The UK’s longest-running book awards for children and young people, the Yoto Carnegies, have announced their 2023 shortlists. Judged solely by children’s and youth librarians, these annual awards celebrate authors and illustrators who create outstanding reading experiences for children and young people.
This 2023 shortlist for the Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing is dominated by YA fiction, and features an all-female cast of writers, including two previous winners – Katya Balen (2022) and Ruta Sepetys (2017) – and one debut title by Louise Finch.
The Yoto Carnegie Medal for Illustration 2023 shortlist offers a diverse, bold range of illustrative and artistic styles, and again features both a previous winner – Levi Pinfold (2013) – and a debut title for Flora Delargy.
The Chair of Judges for 2023 Yoto Carnegies describe the titles on this year’s shortlists as “outstanding books for children and young people that represent a wide range of identities, helping to ensure the diversity of experiences across the UK is reflected.
The shortlist for the Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing 2023:
- The Light in Everything by Katya Balen (Bloomsbury Children’s Books)
- When Shadows Fall by Sita Brahmachari, illustrated by Natalie Sirett (Little Tiger)
- Medusa by Jessie Burton, illustrated by Olivia Lomenech Gill (Bloomsbury Children’s Books)
- The Eternal Return of Clara Hart by Louise Finch (Little Island)
- Needle by Patrice Lawrence (Barrington Stoke)
- I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys (Hodder Children’s Books)
- The Blue Book of Nebo by Manon Steffan Ros (Firefly Press)
The shortlist for the Yoto Carnegie Medal for Illustration 2023:
- Rescuing Titanic illustrated and written by Flora Delargy (Wide Eyed Editions)
- Alte Zachen: Old Things illustrated by Benjamin Phillips, written by Ziggy Hanaor (Cicada Books)
- The Worlds We Leave Behind illustrated by Levi Pinfold, written by A. F. Harrold (Bloomsbury Children’s Books)
- The Visible Sounds illustrated by Yu Rong, written by Yin Jianling (UCLan Publishing)
- The Comet illustrated and written by Joe Todd–Stanton (Flying Eye Books)
- Saving Sorya: Chang and the Sun Bear illustrated by Jeet Zdung, written by Trang Nguyen (Kingfisher)
The winners will be announced and celebrated on Wednesday 21st June at a live and streamed lunchtime ceremony at The Barbican, hosted by former Children’s Laureate Lauren Child CBE, who won the Carnegie Medal for Illustration (then known as the Kate Greenaway Medal).
The winners will each receive £500 worth of books to donate to a library of their choice, a specially commissioned and newly designed golden medal, and a £5,000 Colin Mears Award cash prize.
The shortlisted books are available to buy online.
For further information on the Yoto Carnegie Medals, please visit: yotocarnegies.co.uk.
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