Analysis The YA10
YOUNG STARS A
Ten authors were shortlisted for this
year’s YA Book Prize, which was awarded for the fifth time at
the Hay Festival. From dystopias to body
positivity, the diverse collection has proved a hit with readers
Text Caroline Carpenter
s the YA Book Prize celebrates its fiſth anniversary, this year’s shortlist proves that the qualit of YA publishing from the UK and Ireland is stronger than ever. The novels nomi- nated for the 2019 award, dubbed the YA10, cover a range of genres, from feminist fantasies to taut thrillers to histori- cal romances. The central themes of the YA10 are equally diverse, reflecting many of the issues facing teenagers, and societ in general, today: mental health struggles, extremism, fandom and celebrit culture, political borders and body positivit. The judging panel, which this year included Everyday Sexism founder and writer Laura Bates, and award-winning YA author Alex Wheatle, chose Goodbye, Perfect by Sara Barnard as their winner, hailing it as “an uterly riveting read” with “a powerful message told in a very sensitive manner”.
02JUNO 01 2019 WINNER 24 SARA BARNARD
The winner of the 2019 YA Book Prize, Sara Barnard’s Goodbye, Perfect tells the story of wild child Eden, who struggles to deal with the fallout when her reliable best friend runs away with their teacher, causing Eden to question everything she thought she knew. Author Barnard, who was shortlisted for the award in 2017 with her novel Beautiful Broken Things says: “I was interested in all the stories that don’t get told when there’s a scandal on a national stage—the friends, family and wider community that aren’t given a voice.” She was awarded the prize at an event held at this year’s Hay Festival on Thursday 30th May.
DAWSON
Clean is the tale of socialite Lexi Volkov. When she almost over- doses, she thinks she’s hit rock bottom— but then she is
forced into an exclusive rehab facility. From there, the only way is up for Lexi and her fellow inmates, including the mysterious Brady. As she faces her demons, she comes to realise that love is the most powerful drug of all...
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