Posavec and Quick win £10k Royal Society Young People’s Book Prize

Stefanie Posavec and Miriam Quick have won the £10,000 Royal Society Young People’s Book Prize for I Am a Book. I Am a Portal to the Universe (Particular Books). 

The announcement was made at an online ceremony live-streamed on the Royal Society’s YouTube channel, hosted by TV presenter Lindsey Russell. 

The book is described as an “abstract and artistic exploration of the collaboration between art, science and data”. It combines Posavec’s skills as a designer, artist and author, and Quick’s experience as a data journalist and researcher to create a tool to help young readers uncover the science hidden in everyday life.  

Through simple activities, like wearing the book as a hat or dropping it from a height, big questions are explored such as "How loud is the Sun?", "How fast is gold mined?", and "How many stars are born in the time it takes to turn a page?" 

More than 11,000 young judges were drawn from 500 UK schools and youth groups to cast their votes for their favourite science book from a shortlist of six titles, chosen by a panel of adult judges which included BBC broadcaster Gabby Logan and award-winning author Sharna Jackson. 

Volcanologist Professor Katharine Cashman, chair of the 2021 judging panel, said: “This book portrays science as the creative subject that it is—from understanding the Big Bang, to spotting the size of an ostrich’s eyes, this book explores the science all around us. 

“There is magic and wonder encapsulated in every page. Children can touch a dot to leave bacteria behind, and learn how many babies were born in the time it takes them to turn a page. This book tells a story and brings the reader with them—it’s different to any other science book I have ever seen before.” 

Logan added: “This is a fabulous science book and offers young people a unique way to learn. The beautiful designs and imagery had me immediately hooked.

“We should encourage young people to think creatively, and books that ‘think outside the box’ like this should be celebrated.” 

The shortlist also included Agent Asha: Mission Shark Bytes by Sophie Deen, illustrated by Anjan Sarkar (Walker); I Ate Sunshine for Breakfast by Michael Holland, illustrated by Philip Giordano (Flying Eye Books); Inventors: Incredible Stories of the World’s Most Ingenious Inventions by Robert Winston, illustrated by Jessamy Hawke (DK Children); Under the Stars: Astrophysics for Everyone by Lisa Harvey-Smith, illustrated by Mel Matthews (World Scientific Publishing Company); and 100 Things to Know About Saving the Planet by Rose Hall, Jerome Martin, Alice James, Darran Stobbart, Alex Frith, Eddie Reynolds, Lan Cook, Matthew Oldham and Tom Mumbray, illustrated by Federico Mariani, Parko Polo, Dominique Byron, Dale Edwin Murray, Jake Williams and Ollie Hoff (Usborne).