Mikail wins Waterstones Children’s Book Prize for ‘tender and evocative’ debut

Nadia Mikail has been named the overall winner of the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize for her debut novel, The Cats We Meet Along The Way (Guppy Books).

Now in its 19th year, the prize is voted for solely by booksellers. It consists of £5,000 and “the promise of ongoing commitment to the winners’ writing and illustrating careers”.

The Cats We Meet Along The Way tells the story of Aisha and her family “who, with the world due to end imminently, embark on an eventful road trip across Malaysia to find her estranged sister June”. Inspired by the author’s experience of worrying about her family during the pandemic, the publisher said: “Nadia Mikail tells a gentle, affecting, and hopeful debut about what is most important when time is running out”.

Mikail, originally from Sarawak, Malaysia, commented: “I was really missing my family when I started writing this book, and constantly worrying about them during the pandemic, so I wrote it as sort of a worst-case scenario situation, like what would happen if the apocalypse was about to happen, and I was away from my loved ones. In the midst of trying to kind of work out those anxieties through writing, I realised the only thing we can do is care for the people we love every day and hope for a better future for them even when things seem hopeless.”

Florentyna Martin, Waterstones head of children’s, said: “In a phenomenal and tender debut, Nadia Mikail’s prose sparkles in the growing market for older readers. Booksellers were overwhelmed by the tenderness woven through each chapter; the moments of silence between the characters are as truthful and evocative as their conversations. Mikail has ultimately crafted a novel of hope, set against an eventful road trip, that encourages us to share stories and dreams.”

Earlier in the evening, The Cats We Meet Along The Way won the older reader’s category before going on to secure the accolade of overall winner of the prize. M T Khan’s Nura and the Immortal Palace (Walker Books) won the younger readers’ category, while Kim Hillyard’s Gretel the Wonder Mammoth (Ladybird) took the category for illustrated books.

Khan’s Nura and the Immortal Palace is described as an “enchanting magical adventure rooted in Muslim culture and folklore”. The story follows a young girl’s journey from modern-day Pakistan into an underground world where “trickster jinns hold sway”.

Khan said: “I stumbled upon a mica mining documentary about the deadly labour behind products like car paint and shimmery makeup. When I learned of the dangers those child miners face daily, it was shocking… Nura was my hope of giving underprivileged and forgotten kids an adventure they deserved, all against a backdrop of South Asian culture, festivities, and folklore.”

The illustrated books category went to Gretel the Wonder Mammoth by Hillyard, “a pitch-perfect story encouraging children to embrace their feelings as they follow the story of Gretel, the last woolly mammoth on earth, who gets a little overwhelmed and lonely after returning to the world from a very long sleep in the ice”.

Martin concluded: “Emotion-led picture books are on the rise but Hillyard’s creatively sharp storytelling is as encouraging and vibrant as her protagonist. This sweet, uplifting tale proves Kim Hillyard is a rising star in picture books; her characters and illustrations will be on every home bookshelf before too long.”

Last year’s winner, The Last Bear by Hannah Gold (HarperCollins Children’s Books), shot to the top of the bestseller charts after being announced as Waterstones Children’s Book Prize Winner 2022, and saw an increase in sales of 434% across the Waterstones estate.