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New titles for the VCAA English and EAL List 2023

VCAA English and EAL List 2023

New titles announced for the VCAA English & EAL List 2023

January 13, 2022 | 2-3 minute read

The VCAA has approved the English & EAL list for 2023. If your school is studying a title that does not appear on the updated list, consider a suitable alternative for your students next year. We have summarised some of the noteable titles below and included links to accompanying study resources. This will be updated as additional information is provided to us.

It is important to keep in mind the themes that you are looking to explore in these units to see if they suit the school and most importantly your students.
We have always Lived in the Castle by Shirly Jackson explores the themes of family tragedy, social isolation, and female rebellion against a patriarchal society. The 2020 Netflix adaptation of Shirley Jackson’s “The Haunting of Hill House” has seen renewed interest in her work, and this gothic mystery was her last novel.
Bad Dreams and Other Stories by Tessa Hadley
A brilliant new collection of stories from the prize-winning author of The Past and The London Train, these enthralling and perturbing stories show the ordinary made extraordinary and real events become mysterious and dreamlike.
Requiem for A Beast
An incredible multi-modal work including picture book, graphic novel, novella, and CD, is the stirring adventure of a white boy’s journey through the Australian Outback. Themes explored include Aboriginal Australian history, fantasy, and dreams. The music blends western classic music and traditional Bundjalung-Aboriginal songs, and the beautiful illustrations are oil painting and coloured pencil encapsulating the colours of the bush.
Born a Crime Trevor Noah
South African born comedian Trevor Noah is well known for his satirical American late night talk show. His memoir Born a Crime recounts his childhood in a country transitioning from apartheid to a fragile democracy led by the black majority. Noah is mixed-race, with a white father and a black mother, making his existence a violation of the apartheid laws. Noah’s memoir honours his close relationship with his mother Patricia, who he credits as an inspiration and has played a large part in his success.
When choosing your texts, remember to follow the selection guidelines as outlined by the VCAA. If you want to explore your options, replace a removed title or are simply curious to see what titles will be listed in 2023, please keep reading.

It is important to keep in mind the themes that you are looking to explore in these units to see if they suit the school and most importantly your students.

We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirly Jackson explores the themes of family tragedy, social isolation and female rebellion against a patriarchal society. The 2020 Netflix adaptation of Shirley Jackson’s “The Haunting of Hill House” has seen renewed interest in her work, and this gothic mystery was her last novel.

A brilliant new collection of stories Tessa Hadley, Bad Dreams and Other Stories from the prize-winning author of The Past and The London Train, these enthralling but perturbing stories show the ordinary made extraordinary and how real events become mysterious and dreamlike.

Requiem for A Beast, an incredible multi-modal work is the stirring adventure of a boy’s journey through the Australian Outback. Themes explored include Aboriginal Australian history, fantasy and dreams. The featured music blends western classic music and traditional Bundjalung-Aboriginal songs and the beautiful illustrations are oil painting and coloured pencil encapsulating the colours of the bush.

South African born comedian Trevor Noah is well known for his satirical American late night talk show, The Daily Show. His memoir, Born a Crime recounts his childhood in a country transitioning from apartheid to a fragile democracy led by the black majority. Noah is mixed-race, with a white father and a black mother, making his existence a violation of the apartheid laws. Noah’s memoir honours his close relationship with his mother Patricia, who he credits as an inspiration and has played a large part in his success.

When choosing your texts, remember to follow the selection guidelines as outlined by the VCAA. If you want to explore your options, replace a title or are simply curious to see what titles will be listed in 2023, please see below.

VCAA ENGLISH & EAL LIST 2023

LIST 1

NOVELS

Achebe, Chinua, Things Fall Apart
Arnott, Robbie, Flames
Austen, Jane, Pride and Prejudice
Doerr, Anthony, All the Light We Cannot See
Erpenbeck, Jenny, Go, Went, Gone
We Have Always Lived in Castles (NEW FOR 2023)
Jordan, Toni, Nine Days
St John Mandel, Emily, Station Eleven

SHORT STORIES

Hadley, Tessa, Bad Dreams and Other Stories (NEW FOR 2023)
Munro, Alice, Runaway (All Stories)ne

PLAYS

Euripides, The Women of Troy
Shakespeare, William, Much Ado About Nothing
Harrison, Jane, Rainbow’s End (NEW FOR 2023)

POETRY/SONGS

Papertalk Greene, Charmaine and Kinsella, John, False Claims of Colonial Thieves
Wordsworth, William, William Wordsworth: Poems selected by Seamus Heaney

FILMS

Johnson, Stephen (director), High Ground (NEW FOR 2023)
Wilder, Billy (director), Sunset Boulevard (NEW FOR 2023)

OTHER

Ottley, Matt, Requiem for a Beast (NEW FOR 2023)

NON-FICTION

Noah, Trevor, Born a Crime (NEW FOR 2023)
Laveau-Harvie, Vicki, The Erratics

LIST 2

PAIR 1
Beneba Clarke, Maxine, The Hate Race
de Heer, Rolf, Charlie’s Country

PAIR 2
Frears, Stephen, The Queen
Malouf, David, Ransom

PAIR 3
Amsterdam, Stephen, Things We Didn’t See Coming
Ishiguro, Kazuo, Never Let Me Go

PAIR 4
Szubanski, Magda, Reckoning
Tóibín, Colm, Brooklyn

PAIR 5
Miller, Arthur, The Crucible
Ham, Rosalie, The Dressmaker

PAIR 6
Ziegler, Anna, Photograph 51
Franklin, Miles, My Brilliant Career

PAIR 7
Mailman, Debra and Enoch, Wesley, The 7 Stages of Grieving
D’Aguiar, Fred, The Longest Memory

PAIR 8
Yousafzai, Malala, with Lamb, Christina, I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban
Warchus, Matthew (director), Pride

The following titles which appear on the 2022 VCAA list ARE NOT listed for 2023:

Piper, Christine, After Darkness
Kennedy, Cate, Like a House on Fire
Rayson, Hannie, Extinction
Rear Window DVD
Stories We Tell DVD
Satrapi, Marjane, Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood
Capote, Truman, In Cold Blood

RESOURCES

Once you have selected your texts from lists 1 and 2, you may want to explore what study resources are available to assist students’ learning and comprehension of their set texts.

The Insight Comparison texts are excellent resources that will help students write comprehensive essays comparing the texts being studied in class. Insight have created a range of comparisons that suit the texts being compared from list 2.

Available ATAR Notes Guides for the following VCAA English List titles:

ATAR Notes Text Guide: All the Light We Cannot See by Anythony Doerr
ATAR Notes Text Guide: Woman of Troy by Euripides
ATAR Notes Text Guide: Things Fall Apart
ATAR Notes Text Guide: Station Eleven
ATAR Notes Text Guide: Much Ado About Nothing
ATAR Notes Text Guide: Selected Poems by Williams Wordswoth

Have a look at the following comparative resources from Insight:

Insight Comparisons: The Queen & Ransom
Insight Comparisons: The Crucible & The Dressmaker
Insight Comparisons: The Seven Stages of Grieving & The Longest Memory
Insight Comparisons: I am Malala & Pride
Insight Comparisons: The Hate Race & Charlie’s Country
Insight Comparisons: Things We Didn’t See Coming & Never Let Me Go
Insight Comparisons: Reckoning & Brooklyn
Insight Comparisons: Photograph 51 & My Brilliant Career

Insight Text Guides available for the following titles:

At this point in time the following information is provided to the best of our knowledge. This article will be updated as new information arises.

Get in touch!

If your school would like more information on these titles or would like any of the above mentioned titles invoiced or on approval please send an email to info@lilydalebooks.com.au.

The information in this article is cited from the Victorian Curriculum Assessment Authority.

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Keywords

VCAA English list 2023
VCAA EAL list 2023
VCAA Literature 2023
VCAA list
VCE English
VCE Literature
Victoria Curriculum Assessment Authority
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Poetry
Songs
Film
Fiction
Non-Fiction
Text List
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Study Design
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