BfK Briefing – January 2010

The Booktrust Teenage Prize

The 2009 winner is The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (Bloomsbury). The runners-up were Auslanderby Paul Dowswell (Bloomsbury), Ostrich Boys by Keith Gray (Definitions), The Ant Colonyby Jenny Valentine (HarperCollins), The Vanishing of Katharina Lindenby Helen Grant (Puffin) and The Ask and the Answerby Patrick Ness (Walker). The prize was launched in 2003 to recognise and celebrate the best contemporary writing for teenagers.

The Eleanor Farjeon Award

Congratulations to the 2009 winner, Moira Arthur, the recently retired Managing Director of the independent library supplier Peters Bookselling Services. Moira worked at Peters for 25 years specialising in children’s books. She was instrumental in developing it into the largest children’s library supplier in the UK. Her extensive knowledge of children’s books and libraries allowed her to develop the highly successful Romread, Peters Bookselling Services’ book review and order service on CD-Rom. In 2005 Romread was superseded by PetraNet and this gave customers, worldwide, access to the full range of children’s stockholding via the web.

Roald Dahl Funny Prize

For children aged six and under, the winning book was Mr Pusskins, Best in Show by Sam Lloyd (Orchard Books). For children aged seven to fourteen, the winning book was Grubtown Tales: Stinking Rich and Just Plain Stinkyby Philip Ardagh, illustrated by Jim Paillot (Faber and Faber).

The judging panel comprised Michael Rosen, the comedian Bill Bailey, last year’s winner author Andy Stanton, author Louise Rennison, and author and illustrator Mini Grey.

Royal Mail Awards

Author/illustrator John Fardell won the Early Years category (0-7) for his first picture book Manfred the Baddie(Quercus), first-time author Lari Don won the Younger Readers category (8-11) for First Aid for Fairies and Other Fabled Beasts(Floris Books)and best-selling teen fiction author Keith Gray won the Older Readers category (12-16) for Ostrich Boys(Definitions). They will each receive £3,000.

The Royal Mail Awards is Scotland’s largest children’s Book Prize which is voted for exclusively by Scottish children. Record numbers of children took part in the voting process this year, with nearly 30,000 children from all over Scotland actively involved in the awards compared to 18,000 in 2008 and just over 10,000 in 2007.

Educational Writers Award

Set up in 2008 by The Authors’ Licensing & Collecting Society (ALCS) and the Society of Authors, the award’s aim is to ‘celebrate educational writing that encourages students to read widely and build up their understanding of a subject beyond the requirements of exam specifications’.

The 2009 winner is The Gooey, Chewy, Rumble Plop Book by Steve Alton, ill. Nick Sharratt (The Bodley Head).