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Innovative and fearless the judges call her - the founder of publishing success story Gecko Press, Julia Marshall, has won the lifetime achievement 2021 Storylines Margaret Mahy Medal for her contribution to New Zealand children's literature. It's 15 years since she started Gecko Press in Wellington, specialising in identifying top shelf international children's books that hadn't yet been translated into English. Among the New Zealand titles is Joy Cowley's popular Snake and Lizard. She's also President of the Publishers Association of New Zealand and part of a Copyright Working Group set up to protect the rights of New Zealand's writers and illustrators. Julia's also a firm believer that children don't need to be shielded from difficult truths and strong emotions. She'll deliver her 2021 Storylines Margaret Mahy Medal lecture on the 28th of March.
