The Week Junior Book Awards Crowns The 2023 Winners

Children's magazine The Week Junior tonight announced the nine winners of their inaugural children’s book awards The Week Junior Book Awards 2023, sponsored by Bookily from National Book Tokens and in partnership with The Bookseller and World Book Day, at a ceremony at London’s County Hall.

Guests from across the UK children’s publishing industry came together to applaud the uplifting, enriching, and life-enhancing power of books to change children’s lives, and the talented people who create them.

The inaugural awards were chaired by Editorial Director of The Week Junior, Anna Bassi, who said: “Our wonderful – and thoroughly deserving – winning titles represent a broad and fascinating spectrum of topics, genres and voices, but what they all have in common is their absolute power to captivate, entertain and inform young readers. The judges were unanimous in their decisions and I feel privileged to celebrate the success of the authors, illustrators and publishers whose brilliant books bring such pleasure to children, and help form a love of reading that will have benefits for the rest of their lives.”

Managing Editor of The Bookseller, Philip Jones, said: “We are delighted with the winners at these inaugural children’s book awards, organised so brilliantly by The Week Junior. This is bold, diverse, and wonderfully rich storytelling backed by brilliant, striking design and illustration. Our congratulations to all the winners and everyone involved in bringing these fantastic awards forwards, they are hugely needed.”

LoveReading4Kids MD Deborah Maclaren was on the shortlisting committee and a judge of the Older Children's Fiction category. She commented: "What a pleasure it has been to be involved. The quality of children's literature being published today is outstanding and the quantity of the discussion and debate exemplified that. Bravo to The Week Junior for creating these awards and shining a light on the power and the joy of children's books.

It's critical that we get the right books into the right hands, engage and entertain children and help them find the book that makes them a lifelong reader. Here at LoveReading4Kids we are united with The Week Junior in that and were delighted to partner with them for these Awards as their official retailer."

Science, animals and the environment were at the heart of a number of the winning titles, including Audio Adventures: Natural Wonders of the World (Ladybird), written by Sidra Ansari and brilliantly narrated by actor Ben Bailey-Smith. The book takes listeners on a sound-filled journey through the natural world and beat stiff competition including comedian Richard Ayoade’s The Book That No One Wanted to Read, to win Children’s Audiobook of the Year. The judges described it as “exceptional” and a great example of how publishers should embrace audio.

Anita Ganeri, the critically acclaimed author of the Horrible Geography series, won the Older Non-Fiction award with Real-Life Dragons and Their Stories of Survival. The title explores the fascinating stories of ten real-life dragons and the myths and legends surrounding them.

Meanwhile Rob Lloyd Jones’s 24 Hours In Space won Children’s Book of the Year: STEM (in association with The Week Junior Science+Nature magazine).

Mystery and adventure stories proved popular, with winners including Serena Patel’s Anisha, Accidental Detective: Holiday Adventure, which won the Younger Fiction category.

Author J. T. Williams won the exciting Children’s Book of the Year: Breakthrough, supported by World Book Day, with The Lizzie and Belle Mysteries: Drama and Danger, the first in a new adventure series set in the 18th century, featuring characters inspired by real Black British historical figures.

The award for Older Fiction went to Tyger, the “triumph of a novel” by SF Said and illustrated by Dave McKean.

Author and illustrator Aoife Dooley won Children’s Illustrated Book of the Year for Frankie’s World, a graphic novel starring an autistic protagonist. Judges praised the book’s “engaging, accessible illustrations and really welcome message about being yourself”.

Focussing on mental health, a vital topic in children’s publishing, The Extraordinary Book That Makes You Feel Happy by Poppy O’Neill was awarded Children’s Book of the Year: Younger Non-Fiction (6-9 year-olds). This innovative book includes a foreword from mindfulness expert Wynne Kinder, and details projects, ideas and activities to help children feel positive, confident, focused, calm and included.

The Week Junior invited readers to help choose the Children’s Book Cover of the Year. Thousands of kids cast their votes online, and Rob Biddulph’s Peanut Jones and the Twelve Portals was propelled into first place. The Week Junior’s Art Director, Dave Kelsall, described the book as: “A highly imaginative, colourful and ‘in-your-face’ cover that grabs your attention immediately”.

The awards were set up at the start of 2023, to address the lack of critical discourse around children’s literature and shine a light on the brilliant work of both new and established children’s authors.

Audiences will have the chance to see some of the award winners, including the Breakthrough winner, J. T. Williams, and Younger Fiction winner Serena Patel at The Week Junior Book Festival, which will take place during the school half term on 24th October in London. They will be joined by best-selling authors, such as Michael Morpurgo, Michael Rosen and Jenny Pearson.