Independent Australian children's book publisher Walter McVitty Books was founded in 1985 by Walter McVitty and his wife Lois McVitty when they launched their first title, John Pinkney's The Key and the Fountain.
'Their next two titles were by acclaimed children's author, Colin Theile, who gave them Seashores and Shadows (1985) and Farmer Schulz's Ducks (1986). Then came Duncan Ball's My Dog's a Scaredy Cat illustrated by Craig Smith, Colin Theile's Shatterbelt (1987), Penny Hill's Paperchaser (1987) and the ground-breaking John Marsden's So Much To Tell You (1987)' (Sheahan-Bright, p.230). The success of the press has been attributed to its high editorial and production standards as well as the fact that Walter McVitty Books were pre-sold to book clubs, and the principals regularly attended the Bologna children's book fair to sell overseas rights.
By 1997, Walter McVitty Books had published almost 60 books. Colin Thiele's memoir With Dew on My Boots (1997) was the last Walter McVitty Books title. (Sheahan-Bright, p. 250 and 382). Later in the same year, Walter McVitty Books was sold to Australian company Lothian Books because Lois and Walter McVitty did not wish to see their home-grown list 'become lost in the lists of multinationals'. (Walter McVitty cited in Sheahan-Bright, p. 251).
Source: Robyn Sheahan-Bright, 'To Market, To Market: The Development of the Australian Children's Publishing Industry', PhD thesis, Griffith University, 2004.
