06.11.18
Winner of Radical Children’s Fiction Prize Clinches Book Deal and Carnegie Nomination
Zanib Mian (left) with Little Rebels Judge, Catherine Johnson, at the London Radical Book Fair, June 2018
The winner of the Little Rebels Award for Radical Children’s Fiction has been nominated for the 2019 Carnegie Medal. Zanib Mian’s The Muslims was published by her own indie publishing company, Sweet Apple Books, in October 2017. Since winning the Little Rebels Award, Zanib Mian has gone on to secure a three-book-deal with Hachette Children’s Group.
Speaking about the success of The Muslims, Zanib Mian said, “Winning the Little Rebels Award catapulted me to places I never dreamt of getting to, in my career! Thanks to the spotlight the award brought – and of course, the support from the amazing panel of judges and the organisers – my book found its way into the hands of people who may not have otherwise discovered it, which led to me signing an agent, securing a 3-book deal with Hachette Children’s Group, being shortlisted for the UKLA awards and nominated for the 2019 Carnegie Medal!”
Submissions for the 2019 Little Rebels Award are now open. The 2019 judges are: award-winning YA author, Patrice Lawrence; B.J.Epstein, Senior Lecturer at the University of East Anglia; Darren Chetty, Teaching Fellow at University College London; Emily Drabble, Head of Children’s Book Promotions/Prizes at BookTrust. This year, the judges will be joined by Shaun Dellenty, Former Deputy Head, trainer in LGBT+ inclusive education and author of forthcoming Celebrating Difference: A whole-school approach to LGBT+ inclusion (Bloomsbury May 2019).
Shaun Dellenty said, “I am looking forward to being a Little Rebels judge! Ten years of work in LGBT+ inclusion in education has proved the urgent need for a wide range of representative and inclusive children’s fiction that promotes social justice, equality and compassion for human diversity. We must nurture schools in which young people can bring curiosity to their own responses and reactions to diversity; high-quality texts are a vital stimulus for these potentially life changing conversations.”
The Little Rebels Award celebrates children’s books for readers age 0-12 which promote social equality and social justice. The prize is administered by booksellers Letterbox Library and Housmans Bookshop on behalf of the Alliance of Radical Booksellers. Publishers are invited to submit relevant books first published in 2018. Full submission guidelines can be found at http://www.littlerebelsaward.org. The closing date for nominations is January 30th 2019. The shortlist will be announced in April 2019 with the wining announcement in early July.
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ARCHIVE
01.11.17
A Shake Up of Judges for the Little Rebels Award for Radical Children’s Fiction
The prize for the children’s book which best celebrates social justice is back for its 6th year-with a shake up of the judging panel! Three new judges will be joining the Little Rebels Children’s Book Award: Patrice Lawrence, Emily Drabble and Darren Chetty. This year, the award will be administered by two radical booksellers, Housmans Bookshop and Letterbox Library, on behalf of the Alliance of Radical Booksellers (ARB). Submissions are now open.
Speaking about her appointment, prize-winning YA author, Patrice Lawrence, said, “I am looking forward to being a Little Rebels judge because a story can tilt my world. A picture can open a trove of new ideas for me. I can’t wait to be challenged and provoked by the books coming my way.” Emily Drabble, Head of Children’s Book Promotions/Prizes at BookTrust (formerly co-editor of the Guardian children’s book site) said, “I’m totally passionate about children getting their hands on the best books, books that make them think, and books that will make a difference to the world – and that’s exactly what this award is all about.” Darren Chetty, Teaching Fellow at UCL and contributor to The Good Immigrant and A Change is Gonna Come added, “I’m delighted to be a Little Rebels judge…I know as a reader and a teacher how stories can open up all manner of possibilities, and how they provide solace, escapism and new connections with the world.”
The new judges will be joining award-winning author and scriptwriter, Catherine Johnson, now in her 3rd year of judging, and B.J.Epstein, Senior Lecturer at the University of East Anglia and author of Are the Kids All Right? The Representation of LGBTQ Characters and Young Adults’ Literature.
Publishers are now being invited to submit children’s fiction for readers aged 0-12 which promote social justice and which were first published in 2017. Full submission guidelines can be found at littlerebels.org. The closing date for nominations is January 15th 2018.
The Little Rebels Children’s Book Award is a sister award to the Bread & Roses Award for adult non-fiction. Both are the inspiration of the Alliance of Radical Booksellers, a network of radical booksellers in the UK. Prizes will be presented at the 6th London Radical Bookfair on Saturday June 2nd 2018.
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04.05.2017
The shortlist for the 2017 Little Rebels Award has been revealed. Now in its fifth year, the award recognises radical children’s fiction for readers aged 0-12.
Andrea Beatty and David Roberts are shortlisted for the second time, with Ada Twist, Scientist (Abrams & Chronicle). They join a six-strong shortlist which also includes Kiran Milwood Hargrave’s debut, The Girl of Ink and Stars (Chicken House).
R. Gemin’s Sweet Pizza (Nosy Crow), Emily Gravett’s Tidy (Macmillan/Two Hoots), Richard O’Neill, Katharine Quarmby and Hannah Tolson’s Ossiri and the Bala Mengro (Child’s Play), and Bethan Woollvin’s Little Red (Macmillan/Two Hoots) complete the shortlist.
The Little Rebels Award recognises children’s fiction which promotes social justice or social equality, challenges stereotypes or is informed by anti-discriminatory concerns. It is given by the Alliance of Radical Booksellers (ARB), and this year is administered by radical bookshop Housmans.
Catherine Barter, co-manager of Housmans Bookshop and this year’s prize co-ordinator, said: ‘Right now, as radical booksellers, we’ve never experienced a greater demand for children’s books that tackle the social and environmental injustices of our time. There’s a real need for it. So we’re thrilled with this shortlist: stories of community solidarity, scientific curiosity and natural rewilding, explorations of power, freedom and creativity – plus a fairytale with a feminist twist. These are rich, original, and often witty books which put the courage and imagination of children front and centre. What could be more important?’
The Little Rebels winner will be announced alongside the ARB’s sister prize for adult radical publishing, the Bread & Roses Award, on June 25th at the London Radical Bookfair. The judges are Catherine Johnson, Wendy Cooling and B. J. Epstein.
Full list of shortlisted titles:
- Ada Twist, Scientist by Andrea Beatty, illustrated by David Roberts (Abrams & Chronicle)
A picture book starring a budding young scientist who isn’t afraid of asking ‘Why?’
- The Girl of Ink and Stars by Kiran Milwood Hargrave (Chicken House)
A novel with a courageous heroine who dares to defy the dictatorial Governor of her island.
- Ossiri and the Bala Mengro by Richard O’Neill and Katharine Quarmby, illustrated by Hannah Tolson (Child’s Play)
The tale of a Traveller girl who creates her own musical instrument, and learns to play from the heart and not for reward, from Romani storyteller Richard O’Neill and author Katharine Quarmby.
- Tidy by Emily Gravett (Macmillan/Two Hoots)
A rhyming woodland picture book with a subtle message about environmental preservation.
- Little Red by Bethan Woollvin (Macmillan/Two Hoots)
A witty, visually arresting and playfully defiant retelling of traditional tale.
- Sweet Pizza by G. R. Gemin (Nosy Crow)
This rich history of Italian immigrants in Wales forms the backbone of this timely story about community spirit.
For all queries, please contact:
Catherine Barter, Housmans Bookshop
email: catherine@housmans.com
Tel: 020 7837 4473
More Information and Links
The Little Rebels Children’s Book Award
The Alliance of Radical Booksellers
The London Radical Bookfair
www.londonradicalbookfair.wordpress.com
04.01.16 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Nominations Open for the Little Rebels Award for Radical Children’s Fiction
Nominations for the Little Rebels Children’s Book Award 2017 are now open.
Guest Judges: Wendy Cooling, B.J. Epstein, Catherine Johnson
Prize to be awarded at the London Radical Bookfair, 24th June 2017.
The Alliance of Radical Booksellers (ARB) is delighted to announce that the Little Rebels Children’s Book Award for radical children’s fiction is back for its fifth year.
The Little Rebels Award recognises children’s fiction (for readers aged 0-12) which promotes social justice or social equality, challenges stereotypes or is informed by anti-discriminatory concerns.
Previous winners include:
Alexis Deacon and Viviane Schwarz, I Am Henry Finch (Walker Books, 2015)
Gill Lewis, Scarlet Ibis (Oxford University Press, 2014)
Gillian Cross, After Tomorrow (Oxford University Press, 2013)
Sarah Garland, Azzi In Between (Frances Lincoln, 2012)
Guest Judges
This year’s guest judges:
Wendy Cooling is an adviser and consultant on children’s literature with an extensive and varied career in the field; she founded Bookstart in 1992, in 2006 she was awarded the Eleanor Farjeon Award for a lifetime spent promoting children’s literature.
Catherine Johnson is the author of 14 novels for children and young adults, including Sawbones, winner of the Young Quills Best Historical Fiction prize, and, most recently, The Curious Case of the Lady Caraboo.
B.J. Epstein is a senior lecturer in literature and public engagement at the University of East Anglia, where she specialises in children’s literature. She is the author of Are the Kids All Right? The Representation of LGBTQ Characters in Children’s and Young Adult Lit and Translating Expressive Language in Children’s Literature.
Award ceremony and prize money
The prize will be awarded at the London Radical Bookfair, to be held on Saturday 24th June 2017 in the Great Hall at Goldsmiths University, London.
There is one prize of £500 to the winning title, generously funded by the General Federation of Trade Unions. The prize is run in conjunction with the ARB’s prize for adult books, The Bread and Roses Award for Radical Publishing.
Submissions
For full submissions criteria and procedure, please visit the Little Rebels website: https://littlerebels.org/submitting-a-book/
All submissions must have been physically published within the UK between Jan 1st and Dec 31st 2016. The author(s) or, in the case of picture books, either the author or illustrator, must be primarily resident in the UK.
Submissions must be received by Monday 6th February.
For all queries, please contact:
Catherine Barter, Housmans Bookshop
email: catherine@housmans.com
Tel: 020 7837 4473
More Information and Links
The Little Rebels Children’s Book Award
The Alliance of Radical Booksellers
The London Radical Bookfair
www.londonradicalbookfair.wordpress.com
11.11.2014 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Nominations Open for the Little Rebels Award for Radical Children’s Fiction
The Alliance of Radical Booksellers (ARB) is delighted to announce that the Little Rebels Children’s Book Award for radical children’s fiction is back for its 3rd year. The award is given by the Alliance of Radical Booksellers (ARB) and is administered by specialist children’s booksellers, Letterbox Library.
The Little Rebels Award recognises children’s fiction (for readers aged 0-12) which was first published in 2014 and which promotes social justice or social equality or challenges stereotypes or is informed by anti-discriminatory concerns. The award is administered by the 31-year-old, not-for-profit children’s booksellers, Letterbox Library, who were recently nominated by IBBY UK for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award for their work in “championing diversity in children’s literature”.
Fen Coles, Director of Letterbox Library said, “This year we’ve seen James Dawson talk about inclusion for the Patrick Hardy lecture, IBBY UK holding a conference on ‘Belonging’, the Guardian’s lgbt and diversity weeks, Inclusive Minds’ #everybodyin campaign and our Children’s Laureate’s repeated, measured words about the need for more diversity in children’s books. This couldn’t be a more judicious time for the Little Rebels Children’s Book Award; the children’s book world seems to be hungry for a little more equality and a little more ‘justice’ and so we welcome publishers’ nominations for those books which they think will make tiny steps or even leaps towards this”. Full submission guidelines can be found at http://www.littlerebelsaward.wordpress.com The closing date for nominations is January 12th 2015.
When asked for their response to being shortlisted for Little Rebels 2014, Gill Lewis replied, “thrilled”, Deborah Chancellor said, “I don’t feel I’m rebellious enough” and Geraldine McCaughrean answered, “I am a total conformist”. Meantime, Gillian Cross, who won the 2014 award for her dystopian narrative, After Tomorrow, said “I’m honoured and delighted. We don’t write tracts and we don’t write propaganda when we write fiction. But, we can’t help writing about things which engage with who we are and how we live in the world”.
The Little Rebels Children’s Book Award is a sister award to Bread & Roses, which recognises radical adult non-fiction published in the UK. Both awards are the inspiration of the Alliance of Radical Booksellers, a network of radical booksellers in the UK. Both prizes will be presented at the 3rd London Radical Bookfair on Saturday May 9th 2015, Bishopsgate Institute, London.
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Contact:
Fen Coles- Letterbox Library
email: info@letterboxlibrary.com
Tel: 020 8534 7502
Further Information
About Letterbox Library
Letterbox Library is a 31-year-old, not-for-profit, children’s booksellers and social enterprise. They specialise in children’s books which celebrate diversity, equality & inclusion. Further information can be found at http://www.letterboxlibrary.com
About the Alliance of Radical Booksellers (ARB)
The ARB is a supportive community for the UK’s radical booksellers; www.radicalbooksellers.co.uk. Members of the ARB include Housmans Bookshop, Gay’s The Word, News from Nowhere, Freedom Bookshop and Letterbox Library. The ARB runs the Bread & Roses Award for Radical Publishing, administered by Housmans Bookshop. This independent prize for adult non-fiction ran for the first time in 2011. For more information go to www.bread-and-roses.co.uk .
About the Little Rebels Children’s Book Award
Full details of the award, including the shortlist and prize giving ceremony for the previous year, can be found at: www.littlerebelsaward.wordpress.com .
About the London Radical Bookfair
Hosted by the ARB, this fair was run for the first time on May 11th 2013. Last year, the fair migrated to the Bishopsgate Institute and was run in partnership with the Alternative Press Takeover 2014. – full details at: www.londonradicalbookfair.com .
Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award
ALMA aims “to promote interest in children’s and young adult literature around the world”.
It is administered by the Swedish Arts Council. For more information on the award, go to www.alma.se/en/
Significant dates
The closing date for nominations for the Little Rebels Award is Jan 12th 2015; the shortlist will be announced in April 2015; the winner will be announced at the ARB’s London Radical Bookfair on Saturday May 9th 2015.
For archived Press Releases, skip on over to the next page…:
The Little Rebels Children’s Book Award 