publication date: Feb 11, 2016
Fiction reflecting the concerns and issues of modern day children and teenagers is highlighted in the shortlists for the Waterstones Children’s Prize 2016, announced today, Thursday 11 February. While popular trends in children’s fiction such as fantasy, humour and adventure are all present and correct, it is notable how many authors are turning to reality “in all its shades of light and dark” for their inspiration.
Illustrated Books:
- Have You Seen Elephant? by David Barrow (Gecko Press)
- Cinderella’s Sister and the Big Bad Wolf by Lorraine Carey and Migy Blanco (Nosy Crow)
- Hector and Hummingbird by Nicholas John Frith (Alison Green Books)
- The Crow’s Tale by Naomi Howarth (Frances Lincoln)
- The Bear and the Piano by David Litchfield (Frances Lincoln)
- Super Happy Magic Forest by Matty Long (Oxford University Press)
Younger Fiction:
- Bird by Crystal Chan (Tamarind)
- Darkmouth by Shane Hegarty (HarperCollins)
- Witch Wars by Sibéal Pounder (Bloomsbury)
- The Blackthorn Key by Kevin Sands (Puffin)
- My Brother is a Superhero by David Solomons (Nosy Crow)
- The Mystery of the Clockwork Sparrow by Katherine Woodfine (Egmont)
Older Fiction:
- The Accident Season by Moïra Fowley-Doyle (Corgi)
- Seed by Lisa Heathfield (Electric Monkey)
- 13 Days of Midnight by Leo Hunt (Orchard)
- I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson (Walker Books)
- The Sin Eater’s Daughter by Melinda Salisbury (Scholastic)
- The Art of Being Normal by Lisa Williamson (David Fickling Books)
The winners of each category will be announced at an evening reception at Waterstones Piccadilly (London), Europe’s largest bookstore, on Thursday 17 March. The three category winners will then compete for the overall title of Waterstones Children’s Book of the Year 2016.
