Vanessa Hall  
Editor  

ALL for the love of reading – schools across the country last week came to life with characters from the pages of books, which were used as inspiration for Book Week 2026 celebrations.

Students, teachers, and staff at Coolum State High School dressed up with enthusiasm and celebrated the theme for 2026 – Symphony of Stories.

Book Week started in 1945 when the Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) was founded as a way to promote and foster Australian authors, illustrators and young readers.

The following year, the CBCA Book of the Year Awards were held as a way to promote books of high literary and artistic merit, and Book Week was officially celebrated.

Now, some 80 years later, children across Australia dress up and celebrate their literary heroes, and the CBCA announces their award winners.

Coolum State High School Principal Troy Ascott said that in this new AI era, books were more important than ever.

“The message of Book Week is about the joy that reading brings into our lives and honouring the great authors, including Australian authors, who have created those stories.

“It’s about creating excitement around reading and showing that great stories live with us and shape our culture and who we are, and Book Week shows that we value reading more than ever and that a good book can have such a profound influence over the way we think and act.”

Students and staff at Coolum High had their biggest book week yet.

“The students embraced this like never before, led by the senior students,” Mr Ascott said.

“At second break there was a fashion parade, with awards given to the best designs.

“It was a wonderful community event that showed that, as much as things change, Coolum remains very much a community who are proud to showcase the things they truly value.”

There was colour and lots of fun as a result of Book Week celebrations.

“I would like to thank everyone who participated in Book Week and also thank the Advertiser for supporting us as we promote the love of reading to our students.”

Who is your favourite character from a book? We want to know- why not send in a letter to the editor at editor@coolumadvertiser.com.au or send us a DM via our Facebook page. I’ll give a shout-out to Tom Bombadil from LOTR (Vanessa, editor).