UWA Publishing

22/12/2025

MOTHER SALAD BY HELENA PANTSIS

Out in April 2026

They say you can tell the gender of your unborn baby from the way your stomach sits, how your body changes, how big your nose grows. I found out I was carrying an adult woman when the interior decor of my uterus became comprised of orange linoleum tiling and ineffectual fans, velvet upholstered three-seaters and marble countertops.

Helena Pantsis’ surreal short story collection explores the plights of womanhood through the lens of mothers and the children of mothers. In 21 stories of the strange and the uncanny, Mother Salad unravels the image of the woman in shambles, identity fractured and exploring a world which has long abandoned the creature it so carefully constructed, betrayed by the very people she has been taught to trust.

‘Pantsis upends expectations on the narratives that society feeds us and how they manifest in our psyche over time. A searing and unique collection of startling originality.’ – Emily Tsokos Purtill, author of Matia

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Pre-order now from your favourite local bookstore or direct from UWA Publishing: https://uwap.uwa.edu.au/products/mother-salad

Cover design by Mika Tabata

20/12/2025

OUT NOW!

Business as Unusual: Radical Ideas for Cities by Julian Bolleter

Order now from your favourite local bookstore or direct from UWA Publishing: https://uwap.uwa.edu.au/products/business-as-unusual

When planning thinking collapses into prescriptive dogma, it becomes challenging to imagine alternatives to business as usual and possible innovations wither on the vine. Our reaction to out-of-control climate change, mass species extinction and the fracturing of a once egalitarian society is that we build new suburbs like before, just tighter and meaner. This hostile fabric is stranded in the gulf between being leafy and suburban and truly urban and lively. Instead, it is neither and, as such, it is the worst of all worlds.

Is that the best we can offer?

What about new urban dreams, not a hatchet job on the existing dream?

That’s where this book steps in. This irreverent, easily digestible and highly visual book trawls through the archives for long-forgotten, sometimes dangerous, ideas and draws upon unfashionable or emerging theories and techniques for innovation to pe*****te beyond business-as-usual approaches. Rather than a weighty tome beyond our ever-constricting attention spans, this cheerful and consumable field guide to alternative urbanisms is for informed laypeople, planners, designers, policymakers and politicians alike. It opens a conversation through a series of hand-drawn diagrams of alternative ways of dwelling in Australian cities, which have applications in sprawling cities worldwide. These diagrams have already been trialled on social media, eliciting a storm of noisy commentary. This unique book will appeal to the many frustrated people constricted by or excluded from business-as-usual approaches to urban development.

18/12/2025

SOUTH by Malcolm Traill

Out April 2026

On Western Australia’s southern coast, Albany stands as the state’s oldest European settlement, founded in 1826, but its human history begins over 40,000 years ago with the Menang people of the Noongar nation.

Historian and heritage expert Malcolm Traill presents a compelling collection of stories and rare images, originally published in local outlets since 2017. Now brought together for the first time, these tales offer a vibrant portrait of Albany’s layered past – its people, its places, and the events that have shaped the region.

To mark Albany’s 2026 bicentenary of European settlement, South is both a celebration and a reflection – an invitation to rediscover the unique heritage of a town at the southern edge of a vast continent.

"A comprehensive and very accessible account of Albany’s distinctive role in Western Australia’s history." – Bill Bunbury

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Available for pre-order for your favourite local bookshop or direct from UWA Publishing: https://uwap.uwa.edu.au/products/south

Cover design by Hazel Lam.

16/12/2025

It has been just over a year since my book was officially launched and what a year it has been!

I have given author talks at 12 different libraries, had 12 media interviews and have been an invited speaker for the Melon Hill Bushland Group AGM, Cans for Carnaby’s - Black-Cockatoo Fundraising fundraiser, Canning River Eco-education centre and a morning tea at the State Solicitor's Office. I did a walk and talk through the suburbs of Nedlands for History West. I presented a talk at the Ranger Cadet Teacher Conference. I've hosted stalls at the Mundaring Farmers Market, Samson Tree festival and the Conservation Council's Environment Matters: birds of a feather forum.

I have met so many people who are interested and passionate about helping our black cockatoos and I hope I have inspired many more.

My book was awarded the Royal Zoological Society of NSW 2025 Whitley Award for Highly Commended which I was very honoured to receive.

Today I had the honour of receiving an award for the most outreach activities undertaken in 2025 representing the The University of Western Australia's School of Biological Sciences.

The prize was the lovely artwork pictured. It features the Fuschia Grevillea from Mundaring and was painted by Frances Agnes Jackson between November 1945 and January 1946. It was found earlier this year in a long unopened cupboard in the Botany building at UWA. What a find!

It was part of a large collection of artworks by Frances Agnes Jackson (1887-1970). Frances was associated with Perth's Girl School (East Perth) and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.

11/12/2025

Listen now via the Words and Nerds podcast: https://danivee.com.au/775-dani-vee-and-william-j-byrne-family-and-history-the-warrumbar/

Dani Vee and William J Byrne chat about his new book The Warrumbar 🩷

They talk about the importance of story, intergenerational relationships, the lasting impact of history, how stories are influenced by personal stories.

The episode also touches on domestic violence (so always listen with care), and the complexity of family.

The Warrumbar is a coming of age story about love, injustice and courage

Listen now! 🎧 🎉

09/12/2025

🌟 ACQUISITION NEWS! 🌟

UWA Publishing has acquired world rights to Beverley McWilliam's middle-grade historical fiction novel Bandoola.

Inspired by a true story, Bandoola follows the remarkable life of a Burmese logging elephant from a mischievous calf to a World War Two hero. Told from the elephant’s point of view, Bandoola is a story of courage, loyalty and the powerful bond that connects people and animals.

On the acquisition, Beverley remarked “I am thrilled that my middle-grade novel Bandoola has found a home with UWA Publishing. I’m passionate about creating stories that make history more accessible and exciting for young readers, while fostering empathy and understanding for the animals that have shared our past. It is such a privilege to be working with the incredible team at UWAP to bring this story into the world.”

The manuscript was acquired following the Australian Society of Authors’ Virtual Literary Speed Dating event in March 2025. UWAP has scheduled Bandoola for an August 2026 release.

Read the full announcement on our website.

Photo credit: Zac McWilliams

01/12/2025

If you are thinking of purchasing my book for a Christmas present now is a good time. UWA Publishing is offering 25% off for a limited time!

Shop now only on the UWA Publishing website: https://uwap.uwa.edu.au/

Promotion excludes shipping and finishes on 5/12/25 at 11.59pm AWST.

29/11/2025

🧡 ELLA AND THE MYSTERY OF THE MISSING FROGS 🧡

Book 3 in the Ella and the Frogs series by Cassy Polimeni and Hykie Breeze is out in March 2026! Pre-order is now available from your local bookstore or from UWA Publishing.

If frogs make a home somewhere it means things are in balance. But if something changes, they are the first to know. They can tell when something isn’t right.

Have you ever had a day when everything goes wrong? Ella is having one of those. To make matters worse, the orchestra of frogs that lives in her backyard has disappeared. Ella thinks the two things might be connected, and is determined to get to the bottom of it. There’s only one problem: her little brother Will. Can Ella find the frogs and break the curse – or will her little brother keep getting in the way?

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PRAISE FOR THE SERIES

"Cassy Polimeni and Hykie Breeze once again capture the emotional challenges and natural curiosity of childhood with warmth and flair." PENNY HARRISON, Kids Book Review

"I can't recommend this highly enough. An excellent and engaging choice... it will tick all the boxes." SUE WARREN, Just so Stories

"Perfect for school libraries and classroom." PIP HARRY

"I can't wait to see what Ella does next." EMILY GALE

Pre-order here: https://uwap.uwa.edu.au/products/ella-and-the-mystery-of-the-missing-frogs

28/11/2025

Congratulations to UWA Publishing poets Kaya Ortiz and Isabella G. Mead on being shortlisted for the Five Islands prize for a first book of poetry!

The Five Islands Prize runs annually, supporting emerging poets and honouring the publishers who have shown confidence in new poets, and is administered by Kevin Brophy AM.

The full shortlist is as follows:
Bathypelagia by Debbie Lim (Cordite Publishing)
Portraits of Drowning by Madeleine Dale (UQP)
The Infant Vine by Isabella G. Mead (UWAP)
Past & Parallel Lives by Kaya Ortiz (UWAP)

The winner will be announced on Wednesday 3 December 2025.

Congratulations Kaya and Isabella!

28/11/2025

SALE ON NOW!

All books are 25% off for a limited time!

Sale includes new releases, 2026 pre-orders and already marked down titles. Shop now only on the UWA Publishing website: https://uwap.uwa.edu.au/

Promotion excludes shipping and finishes on 5/12/25 at 11.59pm AWST.