ACHUKAblog
Mr Bunny’s Chocolate Factory by Elys Dolan
The Big, Fat, Totally Bonkers Diary of Pig by Emer Stamp
Tom Gates: Epic Adventure (Kind Of) by Liz Pichon
The shortlists for the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize 2019 (announced today) are as follows:
Illustrated Books:
Younger Fiction:
Older Fiction:
Congratulations to all involved with the shortlisted titles.
The winners will be announced at an evening reception at Waterstones Piccadilly (London), Europe’s largest bookshop, on Thursday 21st March, 2019. The winner of each category will receive £2000, with the overall winner receiving an extra £3000. In the event that the prize is awarded to a partnership, then the prize money will be split equally between the joint winners.
First awarded in 2005, the Prize has evolved into one of the most prestigious accolades for children’s books in the UK. Now in its fifteenth year and with its shortlists exploring some highly topical subjects, the Prize shows its enduring relevance as a formidable platform for emerging talent.
Last year’s winner, The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, shot to the top of the bestseller charts after the announcement and saw an increase in sales of over 900% across the Waterstones estate.
Florentyna Martin, Waterstones Children’s Buyer says: “This year’s list showcases an exploration of wide topics including world-folklore, black history, mental health, refugees and the world around us, through dynamic forms of poetry, fables and sweeping fantasies. It is a truly enthralling time for children’s writing, and our booksellers have keenly chosen shortlists that they are inspired to share with readers and, in doing so, recognise the creators who will shape the future of children’s stories.”
James Daunt, Waterstones Managing Director says: “We are immensely proud of our Children’s Book Prize. It has chosen unfailingly wonderful books and in so doing propelled the careers of a succession of exceptional authors. Who knows how many might otherwise not have achieved such success? The Prize is the work of our booksellers and represents Waterstones at its very best.”
All the shortlisted titles will have “Shortlisted for the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize 2019” added to their listings entry over the next few days and we will be highlighting several of the titles during the six weeks leading up to the category and overall winners announcement on 21st March.
Previous Winners of the Prize are:
There’s no hiding the fact that, these days, ACHUKA takes a back seat to my portrait and fashion photography, but this evening’s PenguinRandomHouse 2019 preview reminded me why I shall always keep up my advocacy for children’s and YA publishing in the UK.
For me, the highlights of the event held at the Soho Hotel last night were the revamping of Ladybird, under the brilliant leadership of Shannon Cullen, and the appearance of Malorie Blackman, launching her return to the world of Noughts & Crosses.
Notable too were the onstage interview with Sabina Radeva, the creator of a picture book about Darwin’s Origin of the Species, which had its own origins in a crowdfunding campaign; and the climactic performance by a vocal ensemble from the West End cast of Dear Evan Hansen, a novelisation of which Penguin will publish this summer.
Not especially remarked upon during the presentation (unless I was snoozing) though surely a highlight of the year, will be the 50th anniversary Collectors’ Edition of The Very Hungry Caterpillar. To be fair, there were miniature celebratory cupcakes.
After a very brief keynote from MD Francesca Dow (“Stories for every child, everywhere”), Tania Vian-Smith, deputy Publicity Director, was the main compere for the evening and her opening words were in memory of John Burningham. A brand-new, posthumous Mr Gumpy adventure is scheduled for August. Mr Gumpy’s Rhino was finished and in production at the time of Burningham’s death.
A stunning highlight of Ladybird’s relaunch is the oversize Sensational Butterflies, a lavishly illustrated showcase from Ben Rothery, just out. A follow-up to this book, Hidden Planet, from the same illustrator, is due in the autumn.
I’ll also look out for The Big Book Of The UK by prodigious reviewer Imogen Russell Williams, illustrated by Louise Lockhart, coming from Ladybird in August.
PRH continue to call their middle-grade publishing category ‘Primary’, presumably to give it a UK rather than a US tagline. It remains to be seen whether John Boyne’s My Brother’s Name Is Jessica, in which the protagonists are teenagers, is truly for a Primary audience.
Last month saw the launch of Extraordinary Lives, a new biography series for 7+, with titles on Stephen Hawking, Michelle Obama and Malala Yousafzai. Six new subjects follow in the summer.
I really liked the enthusiasm with which US author Karen M. McManus talked about Two Can keep A Secret. a lead YA title (already published) from the author of One of Us Is Lying.
Crossfire, the new addition to Malorie Blackman’s Noughts & Crosses sequence publishes in July, picking up the story several years after the end of Double Cross, the fourth book in the series. The whole sequence is being rejacketed in keeping with the new title.
Two other YA titles of note are The Night Country, Melissa Albert’s sequel to The Hazel Wood [September] and Full Disclosure, described as ‘smart, funny, sex-positive YA’, from New Yorker Camryn Garrett [October].
Some more photos from the evening:
Guppy Books is a new children’s list announced last year and launched this month (February 2019) by Bella Pearson, previously publishing director at David Fickling Books.
The aim is to publish eight to ten fiction titles a year.
“Small and responsive, inclusive and communicative, the Guppy list will be supported by the very best freelancers in the business, in publicity, sales, marketing and design,” Pearson says on her website.
The longlist for the 2019 Branford Boase Award is announced today. This important award is celebrating its twentieth year. Set up in memory of author Henrietta Branford and her editor Wendy Boase, one of the founders of Walker Books, the Branford Boase Award is given annually to the author and editor of an outstanding debut novel for children and has highlighted many of the twenty-first century’s leading children’s authors at the start of their careers. Over its twenty year history winners and shortlisted authors have included Siobhan Dowd, Meg Rosoff, Mal Peet, Frank Cottrell Boyce and Patrick Ness as well as Frances Hardinge and Philip Reeve.
This year more than 40 books were submitted, twice as many as in its first year, and by two dozen different publishers; 20 have made it onto the longlist.
The House with Chicken Legs by Sophie Anderson, edited by Rebecca Hill and Becky Walker (Usborne)
Boy Underwater by Adam Baron, edited by Nick Lake and Sarah Hughes (HarperCollins)
The Train to Impossible Places by P.G. Bell, edited by Rebecca Hill and Becky Walker (Usborne)
Rosie Loves Jack by Mel Darbon, edited by Sarah Stewart (Usborne)
The Fandom by Anna Day, edited by Kesia Lupo (Chicken House)
Me Mam. Me Dad. Me by Malcolm Duffy, edited by Fiona Kennedy (Head of Zeus)
Twister by Juliette Forrest edited by Lauren Fortune (Scholastic)
Flight by Vanessa Harbour, edited by Janet Thomas (Firefly)
Brightstorm by Vashti Hardy, edited by Linas Alsenas (Scholastic)
The Goose Road by Rowena House, edited by Mara Bergman (Walker Books)
Pages & Co: Tilly and the Bookwanderers by Anna James, edited by Rachel Denwood and Sarah Hughes (HarperCollins)
The Mystery of the Colour Thief by Ewa Jozefkowicz, edited by Fiona Kennedy (Head of Zeus)
I Am Thunder by Muhammad Khan, edited by Lucy Pearse (Macmillan)
Orphan Monster Spy by Matt Killeen, edited by Sarah Stewart (Usborne)
The Boy at the Back of the Class by Onjali Q Raúf, edited by Lena McCauley (Orion Children’s Books)
On a Scale of One to Ten by Ceylan Scott edited by Rachel Leyshon (Chicken House)
Outwalkers by Fiona Shaw, edited by Bella Pearson and Anthony Hinton (David Fickling Books)
Sunflowers in February by Phyllida Shrimpton, edited Emma Matthewson (Hot Key)
Run Riot by Nikesh Shukla, edited by Emma Goldhawk (Hodder Children’s Books)
The Fox Girl and the White Gazelle by Victoria Williamson, edited by Jennie Skinner and Sally Polson (Floris Books)
This year’s award judges are
As usual, the panel is chaired by Julia Eccleshare, children’s director of the Hay Festival
The Branford Boase Award is sponsored by Walker Books who have pledged new funding to ensure its future. Jane Winterbotham, publishing director said: “Walker Books is delighted to continue its support for the Branford Boase Award. We hugely value the contribution the award has made in encouraging and highlighting new writing talent, as well as in recognising the role played by the editor in supporting writers at the start of their career. The award is an inspiring memorial to the work of gifted novelist Henrietta Branford and Walker’s founding editor, Wendy Boase, in whose names the award was established 20 years ago.”
The shortlist for the Award will be announced on 1st May 2019. The winner will be announced on 3rd July at a ceremony in London.
Walker Books have published a new edition of Henrietta Branford’s multi-award-winning book Fire, Bed and Bone. The story of the Peasants’ Revolt seen through the eyes of an old hunting dog, it gives a long-ago past an immediacy and freshness as it tells of working people’s struggle for survival in the face of cruelty by landlords and the church. Branford’s last book, it won the Guardian prize, a Smarties Award and was highly commended for the Carnegie Medal.
Following their recent successful round of crowdfunding, Knights Of are looking to hire a full-time bookseller for their brand-new, Brixton based, inclusive bookshop.
The person appointed will be the first point of contact for pop-up event partners – co-ordinating and liaising with partners and bookshops to host inclusive events across the country.
Read more >>> http://knightsof.media/we-are-hiring/
In this recommended episode of the Southbank Centre podcast,, Harriet Fitch Little is joined by paralympian, TV presenter and children’s author Ade Adepitan, and children’s book critic Imogen Russell Williams to talk about the lack of diversity in children’s literature.
Also, children’s author and illustrator Nadine Kaadan answered the burning question: how do you create a character for children?
The Guardian has reported the death of John Burningham. Links to obituaries will follow separately…
John Burningham, the children’s author and illustrator behind some of the 20th century’s most enduring children’s books, has died at the age of 82.
The writer and artist died on Friday after contracting pneumonia, his literary agent confirmed on Monday.
