The Guardian Children's Fiction Prize or Guardian Award was a literary award that annually recognised one fiction book written for children or young adults (at least age eight) and published in the United Kingdom. It was conferred upon the author of the book by The Guardian newspaper, which established it in 1965 and inaugurated it in . It was a lifetime award in that previous winners were not eligible. At least from 2000 the prize was £1,500. The prize was apparently discontinued after , though no formal announcement appears to have been made.
History The prize was established in 1965 as the "only children's book award made to writers by their fellow authors"(2005 shortlist) and inaugurated by the 1967 award to Leon Garfield for Devil in the Fog (Constable & Co., 1966). Through the 2000 prize, announced 28 March, it recognised one book published in the UK during the preceding calendar year.
Between the 1999/2000 and 2000/2001 cycles, the prize schedule was rearranged to culminate in October during Booktrust Children's Book Week. "[F]iction for children aged seven and above, published in the UK between January 2000 and September 2001" (21 months) was eligible for the 2001 prize. Publishers were required to submit no more than ten entries by April 30.
At the same time, a summer program was inaugurated, using the newspaper's educational website and featuring a longlist announced in July. The program initially comprised merely an opportunity to vote for longlist favourites, comments by the judges to guide summer reading, and advice on "how to build a classic library of children's books".(2001 longlist) A version of the ongoing Young Critics contest was inaugurated in 2002 and the program has expanded since then to include online discussion and author interviews and appearances. Meanwhile, announcement of the longlist has advanced to late May or early June and announcement of the winner has retreated to November.
Conditions The shortlist of no more than four books and the winner were selected by three children's fiction writers, almost always including the latest winner. The Guardian described the prize as the only children's book award winner selected by peers. The newspaper's children's book editor Julia Eccleshare participated (from 2000 to 2016) in selection of the longlist and thereafter chaired the panel of final judges.
In years to 2016, a longlist of eight books was announced in May or June, a shortlist of no more than four announced in September, and a single winner. The longlist was the foundation for a summer program of reading, reviewing, and discussion.
The U.K. publishers of eligible books entered them for the prize with a fee, although the chair may call for submission. The publication year is August to July of the current year, but May, June, and July books must be submitted in advance. Books originally published in another language were eligible in English translation for five years.
Routinely, eligible books were entered for the prize by their UK publishers, as many as ten books each (2000) although chair Eccleshare also called for particular submissions.
Honorees Through 2016, 52 prizes were awarded in 49 years covering 1966 to mid-2015 publications. There were co-winners in 1992 and 1996.
1960s +Guardian Children's Fiction Prize winners, 1967-1969YearAuthorTitlePublisherResult1967Devil-in-the-FogConstableWinner1968CollinsWinner1969Jonathan CapeWinnerRunner-up
1970s +Guardian Children's Fiction Prize winners, 1970-1979YearAuthorTitlePublisherResult1970 (1967–1969)OxfordWinner1971Hamish HamiltonWinner1972CollinsWinner1973Watership DownRex CollingsWinner1974LongmanWinner1975Gran at CoalgateOxfordWinnerRunner-up1976GollanczWinner1977GollanczWinner1978Charmed LifeMacmillanWinner1979Conrad's WarBlackieWinner
1980s +Guardian Children's Fiction Prize winners and finalists, 1980-1989YearAuthorTitlePublisherResult1980MacmillanWinnerRunner-up1981OxfordWinner1982Goodnight Mr. TomKestrelWinner1983HeinemannWinnerRunner-up1984(US title: Babe, the Gallant Pig)GollanczWinnerPuffinRunner-up1985What is the TruthFaberWinner1986Henry's LegViking KestrelWinner1987Viking KestrelWinnerMadame DoubtfirePuffinRunner-up1988The RunawaysHutchinsonWinner1989OxfordWinner
1990s +Guardian Children's Fiction Prize winners and finalists, 1990-1999YearAuthorTitlePublisherResultRef.1990Goggle-EyesHamish HamiltonWinner1991MethuenWinnerWolfOxfordFinalist1992Paper FacesOxfordWinnerGollanczWinnerFinalist1993Low TideJonathan CapeWinnerFinalist1994Julia MacRaeWinnerFinalist1995MapHeadWalker BooksWinner1996MacmillanWinnerNorthern Lights (US title, The Golden Compass)Scholastic UKWinnerJonathan CapeFinalistNo Turning BackFinalistLove In CyberiaFinalist1997JunkPenguinWinnerMammothFinalistCreepersFinalistJohnny and the BombFinalist1998Fire, Bed, and BoneWalker BooksWinnerHarry Potter and the Philosopher's StoneBloomsburyFinalistSecret SongsHodder Children's BooksFinalist1999Scholastic UKWinnerHarry Potter and the Chamber of SecretsBloomsburyFinalist
2000s Until 2000, books published in the previous year were eligible for the award, and the award included a winner and a shortlist. In 2001, the award cycle was rescheduled to conclude in the fall rather than the spring. At the same time, a longlist of seven books was instituted with a shortlist of four to six books. +Guardian Children's Fiction Prize winners and finalists, 2000-2009YearAuthorTitlePublisherMin. AgeResultRef.2000TransworldWinner"Winner of the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize 2000" . The Guardian 28 March 2000. 2012–.Kit's WildernessHodder Children's BooksShortlistLittle SoldierOrchardShortlistKing of ShadowsBodley HeadShortlistScholasticShortlistHarry Potter and the Prisoner of AzkabanBloomsburyShortlist2001OrionWinnerMy Brother's GhostPuffin9ShortlistWitch ChildBloomsbury11ShortlistRaspberries on the YangtzeSimon & Schuster11ShortlistTroyDavid Fickling/Scholastic11LonglistGirl in RedOrion11LonglistJourney to the River SeaMacmillan10Longlist24 HoursCollinsLonglistHeathrow NightsHodder12LonglistPuffinLonglist2002Thursday's ChildWalker Books12WinnerWarehouseRed Fox13ShortlistJake's TowerHeinemann, MacMillan11ShortlistDavid Fickling12ShortlistDoubleday, Transworld11ShortlistOrion12ShortlistRevenge HouseOrchardLonglistExodusMacmillanLonglistGreen BoyBodley HeadLonglist2003Jonathan Cape, David Fickling12WinnerHodder10ShortlistLucasChicken House12ShortlistMacmillan11ShortlistWhere in the WorldLittle Hare9LonglistMalarkeyRed Fox13LonglistOrion10LonglistBad AliceHodder & Stoughton10Longlist2004How I Live NowPuffin14WinnerMillionsMacmillan9ShortlistNo Shame, No FearWalker Books10ShortlistLast Train from KummersdorfFaber11ShortlistKissing the RainChicken House13LonglistMurkmereHodder10LonglistUseful IdiotsDavid Fickling13LonglistPrivate PeacefulCollins10Longlist2005Bodley Head11WinnerOxford10ShortlistMacmillan11ShortlistGroundwood Books, 2000; Usborne10ShortlistCandyChicken House13LonglistWolf BrotherOrion9LonglistPuffin9LonglistBrind and the Dogs of WarPuffin10Longlist2006Scholastic UKWinnerBlown AwaySimon & Schuster13ShortlistFramedMacmillan11ShortlistFly by NightMacmillan11ShortlistClayHodder12LonglistDoubleday12LonglistPenguin8-11LonglistUsborne10Longlist2007Finding Violet ParkHarperCollins12WinnerBloomsbury11ShortlistOxford10ShortlistMr Gum and the Biscuit BillionaireEgmont7ShortlistPuffin8LonglistStoneheartHodder10LonglistFearlessWalker Books12LonglistWalker Books12Longlist2008Walker Books13WinnerCosmicMacmillan9ShortlistBog ChildDavid Fickling13ShortlistBefore I DieDefinitions13ShortlistWalker Books11LonglistBad BloodOxford12LonglistDefinitions14Longlist2009ExposureWalker BooksWinnerSolace of the RoadDavid FicklingShortlistThenPuffinShortlistNationDoubledayShortlistGenesisQuercusLonglistOrionLonglistRowan the StrangeOxfordLonglistRevolverOrionLonglist
2010s +Guardian Children's Fiction Prize winners and finalists, 2010-2016YearAuthorTitlePublisherMin. AgeResultRef.2010Ghost HunterOrion10WinnerNowPuffin9ShortlistUnhooking the MoonQuercus11ShortlistMacmillan8ShortlistPrisoner of the InquisitionDoubleday12LonglistSparksMarion Lloyd Books9Longlist, illus. by Pam SmyLobDavid Fickling8LonglistWhite CrowOrion13Longlist2011Return To RibblestropSimon & Schuster10WinnerMy Name is MinaHodder9ShortlistTwilight RobberyMacmillan11ShortlistMoon PieDavid Fickling10ShortlistSmall Change for StuartDoubleday8LonglistMomentumHodder12LonglistMy Sister Lives on the MantelpieceOrion10Longlist, illus. David TazzymanMr Gum and the Secret HideoutEgmont7Longlist2012Walker9WinnerA Greyhound of a GirlScholastic12ShortlistDead End in NorveltCorgi12ShortlistScholastic8ShortlistDying to Know YouBodley Head14LonglistSoonchildWalker14LonglistBullet BoysScholastic14LonglistA Boy and a Bear in a BoatDavid Fickling9Longlist2013Liar & SpyAndersen Press10Winner, illus. Oliver JeffersWalker9ShortlistPenguin12ShortlistRooftoppersFaber10ShortlistAfter TomorrowOxford10LonglistMaggot MoonHot Key Books12LonglistBloomsbury12LonglistHot Key Books14Longlist2014Quercus11Winner, illus. K. G. CampbellFlora & UlyssesWalker; U.S., Candlewick9ShortlistWe Were LiarsHot Key Books; U.S., Delacorte12Shortlist, illus. Dave McKeanPhoenixDavid Fickling10ShortlistFlora in LoveFaber12LonglistShineDavid Fickling12LonglistShe Is Not InvisibleOrion12LonglistFaber/Profile9Longlist2015A Song for Ella GreyHodderWinner"David Almond wins Guardian children's fiction prize" . Michelle Pauli. The Guardian Posted 19 November 2015 Retrieved 2015-11-28."David Almond: Orpheus helped me write A Song for Ella Grey" . David Almond. The Guardian Posted 19 November 2015 Retrieved 2015-11-28.MacmillanShortlistAn Island of our OwnScholasticShortlistFive Children on the Western FrontFaberShortlistEl DeafoAmulet Books)LonglistApple and RainBloomsburyLonglistAll The Bright PlacesPenguinLonglistMy Name's Not FridayDavid FicklingLonglist2016Crongton KnightsAtom BooksWinnerShortlistHell and High WaterShortlistShortlistChasing the Stars LonglistRiverkeepLonglistLonglistSweet PizzaLonglist
Winners of multiple awards Six books have won both the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize and the Carnegie Medal (inaugurated 1936), which annually recognizes an outstanding book for children or young adults.
(Dates are years of U.K. publication, which were Carnegie award dates before 2006.) Alan Garner, The Owl Service (1967) Richard Adams, Watership Down (1972) Geraldine McCaughrean, A Pack of Lies (1988) Anne Fine, Goggle-Eyes (1989) Philip Pullman, His Dark Materials 1: Northern Lights (1995) Melvin Burgess, Junk (1996) In 2001, The Seeing Stone by Kevin Crossley-Holland won the Tir na n-Og Award, best English-language book for young people with "authentic Welsh background".
In 2003, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon won the 2003 Whitbread Awards as the year's best novel (not children's book) and the "Book of the Year" across all five categories. The Guardian children's book editor Eccleshare wrote, "Published on both an adult and a children's list, it is one of the few titles for which the ubiquitous claim of 'crossover' is not a gimmick. It genuinely has equal, though different, appeal to all readers – 15-year-old Christopher Boone's narrative voice is at once childlike in its observations, and adult in its profundity."
In 2007, Pullman's Northern Lights was named "Carnegie of Carnegies" for the award's 70-year celebration.
Summer programme The Young Critics competition was inaugurated in 2002 and is still underway. The newspaper solicited 200-word reviews of books on the longlist from children 16 and younger, with the prize being "a day editing and printing up their reviews".(retrospective by CA, 23 Sep 2002)