BfK News: September 2011
AWARDS
Branford Boase Award 2011
Out of Shadows by Jason Wallace, edited by Charlie Sheppard and published by Andersen, has won the Branford Boase Award, which is given each year to the most outstanding work of fiction for children by a first time novelist.
Out of Shadows is set in Zimbabwe in the 1980s. The war is over, independence has been won and Robert Mugabe has come to power offering hope, land and freedom to black Africans. It is the end of the old way and the start of a promising new era. For Robert Jacklin, it’s all new: new continent, new country, new school. But, very quickly he learns that for some of his classmates, the sound of guns is still loud, and their battles rage on.
The Branford Boase Award was set up to encourage new writers and is given each year to the most promising work of fiction for children by a debut novelist. The Branford Boase Award also honours the editor of the winning title and highlights the importance of the editor in nurturing new talent. The judges of the 2011 Branford Boase Award were independent bookseller Isla Dawes of The Barnes Bookshop; Jake Hope, librarian and reviewer; Damian Kelleher, journalist and writer and Lucy Christopher, author of Stolen, winner of last year’s Branford Boase Award. The panel was chaired by Julia Eccleshare, children’s books editor of The Guardian.
The other titles on the 2011 shortlist were:
I Am the Blade by J.P. Buxton, edited by Beverley Birch (Hachette)
When I Was Joe by Keren David, edited by Maurice Lyon (Frances Lincoln)
Tall Story by Candy Gourlay, edited by Bella Pearson (David Fickling)
Unhooking the Moon by Gregory Hughes, edited by Roisin Heycock (Quercus)
The Crowfield Curse by Pat Walsh, edited by Imogen Cooper (Chicken House)
Jacqueline Wilson also presented prizes at the ceremony to six children, winners of, the Henrietta Branford Writing Competition, which encourages writing talent in under 18s. Further information on this can be found at www.branfordboaseaward.org.uk
The UKLA Children’s Book Awards
The winning book for the 3-11 years category was Birdsong by Ellie Sandall (Egmont). The judges felt it is a book ‘young readers will return to again and again’.
The other shortlisted books in this category were:
Clancy & Milly and the Very fine House by Libby Gleeson, ill. Freya Blackwood, (Little Hare)
Sparks by Ally Kennen (Marion Lloyd Books)
No Such Thing as Dragons by Philip Reeve (Scholastic)
Johnny Swanson by Eleanor Updale (David Fickling Books)
One Smart Fish by Chris Wormell (Jonathan Cape)
The winning book in the 12 to 16 years category was Out of Shadows by Jason Wallace (Andersen). The judges were ‘impressed by the sense of menace in the background and by the powerful, honest writing’.
The other shortlisted books in this category were:
Prisoner of the Inquisition by Theresa Breslin (Doubleday)
Where I Belong by Gillian Cross, (Oxford)
When I was Joe by Keren David (Frances Lincoln)
Tall Story by Candy Gourlay (David Fickling Books)
Scar Hill by Alan Temperley (Luath)
The UKLA Children’s Book Award is the only national book award selected by teachers from both the primary and secondary sectors.
Roald Dahl Funny Prize 2011 shortlists
The 2011 Roald Dahl Funny Prize shortlists are:
The Funniest Book for Children Aged Six and Under
Bedtime for Monsters by Ed Vere (Puffin)
Cats Ahoy! by Peter Bently, ill. Jim Field (Macmillan)
First Week at Cow School by Andy Cutbill, ill. Russell Ayto (HarperCollins)
Limelight Larry by Leigh Hodgkinson (Orchard)
Marshall Armstrong is New to Our School by David Mackintosh (HarperCollins)
A Place to Call Home by Alexis Deacon, ill. Viviane Schwarz (Walker)
The Funniest Book for Children Aged Seven to Fourteen
Animal Tales by Terry Jones, ill. Michael Foreman (Pavilion)
The Brilliant World of Tom Gates by Liz Pichon (Scholastic)
The Get Rich Quick Club by Rose Impey (Orchard)
Letters from an Alien Schoolboy by Ros Asquith (Piccadilly)
Penny Dreadful is a Magnet for Disaster by Joanna Nadin, ill. Jess Mikhail (Usborne)
The Wrong Pong by Steven Butler, ill. Chris Fisher (Puffin)
This year’s judging panel includes the author and illustrator team behind the ‘Horrid Henry’ books, Francesca Simon and Tony Ross; Twitter queen, author and comedic columnist Grace Dent and Yes Man author and journalist Danny Wallace. Roald Dahl Funny Prize founder and children’s author Michael Rosen chairs the panel.
The Prize was created by Michael Rosen in 2008 as part of his work as Children’s Laureate. This year, for the first time, the Prize will see schools involved in the judging process. Over 400 pupils from England have been selected to read the shortlisted titles, discuss with their classmates, and pick their favourite funny book in the relevant category for their age. Their votes will then be combined with the votes of the adult judging panel to find the two winners for 2011.
The SLA Information Book Award
The School Library Association has announced the very first shortlist in this exciting new prize for non-fiction. The first award ceremony will take place in November 2011 and is sponsored by Hachette Children’s Books and is supported by Peters Bookselling Services. In early September through to mid October schools will be invited to register with the voting website and children can choose their own ‘Children’s Choice’ favourites in each category, plus voting for an overall winner. Prizes will be awarded for the judges and Children’s Choice winners in each category, as well as for the overall winner(s).
The SLA Information Book Award will be an annual event and is a major development for information books, being designed to support school libraries and to reinforce the importance of non-fiction whilst highlighting the high standard of resources available.
The shortlisted titles for 2011 are:
Under 7s
Let’s Ride a Bike by Ruth Walton (Franklin Watts)
My Very First Art Book by Rosie Dickins and Sarah Courtland, ill. Gus Gordon (Usborne)
The Great Big Book of Families by Mary Hoffman, ill. Ros Asquith (Frances Lincoln)
7-12
Animals at the Edge by Jonathan and Marilyn Baille, (Franklin Watts)
How the World Works by Christiane Dorion, ill. Beverley Young (Templar)
The Murderous Maths of Everything by Kjartan Poskitt, ill. Rob Davis (Scholastic)
12-16
How to Make a Universe with 92 Ingredients by Adrian Dingle (Scholastic)
Stories about Gangs and Bullying by Michaela Miller (Franklin Watts)
The Life and Times of William Shakespeare by Kristen McDermott and Ari Berk (Templar)
The award is administered by the SLA. For more information contact Tricia Adams, Chief Executive of the School Library Association, tel: 01793 791787.
EVENT
Talk To Your Baby conference 2011
The National Literacy Trust’s 6th annual Talk To Your Baby conference takes place on 4 November at the Institute of Engineering and Technology, 2 Savoy Place, London.
Highlights conference will include high profile speakers sharing:
* the latest thinking on the EYFS and implications of the review
* what early intervention really means in practice
*cutting edge research on communication, speech and language
* 4,200 Health Visitors making a difference
*language for life
* the impact of home learning
*Sure Start Children’s Centres in focus
Further information from www.literacytrust.org.uk