Book of the Year - Children's Fiction

Supported by The Week Junior

From an enchanted archipelago to a murder mystery, this shortlist boasts everything from a festive musical to a decadent enemies-to-lovers tale. There is something for every young reader, with each title championed in-house with unique campaigns and retailer support.

The Winner

Impossible Creatures

Katherine Rundell

Bloomsbury Children's Books

There is no stopping Katherine Rundell as the author reaches new heights with her first middle-grade fantasy novel, Impossible Creatures. Rundell's voracious imagination captivated our judges, who garlanded the novel and its writer with praise: "She can do no wrong," said one judge. "A book that will last and last" they agreed. A trio of illustrators worked on the book, with cover design and art direction by Laura Bird; cover art was by Daniel Egneus, the imaginary bestiary by Tomislav Tomic and the map of the archipelago by Virginia Allyn creating a "beautiful package". Bloomsbury Children's campaign positioned Impossible Creatures as "the book of Rundell's career". Publication was marked with a launch party at the Natural History Museum and a sweep of supermarket slots followed - as did Waterstones Book of the Year and Foyles' Children's Book of the Year wins.

The Shortlist

Impossible Creatures

Written by Katherine Rundell

Bloomsbury Children's Books

Katherine Rundell continues to reach new fantastical heights with the lauded first instalment in her new series with Bloomsbury Children’s, which wanted to create “the publishing event of the year”. Impossible Creatures finished the year as both Waterstones’ Book of the Year and Foyles' Children’s Book of the Year. The publisher secured a full sweep of supermarket slots and installed the dragon “Archie Pelago” at Waterstones Piccadilly. Interior illustration by Tomislav Tomic, map by Virginia Allyn, cover illustration by Daniel Egneus.

Powerless

Written by Lauren Roberts

Simon & Schuster Children’s Books

The debut enemies-to-lovers fantasy novel from BookTokker Lauren Roberts fired up the team at S&S Children’s to produce a nimble and creative campaign to hit publication, a short three months after acquisition. Previously self-published, S&S improved on Powerless’ original cover, clinched a Waterstones exclusive sprayed-edge edition and marshalled BookTok creators with limited-edition mailing packages. Even with a short lead time, Powerless became S&S Children’s number one YA fiction title of the year.

Skandar and the Phantom Rider

A.F. Steadman

Simon & Schuster Children's Books

The second in A F Steadman’s ferocious unicorn series hit number one in the children’s and YA fiction charts on publication. S&S Children’s produced exclusive editions of Skandar and the Phantom Rider for Waterstones and indies that capitalised on the stormy, electric-blue front cover, while Steadman committed to a six-week tour around the world, visiting schools, festivals and bookshops.

The Boy Who Slept Through Christmas

Matt Lucas, illustrated by Forest Burdett

Farshore

Matt Lucas’ musical Christmas novel captured the festive imagination. The songs, written and recorded by Lucas and a cast of West End professionals, form part of the story’s narrative and can be accessed through in-text QR codes. Farshore embarked on an impressive campaign for this unique tale, securing numerous broadcast slots, including “Sunday Brunch”, “The One Show” and “The Zoe Ball Breakfast Show”. Lucas also rallied indie support and hosted a virtual event with the National Literacy Trust.

The Completely Chaotic Christmas of Lottie Brooks

Written and illustrated by Katie Kirby

Puffin

Katie Kirby’s The Completely Chaotic Christmas of Lottie Brooks cemented this hilarious and relatable tween series as a firm favourite for readers. Puffin organised four sold-out signing events, appearances at Bath and Ilkley literature festivals and a holiday-giveaway competition with Tesco. Social media posts engaged fans by teasing the topsy-turvy festive story and Puffin partnered with The VIP Suite for influencer giveaways.

This Book Kills

Ravena Guron

Usborne

Ravena Guron’s debut, a murder mystery that tackles wealth and race, was championed by the team at Usborne and made Guron a new standout author in YA thrillers. Getting the right cover for This Book Kills was paramount, and the team pushed back campaign dates to ensure it was perfected. The risk paid off and, coupled with campaigns run with Tandem Collective and Rocket, This Book Kills was the bestselling YA debut thriller of 2023.