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	<title>the portal &#187; news and ideas</title>
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		<title>Precocious and published</title>
		<link>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/12/05/precocious-and-published/</link>
		<comments>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/12/05/precocious-and-published/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 05 Dec 2008 00:33:44 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Mrs Sweeney</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Scotch Scribes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[books and authors]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[news and ideas]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://theportal.edublogs.org/?p=419</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[For those budding Scotch Scribes looking for a role model, here&#8217;s an interesting list of authors who were published whilst still under the age of 20 (or who wrote their books that young but were published later). 
Teen/Child published authors
*       Nancy Yi Fan: Swordbird (published at 12 yrs)
*       Zlata Filipovic: [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>Ivan Southall dies</title>
		<link>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/11/20/ivan-southall-dies/</link>
		<comments>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/11/20/ivan-southall-dies/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 20 Nov 2008 01:45:43 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Mrs Sweeney</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[books and authors]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[news and ideas]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://theportal.edublogs.org/?p=411</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[              
Australia has lost one of its literary treasures, Ivan Southall, who died on the 15th November at the age of 87. Mr Southall was particularly prominent during the 1960&#8217;s and 1970&#8217;s, when he penned one of my favourite books from childhood &#8211; Hill&#8217;s End - a story about children who must fend for themselves [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>Melbourne author wins Dylan Thomas Prize</title>
		<link>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/11/18/melbourne-author-wins-dylan-thomas-prize/</link>
		<comments>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/11/18/melbourne-author-wins-dylan-thomas-prize/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 18 Nov 2008 04:15:16 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Mrs Sweeney</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[books and authors]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[news and ideas]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://theportal.edublogs.org/?p=407</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[             
Melbourne author Nam Le has won the prestigious Dylan Thomas Prize for Literature, worth $140 000! The son of Vietnamese refugees who came to Australia when he was a baby, Nam Le is a qualified lawyer who quickly realised he didn&#8217;t want to live the corporate life.
His book The Boat is a collection [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>Scotch Factor Grand Final 2008!!!</title>
		<link>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/11/14/scotch-factor-grand-final-2008/</link>
		<comments>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/11/14/scotch-factor-grand-final-2008/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 14 Nov 2008 03:25:46 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Mrs Sweeney</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Literature Club]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[news and ideas]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://theportal.edublogs.org/?p=402</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[       
Well! What an unexpected turn of events! Despite the fact that before the day Alex was a one man team, and on the day he turned up AFTER his surrogate team had answered his round of questions&#8230;the Silverthorn team won the final by a narrow margin! Last minute ring-in, James, was fast, accurate and unflappable! [...]]]></description>
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		<title>Diego&#8217;s Pride by Deborah Ellis</title>
		<link>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/11/06/diegos-pride-by-deborah-ellis/</link>
		<comments>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/11/06/diegos-pride-by-deborah-ellis/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 05 Nov 2008 21:43:15 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Mrs Sweeney</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[books and authors]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[news and ideas]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[adventure]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[survival]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://theportal.edublogs.org/?p=108</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[                                                                  
The sequel to Diego Run is out! Actually, I didn&#8217;t find it as exciting as Diego Run, but if you read the former you&#8217;ll probably still be keen to find out what happens to Diego. He becomes involved in a blockade by Coca farmers, attempting to dissuade the Bolivian government from confiscating the farmers&#8217; [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>The Donkey Library</title>
		<link>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/10/23/the-donkey-library/</link>
		<comments>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/10/23/the-donkey-library/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 23 Oct 2008 00:32:11 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Mrs Sweeney</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[news and ideas]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://theportal.edublogs.org/?p=364</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[
It&#8217;s incredible what lengths some dedicated and passionate teachers will go to just to get people reading! A primary teacher in Colombia enlists the help of his two donkeys every weekend. Intrigued? Read this inspiring article.
There&#8217;s a charming slideshow too.
Image: New York Times 23/10/08  http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/20/world/americas/20burro.html?_r=3&#38;ei==5070&#38;emc=eta1&#38;oref=slogin&#38;oref=slogin&#38;oref=slogin 
Mrs Sweeney
]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
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		<title>Man Booker Prize Winner Announced</title>
		<link>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/10/16/man-booker-prize-winner-announced/</link>
		<comments>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/10/16/man-booker-prize-winner-announced/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 16 Oct 2008 04:13:51 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Mrs Sweeney</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[books and authors]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[news and ideas]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://theportal.edublogs.org/?p=362</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[
Aravind Adiga has won the 2008 Man Booker Prize for his first novel, The White Tiger.
The novel is about the struggles of a rickshaw puller in New Delhi, and is described by the judges as a book that &#8220;shocked and entertained in equal measure&#8221;.
Aravind spent some of his teenage years in Sydney, and claims this influenced his [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>Booker Shortlist announced</title>
		<link>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/09/10/booker-shortlist-announced/</link>
		<comments>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/09/10/booker-shortlist-announced/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 10 Sep 2008 05:37:49 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Mrs Sweeney</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[news and ideas]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://theportal.edublogs.org/?p=350</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The shortlist for this year&#8217;s Man Booker Prize has been announced, and once again Australian authors feature. Steve Toltz has been shortlisted for A Fraction of the Whole, and Aravind Adiga has also been shortlisted for The White Tiger.
The four other books on the shortlist are:
The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry
The Clothes on Their Backs by [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Swearing and racism in winning book&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/08/29/swearing-and-racism-in-winning-book/</link>
		<comments>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/08/29/swearing-and-racism-in-winning-book/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 29 Aug 2008 01:42:52 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Mrs Sweeney</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[books and authors]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[news and ideas]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://theportal.edublogs.org/?p=348</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[
Yet another debate is raging about what is appropriate content for children&#8217;s books. Matt Otley&#8217;s Requiem For a Beast won the 2008 CBCA Picture Book of the Year. It contains some obscenities, depictions of racism, and violence.
Kate Eltham, Chief Executive of the Queensland Writers&#8217; Centre, eloquently defended the book&#8230;
             Detractors ask if we really want to [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>Melbourne a &#8216;City of Literature&#8217;</title>
		<link>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/08/21/melbourne-a-city-of-literature/</link>
		<comments>http://theportal.edublogs.org/2008/08/21/melbourne-a-city-of-literature/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 21 Aug 2008 02:42:23 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Mrs Sweeney</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[news and ideas]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://theportal.edublogs.org/?p=344</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[
It&#8217;s official! Melbourne is only the second city in the world to have been awarded &#8216;City of Literature&#8217; status by UNESCO. Edinburgh received this status in 2004. The centrepiece of Melbourne&#8217;s bid was the plan to establish a Centre for Books and Ideas at the State Library of Victoria, expected to be completed in the [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
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