Longlist for the 2018 Klaus Flugge Prize

Fifteen debut picture books are in the running for the 2018 Klaus Flugge Prize. Now in its third year the prize was set up to honour publisher Klaus Flugge, founder of Andersen Press and a supremely influential figure in picture books.

This year more than fifty books were submitted for consideration from eleven different publishers.

The judges for the 2018 prize are award-winning illustrator and Waterstones Children’s Laureate, Lauren Child; leading designer and art director Goldy Broad; Charlotte Colwill, head of children’s books at Foyles; and last year’s winner Francesca Sanna. The panel will be chaired by Julia Eccleshare, director of the children’s programme of the Hay Festival.

Julia Eccleshare said: ‘We are very pleased that this year’s Klaus Flugge Prize attracted the highest number of entries yet and delighted to be putting these fifteen highly talented illustrators into the spotlight. From dragons to paper boats, a public swimming pool to Mars, the range of subjects and settings is hugely varied; techniques used to tell the different stories on our longlist range too from watercolour, lino-cut and two-colour screen printing to collage and skilful use of Photoshop. Klaus Flugge has always sought out and published illustrators from across the world and this is reflected in our longlist. Alongside illustrators born and based in the UK are those from the US, South Africa, Argentina, Japan, Russia and Bulgaria and it is fitting that this is such an international line up of artists.’

The longlist in full:

Jabari Jumps, Gaia Cornwall (Walker)

Leaf, Sandra Dieckmann (Flying Eye)

Cranky Caterpillar, Richard Graham (Thames& Hudson)

Beyond the Fence, Maria Gulemetova (Child’s Play)

Woolf, Patrick Latimer, written by Alex Latimer (Pavilion)

The Night Box, Ashling Lindsay, written by Louise Greig (Egmont)

My Name is Not Refugee, Kate Milner (Barrington Stoke)

Curiosity: The Story of a Mars Rover, Markus Motum (Walker Studio)

Hortense and the Shadow, Lauren O’Hara, written by Natalia O’Hara (Puffin)

The Real Boat, Victoria Semykina, written by Marina Aromshtam (Templar)

Fergal is Fuming, Robert Starling (Andersen Press)

Big Hid, Roisin Swales (Flying Eye)

Magnificent Birds, Narisa Togo (Walker Studio)

Big Box, Little Box, Edward Underwood (Bloomsbury)

Dino, Diego Vaisberg (Templar)

The shortlist will be announced on 16 May 2018 live at a special evening event at Foyles Charing Cross Road and the winner will be revealed on 12 September 2018.