The YA Book Prize
Thu Aug 22, 2024
17:30 - 19:00
Edinburgh International Book Festival
Congratulations to the 10th anniversary winner of the YA Book Prize 2024, Gwen & Art Are Not in Love by Lex Croucher!
Set in an Arthurian inspired world, Gwen & Art Are Not in Love follows Princess Gwendoline (Gwen) and future lord Arthur (Art) who have been betrothed since birth. Unfortunately, they can’t stand each other. But when Art finds Gwen’s writings about Lady Bridget Leclair, the only female knight in the realm, and Gwen sees Art kissing a boy, they reach an uneasy alliance to cover for each other and pretend to be in love to appease their families.
What follows is a riotous adventure about accepting yourself and the importance of friendship. In a interview with The Bookseller, award-winning writer Lex Croucher (pictured above) said they hope readers see “that the central love story is actually about the friendship between Gwen and Art”.
Intrigued to learn more about Croucher’s joyous novel? The first chapter is available for free.
Here’s what our judges thought about this year’s winner:
“With a crew of flawed protagonists who each traverse huge emotional journeys, writing that fluctuates between hilarious witticisms and painfully relatable revelations, and a story that transports you to a magical Arthurian realm and doesn’t let you go - Gwen & Art Are Not In Love is a masterclass in teen romantic comedy.” - Alice Oseman, author and screenwriter
“This is such a gem of a book! I loved every minute in Lex’s artfully crafted Arthurian world, which champions individuality, wit, wisdom and a touch of drama. I think it’s a fantastic winner and I can’t wait for more readers to meet Gwen, Art and the others!” - Rachel Fox, Edinburgh International Book Festival’s children and schools programme director
Discover more about all the incredible books on YA Book Prize 2024 shortlist.
The YA Book Prize launched in 2014 to celebrate great fiction for teenagers and young adults and aims to get more teens reading and buying books. The prize is organised by book trade magazine The Bookseller and it is run in partnership with Edinburgh International Book Festival. The shortlist is selected by a team at The Bookseller and the winner is selected by a panel of expert and teenage judges, who are asked to pick the book they believe is the best written and that they would be most likely to share with young adults.
All Speakers
Rachel Fox
Katie Fraser
Anissa de Gomery
Gavin Hetherington
Alice Oseman
Shortlist
Here are the 10 books shortlisted for the YA Book Prize 2024
Gwen & Art Are Not in Love
Lex Croucher
Bloomsbury YA
Author Bio:
Lex Croucher grew up in Surrey, reading a lot of books and making friends with strangers on the internet, and now lives in London with an elderly cat. With a background in social media for NGOs, Lex now writes historical-ish rom-coms for adults (Reputation, Infamous) and historical fantasy rom-coms for teenagers. Gwen & Art Are Not in Love is their YA debut.
Gwen, the quick-witted princess of England, and Arthur, future duke, have been betrothed since birth. Unfortunately, the only thing they can agree on is that they hate each other.
When Gwen catches Art kissing a boy and Art discovers where Gwen hides her diary (complete with racy entries about Bridget Leclair), they become reluctant allies.
By pretending to fall for each other, their mutual protection will be assured. But how long can they keep up the ruse? With Gwen growing closer to Bridget, and Art becoming unaccountably fond of Gabriel, Gwen's bookish brother, the path to true love is looking far from straight...
How to Die Famous
Benjamin Dean
Simon & Schuster
Author Bio:
Benjamin Dean is a full-time author with a background in celebrity journalism. His award-winning middle-grade debut, Me, My Dad and the End of the Rainbow, was described as “one of the most joyful books you'll read this year” (The Bookseller), and he's since gone on to publish The Secret Sunshine Project, as well The King is Dead and How to Die Famous for older readers.
London-born Abel has landed the role of a lifetime for an upcoming blockbuster. On the face of it he's Hollywood's latest teen star, but below the surface he's an undercover journalist on a mission to expose the 'squeaky clean' entertainment industry and the part they played in his brother's 'accidental' death.
As Abel steps into the spotlight alongside actors Lucky, Ryan and Ella, he soon discovers that beneath the fame lies a darker world of secrecy, scandal and murder. Nobody is who they seem when the cameras are off, and everybody has something to hide. But who's next in line to die famous?
Girl, Goddess, Queen
Bea Fitzgerald
Penguin Children’s
Author Bio:
Bea Fitzgerald is an author and content creator. She has worked in publishing for a number of years and studied English Literature and Ancient History at the University of Reading. Bea is passionate about stories and fascinated by the way they endure and resonate through centuries and generations. Bea’s debut novel Girl, Goddess, Queen was an instant Sunday Times bestseller.
To hell with love, this goddess has other plans. Thousands of years ago, the gods told a lie: how Persephone was a pawn in the politics of other gods. The real story is much more interesting.
Persephone wasn't taken to hell: she jumped. There was no way she was going to be married off to some smug god more in love with himself than her.
Now all she has to do is convince the Underworld's annoyingly sexy, arrogant and frankly rude ruler, Hades, to fall in line with her plan. But consequences can be deadly, especially when you're already in hell.
This Book Kills
Ravena Guron
Usborne
Author Bio:
A born and bred Londoner, Ravena writes middle-grade and YA, usually featuring anti-heroines or snarky narrators. Growing up she always read the last page of books first, but discovering Agatha Christie in her early teens stopped that habit, igniting a love of twisty murder mysteries with jaw-dropping endings the reader never saw coming. Ravena is a lawyer with a degree in biochemistry, and hopes to use the knowledge gained from her experiences to plot the perfect murder (for a book, of course!).
When Hugh Henry Van Boren, one of the most popular kids in Jess Choudhary's school, is found dead, the student body is left reeling and wondering who the murderer could be... Jess, a pupil under strict instructions to keep her record clean or risk losing her scholarship, finds herself at the centre of the investigation when it's revealed that Hugh died in the exact same way as a character in a short story she wrote. And then Jess receives an anonymous text thanking her for the inspiration.
Jess knows if she doesn't solve this mystery she'll finally have something in common with Hugh Henry. She'll be dead too.
This is How You Fall in Love
Anika Hussain
Hot Key Books
Author Bio:
Born in Sweden and now living in Bristol, Anika Hussain writes YA novels with south Asian characters at the centre of the story. In her spare time, she rewatches “Love Island”, listens to too many true crime podcasts and pretends she's an athlete (she's really not).
Zara loves love in all forms and she's desperate to have her own great love story. Crucially, a real one. So when her best friend Adnan begs her to pretend to date him to cover up his new top-secret relationship, Zara is hesitant. But there's something in it for Zara too: making her parents, who love Adnan, happy might just stop them arguing for a while. She may not be getting her own love story, but she could save theirs.
With fake dating comes fake hand-holding and fake kissing and real feelings...and when a new boy turns up in Zara's life, things get more confusing than ever.
The First Move
Jenny Ireland
Penguin Children’s
Author Bio:
Jenny Ireland is a YA writer who lives outside Belfast with her husband, two children and border collie. She is a Law and French Law graduate and former paralegal. In 2019 she underwent emergency brain surgery. While this experience was relatively traumatic, the close encounter with death has given her the gift of seeing what truly matters in life. Writing books.
Juliet believes girls like her - girls with arthritis - don't get their own love stories. She exists at the edges of her friends' social lives, skipping parties to play online chess under a pseudonym with strangers around the world. There, she isn't just “the girl with crutches”.
Ronan is the new kid: good looking, smart, a bad boy plagued by guilt over what happened to his brother Ciaran. Chesslife is his escape.
Juliet thinks someone like Ronan could never be interested in someone like her. Little do they know they've already discovered each other online, and have more in common than they think
Yours From the Tower
Sally Nicholls
Andersen Press
Author Bio:
Sally Nicholls grew up in Stockton-on-Tees and, after school, travelled the world, working for a Red Cross hospital in Japan. Sally's first novel, Ways to Live Forever, won the Waterstones Children's Book Prize and she has been shortlisted for the Costa Children's Book Award, and the Carnegie Medal, twice.
Tirzah, Sophia and Polly are best friends who’ve left boarding school and gone back to very different lives. Polly is teaching in an orphanage. Sophia is looking for a rich husband at the London Season. And Tirzah is stuck acting as an unpaid companion to her grandmother. In a series of letters, they share their hopes, their frustrations, their dramas ... and their romances. Can these three very different young women find happiness?
Download Extract
HappyHead
Josh Silver
Rock the Boat
Author Bio:
Josh Silver grew up on a farm in the Lake District, before moving to Manchester with his family, where he spent his teenage years loving the city. He trained as an actor at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and went on to perform in the West End and on Broadway. After deciding to change careers, Josh now works with teenagers as a mental health nurse.
When Seb is offered a place on a radical retreat designed to solve the national crisis of teenage unhappiness, he is determined to change how people see him and make his parents proud. But as he finds himself drawn to the enigmatic Finn, Seb starts to question the true nature of the challenges they must undergo. The deeper into the programme the boys get, the more disturbing the assessments become, until it's clear there may be no escape.
Download Extract
Every Exquisite Thing
Laura Steven
Electric Monkey
Author Bio:
Laura Steven is an author, journalist and screenwriter from the northernmost town in England. She has an MA in Creative Writing and works at a non-profit organisation supporting women in the creative arts. Her TV pilot, ‘Clickbait’, was a finalist in British Comedy's 2016 Sitcom Mission. The Exact Opposite of Okay was her first book for young adults.
Penny’s supermodel mother has fans around the world, and Penny is ready to begin her journey to international adoration, starting with joining Dorian Drama School.
When Penny's new mentor offers her an opportunity she cannot refuse, to have a portrait painted by a mysterious artist who can grant immortal beauty, Penny happily follows in the footsteps of Dorian's most glittering alumni.
When her mentor is found murdered, Penny realises she's made a mistake - someone is using the portraits to kill off the subjects one by one. As more perfectly beautiful students start to fall, Penny knows her time is running out.
Murder on a School Night
Kate Weston
Electric Monkey
Author Bio:
Kate Weston is an ex-stand-up comedian and bookseller. Her first YA book, Diary of a Confused Feminist, was longlisted for the Comedy Women in Print Prize 2020 and nominated for the Carnegie Medal. Murder on a School Night is her third book for teenagers.
All Kerry wants to do is stay at home with her rom-coms and strict retainer schedule. Instead, Annie has roped her into going to their first sixth form party to investigate who's cyberbullying Heather, the most popular girl in school.
On the cusp of kissing her dreamy crush, Scott, Kerry discovers the body of Heather's second in command - suffocated with a menstrual cup. Within days, another student turns up dead, this time with a sanitary pad across the eyes. Now Annie and Kerry are officially on the case to stop the menstrual murderer... period.
Previous Winners
2023
Danielle Jawando’s coming-of-age novel, When Our Worlds Collided (published by Simon & Schuster Children’s) won the YA Book Prize 2023.
The story follows three teenagers living in Manchester - Jackson, Chantelle and Marc - whose lives become intertwined when a boy named Shaq is stabbed. The stabbing brings to the fore social and institutional prejudices as Jackson grapples with the views of fellow students, Chantelle confronts racism at school and Marc deals with years living in the foster care system. Soon the three become a tight-knit group, relying on each other for support while navigating the world as Black teenagers.
Manchester-born author Jawando told The Bookseller how she “wanted to write something that looks at the issues that Black teenagers face on a daily basis.” She added: “At the same time, I also wanted to explore the deeply racist gang narrative that you often see constructed when it comes to young Black boys, as well as the constant policing and criminalisation that happens in many forms – whether that’s through stop and search, or the way that teenagers are policed and punished in schools.”
Author and former YA Book Prize winner Patrice Lawrence, who was on the judging panel, said: “Danielle writes with lyricism, empathy and even humour about tough subjects. The characters in When Our Worlds Collided are flawed and completely believable, as they unpick a world that values Black lives less than others.” Fellow judge Gary Deane, Waterstones’ national children’s events co-ordinator, called the novel “a raw, powerful and thought-provoking coming-of-age story”.
When Our Worlds Collided was up for the 2023 prize alongside: Twin Crowns by Catherine Doyle and Katherine Webber (Electric Monkey), The Eternal Return of Clara Hart by Louise Finch (Little Island Books), Five Survive by Holly Jackson (Electric Monkey), The Songs You’ve Never Heard by Becky Jerams and Ellie Wyatt (Sweet Cherry), The Cats We Meet Along the Way by Nadia Mikail (Guppy Books), Her Dark Wings by Melinda Salisbury (David Fickling Books), If You Still Recognise Me by Cynthia So (Little Tiger Press), The Society for Soulless Girls by Laura Steven (Electric Monkey) and Kemosha of the Caribbean by Alex Wheatle (Andersen Press).
2022
Adiba Jaigirdar’s queer rom-com, Hani and Ishu’s Guide to Fake Dating (published by Hachette Children’s), was the winner of the YA Book Prize 2022.
It focuses on two very different Bengali girls—popular Hani and academic overachiever Ishu—who begin a fake relationship to both help Hani convince her friends that she is bisexual and increase Ishu’s popularity and chances of becoming head girl. Before long, they start to develop real feelings for each other, but not everyone in their lives is rooting for them.
Bangladeshi-Irish author Jaigirdar told The Bookseller: "Winning the YA Book Prize has been a huge honour and an incredible career milestone. It's not always easy to have your work recognised and celebrated in the publishing industry, especially as an Irish author of colour, so I'm immensely grateful. I feel like winning the YA Book Prize has also led to many more opportunities for me, and to more teens having access to my books."
Children’s writer, events programmer, bookseller and reviewer Sarah Webb, who was on the judging panel, said: “Hani and Ishu’s Guide to Fake Dating is an outstanding YA novel and a highly deserving winner of the YA Book Prize 2022.” She described it as a “charming, relatable, funny book about family, friendship and relationships” and added: “Jaigirdar’s characters are so real they jump off the page and her dialogue crackles with life and authenticity. I loved the contemporary Irish setting too!”
Hani and Ishu’s Guide to Fake Dating was up for the 2022 prize alongside: Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé (published by Usborne); The Yearbook by Holly Bourne (published by Usborne); Skin of the Sea by Natasha Bowen (published by Penguin); Afterlove by Tanya Byrne (published by Hachette Children’s Group); The Upper World by Femi Fadugba (published by Penguin); You’re the One That I Want by Simon James Green (published by Scholastic); The Crossing by Manjeet Mann (published by Penguin); House of Hollow by Krystal Sutherland (published by Hot Key Books); and First Day of My Life by Lisa Williamson (published by David Fickling Books).
2021
Alice Oseman scooped the YA Book Prize 2021 with her “joyful” coming out story about a teenager who realises that she is aromantic and asexual, Loveless, published by HarperCollins Children’s Books.
It follows Georgia, who heads to university ready to find romance. With her outgoing roommate on her side and a place in the Shakespeare Society, her dream is in sight, but when her attempts to form a relationship wreak havoc, she starts to question why love seems so easy for other people but not for her.
Alice said: “Loveless was the most difficult creative project of my life, and I am so utterly thrilled that it has won such a prestigious award. The UK is home to such an incredible and unique YA literature community, it’s an honour to have been chosen as this year’s YA Book Prize-winner.”
Judge Rachel Fox, who is children and schools programme director at Edinburgh International Book Festival, described Loveless as “a joyful book that truly promotes celebrating our differences”.
The other books in the running for the award were: Wranglestone by Darren Charlton (published by Little Tiger); Good Girl, Bad Blood by Holly Jackson (published by Electric Monkey); And the Stars Were Burning Brightly by Danielle Jawando (published by Simon & Schuster Children’s); Eight Pieces of Silva by Lawrence (published by Hodder Children’s Books); The Great Godden by Rosoff (published by Bloomsbury); Melt My Heart by Bethany Rutter (published by Macmillan Children’s Books); Hold Back the Tide by Melinda Salisbury (published by Scholastic); Cane Warriors by Wheatle (published by Andersen Press); and A Snowfall of Silver by Laura Wood (published by Scholastic).
In 2021, the YA Book Prize also gave the third ever YA Book Prize Special Achievement Award to former Children's Laureate, Malorie Blackman, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the first novel in her seminal Noughts & Crosses YA series.
2020
Juno Dawson won the YA Book Prize in 2020 with Meat Market, a “gritty and compelling” exposé of the fashion industry published by Quercus Children’s Books.
Meat Market tells the story of Jana who lives on a south London estate and is unexpectedly scouted to work as a model and catapulted into superstardom. However, she soon discovers that the fashion industry is as grimy as it is glamorous, and there are unexpected predators at every turn. Juno called it her “most challenging book to date” because of the difficult subject matter. She spent two years talking to fashion industry insiders and conducting research for the novel.
Body positivity campaigner, influencer and author Megan Crabbe, who was one of the YA Book Prize 2020 judges, said she was “blown away” by Meat Market. She added: “Jana had a clear and unique voice throughout, the relationships were believable and heartwarming, and there was a beautifully satisfying ending… It’s thoroughly unforgettable.” Fellow judge, author and Wales Children’s Laureate Eloise Williams, described the winning novel as “gritty and compelling” with “such important things to say, which it says so well”.
Nine other titles were shortlisted for the YA Book Prize 2020: The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta (published by Hodder Children’s Books), Crossfire by Malorie Blackman (published by Penguin), The Places I’ve Cried in Public by Holly Bourne (published by Usborne), Furious Thing by Jenny Downham (published by David Fickling Books), Deeplight by Frances Hardinge (published by Macmillan Children’s Books), A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson (published by Egmont), The Quiet at the End of the World by Lauren James (published by Walker Books), The Deathless Girls by Kiran Millwood Hargrave (published by Bellatrix) and William Sutcliffe’s The Gifted, the Talented and Me (published by Bloomsbury Children’s Books).
2019
Sara Barnard won the YA Book Prize in its fifth year for her "unflinching" and “utterly riveting” contemporary novel about the impact of a teacher-student relationship, Goodbye, Perfect (published by Macmillan Children’s Books).
The novel tells the story of Eden, who is forced to question everything when her steady, straight-A best friend Bonnie runs away with a teacher five days before the start of their GCSEs. Sworn to secrecy and bound by loyalty, only Eden knows Bonnie’s location, and she’s forced to weigh up betraying her best friend with police questioning, suspicious parents and her own growing doubts.
Everyday Sexism founder and writer Laura Bates, who was one of the prize judges, said: "Sara Barnard's writing is an absolute triumph: this book is unputdownable and beautiful, unflinching in its exploration of important and complex topics from sexual exploitation to the foster care system. But it is also a joy to read, a tender portrayal of family and sibling relationships, of flawed and poignant female friendships and of the nuanced reality of teenage experiences and the journey to discovering who you are and what you stand for." Fellow judge and author Alex Wheatle called Goodbye, Perfect “an utterly riveting read”, adding “it wouldn’t let me go”.
The winner was selected from a shortlist that also included: Clean by Juno Dawson (published by Quercus Children's Books), Big Bones by Laura Dockrill (published by Hot Key Books), I Am Thunder by Muhammad Khan (published by Macmillan Children’s Books), The Surface Breaks by Louise O'Neill (published by Scholastic), White Rabbit, Red Wolf by Tom Pollock (published by Walker Books), I Was Born for This by Alice Oseman (published by HarperCollins Children's Books), Outwalkers by Fiona Shaw (published by David Fickling Books), Only Love Can Break Your Heart by Katherine Webber (published by Walker Books), and A Sky Painted Gold by Laura Wood (published by Scholastic).
2018
In 2018, the YA Book Prize went to Will Hill for After the Fire (published by Usborne).
After the Fire tells the story of teenage girl Moonbeam, who is trying to come to terms with her past and prepare for a new life after leaving behind the cult she grew up in.
Author Louise O’Neill—winner of first ever YA Book Prize, and one of the 2018 judges—said: "After the Fire is an engrossing, brilliantly realised story which is almost impossible to put down. Both thoughtfully structured and fast-paced, it is one of the most sensitive portrayals of trauma that I have read in a long time." Fellow judges Akala, a hip-hop artist, writer and historian, and blogger and YouTuber Lucy Powrie described it as a "well-written book on a challenging subject" and "a perfect showcase of what UK YA should be".
The judges selected the winning title from a shortlist that also included: S.T.A.G.S. by M A Bennett (published by Hot Key Books), The One Memory of Flora Banks by Emily Barr (published by Penguin), It Only Happens in the Movies by Holly Bourne (published by Usborne), Moonrise by Sarah Crossan (published by Bloomsbury), Indigo Donut by Patrice Lawrence (published by Hodder Children’s), Release by Patrick Ness (published by Walker Books), Things a Bright Girl Can Do by Sally Nicholls (published by Andersen Press), La Belle Sauvage by Philip Pullman (published by David Fickling Books/Penguin), and Straight Outta Crongton by Alex Wheatle (published by Atom).
A YA Book Prize Special Achievement Award was also given to Stripes Publishing and the authors of its YA anthology A Change is Gonna Come, to recognise their work in tackling the lack of diversity in YA publishing in the UK and Ireland.
2017
In 2017, the YA Book Prize went to Orangeboy by Patrice Lawrence (published by Hodder Children’s Books).
Orangeboy tells the story of 16-year-old Marlon, who finds himself facing tough choices after a date ends in tragedy. Despite not wanting to follow his older brother Andre down the wrong path, Marlon gets caught up in London’s gang culture and things soon start to spiral out of control.
Author Melvin Burgess, one of the prize judges, said: “Orangeboy ticked so many boxes for so many of the judges. It’s a page-turning thriller. The characters and their relationships are truthful, delightful, surprising and strong. It was so refreshing to read something set in an urban black community that will appeal to a diverse UK readership. It deals with family, friendship, sex appeal, loyalty and generally being human. It is so accomplished and we all really feel there is something there for everyone.”
The other shortlisted books, whittled down from more than 100 entries, were: Beautiful Broken Things by Sara Barnard (published by Macmillan Children’s Books), Chasing the Stars by Malorie Blackman (published by Penguin Random House Children’s), The Graces by Laure Eve (published by Faber Children’s), How Not to Disappear by Clare Furniss (published by Simon & Schuster Children’s), Paper Butterflies by Lisa Heathfield (published by Egmont), The Call by Peadar O’Guilin (published by David Fickling Books), The Monstrous Child by Francesca Simon (published by Faber Children’s), Riverkeep by Martin Stewart (published by Penguin Random House Children’s), and Crongton Knights by Alex Wheatle (published by Atom).
2016
The YA Book Prize 2016 was won by Sarah Crossan's One (published by Bloomsbury). One is about conjoined twins Grace and Tippi, who, after years of being educated at home, go to public school for the first time. Over the course of the novel the sisters make friends who have their own problems, whilst facing a serious medical choice.
The judges were unanimous in their decision that One should be this 2016’s winner.
Judge and writer Bim Adewunmi said she "fell in love" with the book.
"Tippi and Grace are a great addition to the pantheon of great literary sisters, and the way Crossan explores their rare (physical) bond only makes them more so," she said. "I cried on the train at the end and I will not soon forget either of these girls."
Sarah beat competition from nine other shortlisted books: Am I Normal Yet? by Holly Bourne (published by Usborne), Unbecoming by Jenny Downham (published by David Fickling Books), The Lie Tree by Frances Hardinge (published by Macmillan Children’s Books), The Curious Tale of the Lady Caraboo by Catherine Johnson (published by Penguin Random House Children’s), The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness (published by Walker Books), Asking For It by Louise O’Neill (published by Quercus), The Sin Eater’s Daughter by Melinda Salisbury (published by Scholastic), Concentr8 by William Sutcliffe (published by Bloomsbury), and The Art of Being Normal by Lisa Williamson (published by David Fickling Books).
A YA Book Prize Special Achievement Award went to Melvin Burgess, whose novel Junk, one of the first YA novels by a UK author, was published by Andersen Press 20 years ago.
2015
Only Ever Yours by Louise O'Neill (published by Quercus) was the first winner of the YA Book Prize. The book tells the story of 16-year-olds freida and isabel, who are in their final year of school and waiting to see if they are selected as wives to wealthy and powerful men. The alternative, life as a concubine, is too awful to contemplate, so the intense competition between the girls over their looks starts to mount.
The judges praised Louise for her "startling and refreshing" take on the dystopian genre. Rick O’Shea, presenter at Irish broadcaster RTE, said: "Only Ever Yours is, as far as I'm concerned, not just a worthy winner of the prize but one of the best speculative fiction books I've read in years. It pushes the boundaries of contemporary YA. I'll be pressing it into the hands of anyone who might read it."
The other shortlisted books were: A Song for Ella Grey by David Almond (published by Hodder Children’s Books), Salvage by Keren David (published by Atom), Say Her Name by Juno Dawson (published by Hot Key Books), Lobsters by Lucy Ivison and Tom Ellen (published by Chicken House), Half Bad by Sally Green (published by Penguin), Finding a Voice by Kim Hood (published by O’Brien Press), Goose by Dawn O’Porter (published by Hot Key Books), Trouble by Non Pratt (published by Walker Books) and The Ghosts of Heaven by Marcus Sedgwick (published by Orion).
Our Partner
Our Partner
The YA Book Prize is run by The Bookseller magazine in partnership with Edinburgh International Book Festival. As part of this partnership, the YA Book Prize 2024 shortlisted authors will feature in events at the festival in August, as well as a special event to announce the winner.
The Edinburgh International Book Festival is a registered charity, a non-profit making organisation. The Book Festival’s Baillie Gifford Children’s programme of author events, activities and workshops is produced for young audiences of all ages, from babies to teenagers, attracting family audiences of around 20,000 each year. In addition, an extensive schools programme is created for primary and secondary pupils, with around 14,000 school children attending each year.
When the partnership was announced, the festival’s children and schools programme director Rachel Fox, said: "We are very excited to be working with The Bookseller on the YA Book Prize, which celebrates great books for young adults as we are always keen to connect with this audience and champion the talented authors who write such brilliant books for them. The book festival has been strongly supportive of YA writers for a number of years, and the partnership with The Bookseller is an excellent way to further strengthen our commitment to them and their teen readers going forward."
Caroline Carpenter, The Bookseller's children's editor and deputy features editor and chair of the YA Book Prize, added: "The Edinburgh International Book Festival is one of the world’s leading literary events and we are looking forward to working with the team there on the YA Book Prize. As the prize enters its eighth year, this partnership will allow us to reach new audiences and grow its impact, making it bigger and better than ever."
The Edinburgh International Book Festival will run from Saturday 10th to Sunday 25th August 2024 at The Edinburgh College of Art. The full programme will be announced in June 2024 and all details can be found at the festival's website.
Videos
