to see her in a book!

      Reply

  34. I made a blurb 🙂
    Alice-Miranda in India
    The Winchesterfield-Downsforvale-Fayle singers are off to India! They’re performing for a festival held in the bustling city of Mumbai to celebrate Diwali. Along with rehearsing, there’s a lot to see and do in the city. But behind the performances and sightseeing, there’s drama brewing between the kids. The Riverview choir and Summerville Academy choir really don’t get along, Caprice is causing mischief, and Lucas has been acting odd ever since Jacinta was reunited with an old friend.
    On top of that, there’s some bizarre things happening in the hotel where the group is staying. What’s the true identity of the young girl working in the hotel, and why is the owner of the place acting so shady? Add in a string of robberies and some naughty monkeys, and there’s potential for quite the fiasco. Can Alice-Miranda solve these mysteries before things spiral out of control?

    Reply

    • Hi Kavya,

      This blurb is very good! I would certainly be intrigued to read about this.

      Thank you for the suggestion about Alice-Miranda being set in India, I love hearing where my readers would like to see Alice-Miranda’s next adventure 🙂

      Happy reading,

      Jacqueline

      Reply

  35. I want to read AM in New Zealand and AM in India now! Those blurbs were so cool it made me feel as if it was an actual book. I’m sure that wherever she goes next will be full of excitement anyway.

    – Kay

    Reply

    • I’d love to read those books too! They were great, weren’t they?

      I’ll just have to make sure that whatever happens next there is plenty of excitement for everyone.

      Best wishes,
      Jacqueline

      Reply

  36. i have a little theory here. is jacinta’s family from greece? Jacinta means “beautiful” and is derived from a flower called the hyacinth, ambrosia is the food of the greek gods, minvera (jacinta’s deceased great-aunt minnie) is another name for the greek god athena, and tabitha means “gorgeous” in greek. Is this all just one big coincidence? Lol it probably is but there’s no harm in asking :)))))) i love your books, i can’t wait for am 20 to come out and i’m trying to convince my parents to get the newest kensy and max book!

    Reply

    • Hi Sasha,

      This is very interesting! I’m thrilled to hear that you enjoy reading my books, I hope you like Alice-Miranda in Egypt (number 20). 🙂

      Happy reading,

      Jacqueline

      Reply

  37. Hey! Does Lucas’s whole NYC situation (In AM 18) come up in later books- and if so, does Jacinta end up going with him? My friend, Christy, has an idea that Jacinta’s mother starts dating someone and he’s going to move to WD from where he lives in California- but ‘Cinta and Ambrosia are moving to Cali for 6 months to spend time with him there before they go back home. Christy also theorizes that it would be very likely that if it actually happens, Lucas would go to NYC at the same time as her, and it’d be a “scattered” book- Jacinta in California, Lucas in New York, and AM, Chessie, Millie, Sep, and Sloane in Winchesterfield-Downsfordvale- but does Lucas even go to New York?

    Reply

  38. Hi Mrs Harvey

    I’ve been wondering for a while about what happened to Chessie’s real dad. It mentions in AM Holds the Key that Jemima had recently gotten remarried to Anthony Tavistock but it doesn’t say anything about her real father. Perhaps he could be involved in a future AM book?
    Thanks

    – Kay

    Reply

  39. I’ve been wondering- why isn’t Jacinta more well-known? She was a national junior champ at age 11- seems that she would be famous with an achievement like that. And same goes for Alice-Miranda, who solves international mysteries galore! It seems like she’d be the type of girl to get as many paps as her Uncle Lawrence ;).

    Reply

    • That is an interesting idea Charlotte. I think they’re pretty humble kids and AM certainly wouldn’t relish the attention. I suspect that as they got older they could become famous…actually you have just given me a very interesting idea for the future!

      Best wishes,
      Jacqueline

      Reply

  40. I just noticed that Alice-Miranda Friends Forever overlooked a little detail- in the movie, it says that Alice-Miranda is the YOUNGEST girl to ever attend Winchesterfield-Downsfordvale, at 7 and one quarter. But in the book, Jacinta mentions that started at the school when she was only 7. So technically, wouldn’t Jacinta be the youngest student? Or it could be that she started at 7 and a half or I just read a part wrong.

    Reply

  41. In AM in Scotland, during the beginning (where Jacinta is upset), Millie mentions that the girls’ phones were confiscated thanks to Caprice. So does that mean all of the girls have their own personal phones? And if so, how come they have to share a common phone, as shown in earlier books?

    Reply

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