New Figures Show More Women’s Writers Than Ever Have Had Books Reviewed

New Figures Show More Women’s Writers Than Ever Have Had Books Reviewed
Image: Elly Sapper, Dassi Erlich and Nicole Meyer at the Jerusalem District Court last year. Photo: EPA/Abir Sultan

BY RENEE LOU DALLOW

Each year the Stella Count surveys the extent of gender bias in the field of book reviews in Australia.

According to the 2020 Stella Count 55% of the books reviewed in Australian publications were by women. These reviews included newspaper articles, journals and memoirs for papers such as The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. Compared the same figure in 2015 which showed that the split was 64% male to 36% female.

This does not mean women can shout victory just yet. There’s still a long way to go. But, hey, we’re getting there!

As well as the Stella Count, there is also The Australian Women’s Writers Challenge which encourages readers, including book bloggers, to review women authors online. There are many male reviewers now who are giving more of their time to reviewing women writers, for the set period of a year, to address the imbalance.  

“For the first time in the history of the Stella Count, the 2019 and 2020 data tells us that more books by women authors than by men authors are being reviewed in Australia’s book pages. This is a milestone to be celebrated because equal access to book reviews will make a genuine difference to the lives and reputations of Australian women authors,” said Jaclyn Booton, Stella’s Executive Director.

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