Bisto Book of the Year

Siobhan Dowd has won the Bisto Children’s Book of the Year for her novel Bog Child (David Fickling). Dowd died in August 2007, aged just 47, after a long illness. The award was accepted on her behalf by her sister, Oona Emerson, who was presented with the Bisto Children’s Book of the Year Trophy and a cheque for €10,000. The money will be donated to The Siobhan Dowd Trust, established to help disadvantaged children to improve their reading skills and experience the joy of reading. Dowd won the same prize last year, with The London Eye Mystery. A look at her books will be published in the summer edition of Carousel.