Books of the Year CHILDREN'S
JOINT WINNER THE LOST WORDS JACKIE MORRIS AND ROBERT MACFARLANE HAMISH HAMILTON
The Lost Words is a large-format, beautifully illustrated hymn to nature which came into being when author Robert Macfarlane learnt that the Oxford Junior Dictionary planned to omit nature words from its new editions. Outraged by this removal, Macfarlane composed 20 acrostic poems or spells, each one dedicated to an animal or plant, which were then illustrated in watercolour by Jackie Morris. The author and illustrator were true joint creators on the project and they wrote and painted in response to each other’s drafts. They were closely involved with the design and production, even reviewing a sheaf of wet-proof print tests— posted from China—to discover which combination of paper stock and ink would yield the richest gold leaf replication. Despite an unusually large format and high price point of £20, The
Lost Words achieved sales of more than 4,500 in three days and garnered rave reviews in national newspapers. A low-key, grassroots campaign from fans spread word of the book further and one Scottish reader started a public Crowdfunder campaign to donate a copy to every school in Scotland. Fiona Noble, children’s book reviewer at The Bookseller, said: “Given the format, Macfarlane and Morris have achieved something extraordinary. The book has captured imaginations and hearts and I love how the words and pictures come together.” It has sold 74,000 copies through Nielsen BookScan, but through
crowdfunding has also been made available free to schools in Scotland, Gloucestershire, Haringey, and beyond. A true game-changer.
the Guardian. BAD DAD DAVID WALLIAMS, TONY ROSS (ILLUS) HARPERCOLLINS CHILDREN’S BOOKS Walliams undertook a big global tour last year, visiting Australia and New Zealand to promote Bad Dad, his 10th and biggest sell- ing title to date.
OI CAT! KES GRAY AND JIM FIELD (ILLUS) HACHETTE
CHILDREN’S GROUP The third title in the Oi! series has both critical and mass-market appeal, combining Gray’s witty rhyming text and Field’s bright and engaging illustrations.
THE BRITISH BOOK AWARDS WINNERS 2018
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