2021 SHORTLISTS ANNOUNCED FOR CILIP CARNEGIE AND KATE GREENAWAY MEDALS

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The shortlists for the prestigious CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medals are announced today, 18 March. The awards are the UK’s oldest for children and young people.

This year’s judges praised their shortlists for ‘offering hope and escapism during lockdown’ through explorations of freedom, the great outdoors and journeys through the natural world.

Women writers and illustrators dominate the lists and 11 out of the 16 shortlisted authors and illustrators are female.

The shortlists are:

2021 CILIP Carnegie Medal shortlist

Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo (Hot Key Books)

The Girl Who Speaks Bear by Sophie Anderson, illustrated by Kathrin Honesta (Usborne)

The Girl Who Became A Tree by Joseph Coelho, illustrated by Kate Milner (Otter-Barry Books)

On Midnight Beach by Marie-Louise Fitzpatrick (Faber)

Run, Rebel by Manjeet Mann (Penguin Random House Children's)

Look Both Ways by Jason Reynolds (Knights Of)

The Fountains Of Silence by Ruta Sepetys (Penguin Random House Children's)

Echo Mountain by Lauren Wolk (Penguin Random House Children's)

2021 CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal shortlist:

Starbird illustrated and written by Sharon King-Chai (Two Hoots)

The Bird Within Me illustrated by Sara Lundberg and translated by B. J. Epstein (Book Island)

It's A No-Money Day illustrated and written by Kate Milner (Barrington Stoke)

How The Stars Came To Be illustrated and written by Poonam Mistry (Tate Publishing)

Hike illustrated and written by Pete Oswald (Walker Books)

I Go Quiet illustrated and written by David Ouimet (Canongate)

Arlo The Lion Who Couldn’t Sleep illustrated and written by Catherine Rayner (Macmillan Children's Books)

Small In The City illustrated and written by Sydney Smith (Walker Books)

Ellen Krajewski, Chair of the 2021 CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medals judging panel, comments, ‘With themes of freedom, the great outdoors and journeys through the natural world, we hope the outstanding books on this year’s shortlists will inspire and empower young readers, offering hope and escapism during lockdown. The collective experience of books is more important than ever this year, providing opportunities for children and young people to reconnect and share their reading experiences with one another as they return to school. We can’t wait to see the creative responses from this year’s shadowers and discover who they will vote as their favourites to win the Shadowers’ Choice Awards. And what amazing books they have to choose from! Congratulations to all the shortlisted authors and illustrators for their exceptional and creative work.’

The winners of the 2021 CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medals will be announced on Wednesday 16th June 2021. Covid-19 guidelines permitting, a socially distanced special daytime event will be held at The British Library and live-streamed online.

The winners will each receive £500 worth of books to donate to their local library, a specially commissioned golden medal and a £5,000 Colin Mears Award cash prize.

Now in its third year, the Shadowers’ Choice Award – voted for and awarded by the children and young people who shadow the Medals – will be announced alongside the two Medal winners in June 2021. This award has evolved out of CILIP’s Diversity Review, which identified opportunities to empower and celebrate the young people involved in the Medals through the shadowing scheme.

The 2021 CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medals are sponsored by Peters and ALCS, and funded by Carnegie UK Trust.