Two
CATNIP Books Make Shortlist
A
total of eight titles have been shortlisted this year for the Little
Rebels Children’s Book Award for radical children’s fiction. The shortlist includes
two titles from the indie, “small but mighty children’s publisher”, Catnip
Publishing Ltd. It also includes two picture books which set out to explicitly challenge
gender stereotypes.
The Little Rebels Children’s Book Award is now in its
3rd year. The shortlisted 2014 titles include 4 chapter
books/fiction and 4 picture books; these are:
è Trouble on Cable Street London
è Girl With a White Dog by debut novelist
Anne Booth (Catnip Books), exploring prejudice and discrimination and linking
the Holocaust directly through to the present.
è Scarlet Ibis by Gill Lewis (Oxford University
Press) which examines the care system and attitudes towards mental health; this
is Gill Lewis’ 2nd appearance on the Little Rebels shortlist after Moon Bear was selected last year.
è Nadine Dreams of Home by Bernard Ashley (Barrington
Stoke), a dyslexia-friendly book about a child who has fled the Congolese civil
conflict to settle in the UK
è Shh! We Have a Plan by Chris Haughton (Walker Books);
a subtle picture book about kindness and friendship winning out over force and
enmity.
è Grandma by another debut author/illustrator, Jessica Shepherd
(Child’s Play); a child- friendly exploration of dementia.
è Made by Raffi by Craig Pomranz, illustrated by Margaret
Chamberlain (Janetta Otter-Barry Books/Frances Lincoln) about a boy who feels
different from the other boys at school.
è Pearl Power by Mel Elliott, published by newcomer indie, I
Love Mel (dis. Turnaround Publisher Services) about a little girl and her
encounters with gender inequality.
The Little Rebels Children’s Book Award recognises fiction
for ages 0-12 which promotes or celebrates social justice and equality. It is given
by the Alliance of Radical Booksellers (ARB) and is administered by specialist
children’s booksellers and 2015 ALMA Newcastle University ),
Wendy Cooling, (Bookstart co-founder & editor) and Elizabeth Laird
(children’s author) are meeting this month to discuss the shortlist.
Kerry
Mason, Co-Director of Letterbox Library, said of this year’s submissions: “The
award is really gathering momentum in its 3rd year. We’ve had
submissions from over 30 publishers and the final shortlist highlights some
wonderfully distinctive texts which will stir children to ponder big ideas such
as gender stereotypes, racism, conflict and mental health”.
Speaking about the award, Kim Reynolds, author of Radical Children’s Literature (Palgrave
MacMillan: 2010) said, “This prize focuses on books that help readers become
the kind of ‘little rebels’ who one day will catalyse social change rather than
carrying on in the same old ways regardless of the costs and consequences”.
The
winner of the Little Rebels Award will again be announced at The London Radical Bookfair and Alternative
Press Takeover. This year the event will take place on Saturday May 9th
at a brand new venue: a 5 storey Victorian warehouse based near Tower Bridge
