Where do you find literature reviews? (Be sure to distinguish between reviews & descriptions)
You will find literature reviews in specialist book review magazines (Australian Book Review), weekend newspapers (The Age), book publisher & distributor websites (James Bennett), magazine or newsletters (Library Journal Reviews), as well as blogs and other websites set up for the purpose of reviewing books(Good Reads).
What you are looking for in a literature (book) review is a critique of the author's style, the content and construction of the story, and the overall merit or otherwise of the book. By its very nature a review is nothing more that the reader's personal opinion, but it can be used by other readers to make a decision about reading a certain book.
What are some well-known literary journals for adults & children?
There are many well-known literary journals for adults - some obvious ones being - Australian Book Review, London Review of Books, the New York Times Book Review. In Australia, there is Meanjin, Southerly, Books+Publishing to name a few. In UK, there is Literary Review & Areté. In USA there is Publishers Weekly & Kirkus Reviews.
For children, the list is a bit shorter, with Magpies & The School Magazine in Australia, and Children's Literature & The Horn Book plus the plethora of publications from John Hopkins University in USA. And in UK, I found Carousel & Books for Keeps.
What literature promotion activities are on the Australian and English speaking worlds calendar each year or regularly at wider intervals of time?
I think you could be busy every day of the week with literature promotion activities for either adults or children. So lets start with children & young adults - every state of Australia seems to have a Premier's Reading Challenge ( Victoria's is winding up as I write this!), there are the Inky Awards, the Children's Book Week, the Reading Hour, the National Simultaneous Story Time, the MS Readathon, book fairs and a new one, National Indigenous Literacy Day.
For adults, every state has a Writers Festival of some sort, like Adelaide Writer's Week & the Queensland Poetry Festival, lots of annual book awards, World Book Day, Library Lovers Day, UNESCO World Poetry Day, Frankfurt International Book Fair in Germany, Tromsø International Literature Festival in Norway, London Literature Festival, UN International Year of Literacy (1990), National Year of Reading (2012), the list just goes on ....... and of course, adults get involved in some of the children's events, too.
What are two well-known "book towns" - one in Victoria and one in UK?
Clunes in the Victorian goldfields has a Book Festival in May each year, as well as hosting events like author talks and writing master classes throughout the year. It has a eclectic mix of bookshops selling new, rare and used books. This very picturesque town in a historical part of central Victoria has turned itself into a creative hub for books and writing.
Hay-on-Wye in Wales, just over the border from England, is the best known of the UK "book towns". It runs the Hay Festival of Literature & Arts in May each year, and also runs a film festival, a walking festival, a food festival & a vintage "fayre". Like Clunes, Hay has a good range of bookshops and runs various events associated with books & writing throughout the year.
What are some well-known literature promotion organisations in Australia and the other English speaking countries?
I'm not sure that all of the following could be classed as well-known, but they all have as their central premise for existing - the promotion of reading, writing and literature.
The Australia Council promotes many aspects of the arts, including literature in the form of Australian stories - http://www.australiacouncil.gov.au/artforms/literature
The Wheeler Centre is all about books, writing and ideas and uses many mediums to bring readers & writers together - http://wheelercentre.com/
The Victorian Premier's Reading Challenge is run every year for students from Prep to Year 10 - http://www.education.vic.gov.au/prc/default.htm
The Children's Book Council of Australia is the peak body for promoting children's literature in Australia - http://cbca.org.au/index.htm
Ireland Literature Exchange promotes Irish literature abroad by getting the best possible translations published overseas - http://www.irelandliterature.com/
The Poetry Society in UK "champions poetry for all ages" & hosts many events at the Poetry Cafe in Covent Garden - http://www.poetrysociety.org.uk/content/homepage/
Children's Literature Assembly is a US organisation which promotes the need for English teachers to have a wide knowledge of books published for children & young adults - http://www.childrensliteratureassembly.org/index.html
The Jewish Book Council promotes public awareness of books published about the Jewish experience - http://www.jewishbookcouncil.org/
What are the better known literary awards or prizes in Australia, US and UK for children's books and for adult fiction or poetry?
Even just choosing the better known awards and prizes, one could end up with a very long list, so here is a list of awards or prizes that I have heard of in the past.
INTERNATIONAL
Nobel Prize for Literature
Man Booker Prize
Goethe Prize
AUSTRALIA
Miles Franklin Award
The Stella Prize
Vogel Literary Award
UK
Orange Prize for Fiction
Costa Book Awards (formerly Whitbread)
USA
Pulitzer Prize
National Jewish Book Award
POETRY
CJ Dennis Prize for Poetry (AUS)
TS Eliot Prize (UK)
Walt Whitman Award (USA)
CHILDREN'S
Dromkeen Medal (AUS)
Kate Greenaway Medal (UK)
Caldecott Medal (USA)
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