THE BRITISH BOOK AWARDS 2021 SHORTLISTS


N


ow in their 31st year, this year’s British Book Awards (a.k.a. the Nibbies) come after the strangest of years for the trade, as the coronavirus pandemic shuttered bookshops for some of the


time and closed offices for just about all of it. Yet, we persisted. As we all know, business across the


trade grew in 2020: book sales were up, rights trading marched on, and bookshops pivoted with online events and customer deliveries, working in tandem with a radically different in-store environment to promote and sell books throughout the year. This year’s Nibbies shortlists are, more than ever, a


testament to the great, the good and the tireless. For that reason, many of the shortlists this year are longer than before, in recognition of the effort as well as the achievements. The publication of last year’s shortlist supplement,


SPONSORS AMAZON PUBLISHING AUDIBLE CLAYS PRINTING COPYRIGHT LICENSING AGENCY CPI BOOKS FIRSTY GROUP FMCM GARDNERS HARPERCOLLINS LONDON BOOK FAIR


MACMILLAN CHILDRENS BOOKS MONTEGRAPPA NIELSEN OVERDRIVE PANSING PUBLISHERS LICENSING SERVICES SIMON & SCHUSTER TIMES PUBLISHING WESTCHESTER EDUCATION SERVICES


PARTNERS BOOK MARKETING SOCIETY BOOKS ARE MY BAG BOOKSELLERS ASSOCIATION FMCM HAY FESTIVAL INDEPENDENT PUBLISHERS GUILD PUBLISHERS PUBLICITY CIRCLE THE PUBLISHERS ASSOCIATION


in March 2020, was also the moment when everything changed, leading to a virtual ceremony for the first time in the awards’ history in June last year. That ceremony, though, has been viewed more than 40,000 times and was named Event of the Year at the PPA’s Independent Publisher Awards. This year’s event will also be virtual, but we will be stepping it up, with radio presenter Lauren Laverne returning as our host, as well as a bunch of other exciting additions. The Nibbies' sole purpose is to reflect and support


the entire book trade, from author to reader, and we congratulate all of those shortlisted, as well as those in the supporting roles. I’d also like to thank our sponsors, partners, judges and colleagues who have supported the awards during this time. See you at a screen on 13th May.


PHILIP JONES EDITOR, THE BOOKSELLER


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