Poetry and Picture Books Dominate 2024 Yoto Carnegies Shortlist 

yotocarnegies.co.uk | #YotoCarnegies24 | @CarnegieMedals

Wednesday 13 March 2024: The Yoto Carnegies, the UK’s longest running and best-loved book awards for children and young people, announced their 2024 shortlists at the London Book Fair this morning.

• Picture books prevail on the Yoto Carnegie Medal for Illustration shortlist, which includes previous winner Catherine Rayner and three-time shortlisted illustrator Poonam Mistry. 
• Poetry dominates the shortlist for the Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing with three novels written in verse – two by former shortlistees, Waterstones Children’s Laureate Joseph Coelho, and New York Times bestselling author Kwame Alexander, and one debut, Tia Fisher – alongside a poetry collection by prolific children’s writer Nicola Davies.  
• The shortlists include a further two debuts; Nathanael Lessore for the Medal for Writing, and Chloe Savage for the Medal for Illustration.  
• Independent Welsh publisher and British Book Award Small Press of the Year finalist Graffeg have a shortlisted title in each category.  
• Journeys, literal and metaphorical, are a common theme across both lists, with books encouraging empathy and hope and promoting an understanding of historical and contemporary global issues, including the environment.  

The Yoto Carnegies celebrate outstanding achievement in children’s writing and illustration and are unique in being judged by librarians, with respective Shadowers’ Choice Medals voted for by children and young people.  

16 books have been shortlisted in total, with eight in each category for the Carnegie Medal for Writing and Carnegie Medal for Illustration; whittled down from the 36 longlisted titles by the expert judging panel which includes 12 librarians from CILIP: the library and information association’s Youth Libraries Group. 

The 2024 Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing shortlist is (alphabetical by author surname):  

• The Door of No Return by Kwame Alexander (Andersen Press) 
• The Song Walker by Zillah Bethell (Usborne) 
• Away with Words by Sophie Cameron (Little Tiger) 
• The Boy Lost in the Maze by Joseph Coelho, illustrated by Kate Milner  
  (Otter-Barry Books) 
• Choose Love by Nicola Davies, illustrated by Petr Horáček (Graffeg) 
• Crossing the Line by Tia Fisher (Bonnier Books UK) 
• Safiyyah’s War by Hiba Noor Khan (Andersen Press) 
• Steady for This by Nathanael Lessore (Bonnier Books UK) 

The 2024 Yoto Carnegie Medal for Illustration shortlist is (alphabetical by illustrator surname):  

• The Tree and the River by Aaron Becker (Walker Books) 
• April’s Garden by Catalina Echeverri, written by Isla McGuckin (Graffeg) 
• Lost by Mariajo Ilustrajo (Quarto) 
• The Wilderness by Steve McCarthy (Walker Books) 
• To the Other Side by Erika Meza (Hachette Children’s Group) 
• The Midnight Panther by Poonam Mistry (Bonnier Books UK) 
• The Bowerbird by Catherine Rayner, written by Julia Donaldson (Macmillan Children’s Books) 
• The Search for the Giant Arctic Jellyfish by Chloe Savage (Walker Books)  
   

Maura Farrelly, Chair of Judges for The Yoto Carnegies 2024, said:  

“The judges have worked incredibly hard to select 16 outstanding books; books that celebrate the very best of writing and illustration for children and young people. These are books to empower young readers, and for some will provide validation and refuge; stories of courage, of characters striving to find themselves and their place in the world, often in difficult or dangerous situations. The books shortlisted for the writing medal exemplify immersive and compelling writing with the power to inspire and move readers across a range of forms. The illustration shortlist is entirely comprised of picture books, with a strong theme of the environment, underlining the way picture books can speak to all ages, and showing how nature and illustrated books can heal and empower. We are excited to share these lists with shadowing groups and young readers, and very much look forward to reading their reviews and discovering their winners, alongside our own, at the announcement in June.” 

The winners will be announced and celebrated on Thursday 20 June at a live and streamed ceremony at the Cambridge Theatre, home of the RSC’s award-winning Matilda The Musical. The ceremony will be hosted by Manjeet Mann, winner of the 2021 Shadowers’ Choice Medal for Writing for her debut novel, Run, Rebel. Her second novel, The Crossing, was shortlisted for the Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing in 2022.  

The winners will each receive a specially commissioned golden medal and a £5,000 Colin Mears Award cash prize. The winners of the Shadowers’ Choice Medals – voted for and awarded by the children and young people – will also be presented at the ceremony. They will also receive a golden medal and, for the first time this year, £500 worth of books to donate to a library of their choice. 

As the official book supplier, Scholastic are working with CILIP to donate shortlist packs to 10 schools in disadvantaged areas to allow them to also take part in the shadowing and widen the reach of engagement with the awards. Applications will be open from 22 – 28 March with packs to be sent out immediately afterwards to the selected schools.  

Scholastic will again be presenting a week of events celebrating the shortlist on their Scholastic Schools Live platform from Monday 15 April. Each 30-minute event will feature a shortlisted author or illustrator as well as a behind-the-scenes event with the judges. Schools and libraries will be able to sign up for free on the Scholastic website. 

THE SHORTLIST IN MORE DETAIL 

Winner of the 2009 Medal for Illustration, Catherine Rayner is shortlisted for The Bowerbird, written by Julia Donaldson. The judges described it as a “charming and absorbing story” with “wonderful, sketchy style illustrations” which give “a lively sense of movement” to Bert the bowerbird looking for love. 

Shortlisted three times previously for the Medal for Illustration, Poonam Mistry secures her place on the shortlist again with The Midnight Panther, a fable about courage and finding your place in the world. Incorporating her love of nature, her Indian roots and exploring the relationships between pattern, shapes and colour, the judges admired her “intricate and artistic style” and “incredible composition and perspective”. 

Debut illustrator and graduate of The Cambridge School of Art, Chloe Savage is shortlisted for her “vibrant and lively story” The Search for the Giant Arctic Jellyfish, an inspiring adventure about delving into the unknown told with “humour and playfulness in the illustrations”.  

An “empathetic” historical verse novel with a focus on the era of pre-slavery, The Door of No Return is a “hard-hitting, intelligent” story by poet, educator, publisher and New York Times bestselling author Kwame Alexander, following 11-year-old Kofi who is taken away from everything he loves in the hope of freedom. It is one of three novels in verse shortlisted this year. 

The second comes from Waterstones Children’s Laureate and former shortlisted author Joseph Coelho. The Boy Lost in the Maze, illustrated by Kate Milner is a “beautiful and emotionally satisfying” novel in verse portraying a boy’s journey into manhood. Blending the ancient legend of the Minotaur with the quest of a modern-day teenager to find his biological father, Coelho has produced a “truly immersive experience”. 

Tia Fisher’s debut Crossing the Line is the third; a powerful verse novel based on a true story about how teenagers can be swept up into county lines. “Emotive and believable”, it is told with authenticity, with the language adding vibrant meaning to an “innovative and engaging” story.  

Poignant poetry collection Choose Love by Nicola Davies, illustrated by Petr Horáček, highlights the real-life experiences of refugees shared with the support of charity Refugee Trauma Initiative. These short-form poems based on true stories are “powerful enough to ignite new ways of thinking and feeling” and “leave a lasting impression on readers”. This is Nicola’s first shortlisting. Several books she has written have previously been shortlisted for the Illustration medal. 

Debut author Nathanael Lessore balances serious issues with humour in Steady for This, the story of a wannabe rapper who is humiliated by an MC Battle gone wrong. With original use of language and raps featured throughout, and relatable themes of peer pressure, social inequality and new friendships, the judges called it a “stand out, highly empathic read”. 

Safiyyah’s War is the debut middle-grade fiction from children’s author, physics teacher, activist and Global Diplomacy graduate, Hiba Noor Khan. This “gripping” story is a well-researched, “outstanding account” of an often-overlooked aspect of WWII history, which “shows empathy in action” based on the forgotten heroes of the Grand Mosque of Paris who helped hide and protect Jews.  

Picture book To the Other Side by Erika Meza is a powerful and timely story exploring the journey of two young refugee children in search of safety. The judges praised the “strong synergy between text and illustration” and “striking” composition to represent light and hope, fears and danger. 

Award-winning author Zillah Bethell earns her place on the shortlist with The Song Walker, an “immersive, memorable” story set in the Australian Outback about discovery and courage. A physical journey across the Outback entwined with a metaphorical emotional journey “stimulates empathy and understanding” as two girls go in search of answers about their identity whilst hiding secrets from each other.  

Away with Words by Sophie Cameron explores the importance of communication as two girls – one who speaks little English, and another with selective mutism – 

use the discarded words of others to communicate and write poetry. The judges described it as “a thoughtful, original concept” and “beautifully observed”. 

The only wordless picture book on this year’s shortlist for the Medal for Illustration, Aaron Becker’s “fully immersive” and “beautifully crafted” The Tree and the River looks at the evolution of humankind and our impact on the natural world through depictions over time of a lone tree and enduring river. To prepare for the story’s illustrations, Becker first constructed a scale model of the book’s rolling landscape, which he then slowly transformed with clay and wood over many months. 

A touching story about a young girl coming to terms with a dramatic change, April’s Garden by Catalina Echeverri uses nature to represent healing and growth with the illustrations showing “a beautiful sense of continuity”. The judges admired the “outstanding” use of colours.  

Lost by Mariajo Ilustrajo follows the story of a polar bear in a large city with a “strong” visual narrative and “good use of angular perspective and scale” with illustrations to convey the sense of feeling overwhelmed and claustrophobic in an overbearing busy city, contrasting with the more expansive scenes in the Arctic.  

Irish illustrator Steve McCarthy explores nature and the environment in The Wilderness, an “impressive” picture book about bravery and discovering friendships inspired by McCarthy’s own home-schooled upbringing. Judges noted “a wealth of detail to discover on each spread”.  

Yoto, the innovative, screen-free audio platform for children, is the headline sponsor of the Awards. The Yoto Carnegies are also sponsored by ALCS. Scholastic are the official book supplier and First News are the official media partner. 

– ENDS – 

For further information on The Yoto Carnegies 2024 please visit: www.yotocarnegies.co.uk 

#YotoCarnegies24 | @CarnegieMedals 

For media and interview requests, please contact: 
Annabelle Wright or Sabina Maharjan at ed public relations on  
annabelle@edpr.co.uk or sabina@edpr.co.uk or 020 7732 4796. 

Author and illustrator biographies and images, book synopses and jackets  
are available to download here.  

NOTES TO EDITORS: 

About The Yoto Carnegies 

• The Yoto Carnegies celebrate outstanding achievement in children’s writing and illustration respectively and are unique in being judged solely by librarians.  
• The Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing is awarded annually to a children’s book author whose writing creates an outstanding reading experience. It was established in 1936 in memory of the Scottish-born philanthropist, Andrew Carnegie (1835-1919).  
• The Yoto Carnegie Medal for Illustration (previously known as the Kate Greenaway Medal), established in 1955, is awarded annually to a children’s book illustrator whose artwork creates an outstanding reading experience.  
• Each year thousands of reading groups in schools and libraries in the UK and overseas get involved in the Awards, with children and young people ‘shadowing’ the judging process. They read, discuss and review the books on the shortlists, get involved in reading related activities in groups, and vote for their favourite books to win the Yoto Carnegie Shadowers’ Choice Medals for Writing and Illustration.  
• In 2023 the Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing was awarded to a book in translation for the first time in the awards almost 90-year history, The Blue Book of Nebo (Firefly Press), written and translated by Manon Steffan Ros. Jeet Zdung won the Yoto Carnegie Medal for Illustration for Saving Sorya: Chang and the Sun Bear, (Kingfisher, an imprint of Macmillan Children’s Books). This was the second consecutive year that a graphic novel has clinched the prize.  
• The 2023 Yoto Carnegie Shadowers’ Choice Medals voted for by children and young people were awarded to I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys for the Yoto Carnegie Shadowers’ Choice Medal for Writing, and The Comet by Joe Todd-Stanton for the Yoto Carnegie Shadowers’ Choice Medal for Illustration.  

About Yoto 

• Yoto is an interactive audio platform for kids. Yoto offer a catalogue of over 1,200 stories, songs, activities and more to inspire creative play and learning without a screen. The carefully connected audio players, Yoto Player (3rd Generation) and Yoto Mini, put kids safely in control. No cameras. No microphones. No ads.  
• Inspired by Montessori principles, Ben Drury and Filip Denker founded Yoto in 2017. Yoto Player was designed with renowned design agency, Pentagram, and launched in early 2020. Yoto Mini, the portable audio player, launched in late 2021. The new and improved third generation Yoto Player arrived in summer 2023. 
• Now available worldwide, Yoto has won awards and accolades from critics, parents and children alike. TIME Magazine even named it one of the Best Inventions of 2020 and Yoto Mini won a prestigious D&AD Pencil in 2022. Yoto has just been named one of Bloomberg’s Top Start Ups to watch. Yoto were named the second fastest growing tech company by Deloitte in 2023. 
• Yoto’s platform features both award-winning original content and audio that has been licensed or co-created with partners. These partners include PRH, Macmillan, Universal Music Group, Sony, Warner Music, Mattel, Disney, LEGO, Roald Dahl Story Company, HarperCollins, Hachette, Bonnier and Scholastic. 

About CILIP, the library and information association 

• The Yoto Carnegies are managed by CILIP, the library and information association. The Medals are awarded annually by CILIP and the Youth Libraries Group (YLG) with longlists announced in February, shortlists in March and the winners announced at a ceremony in June. 
• CILIP is the leading voice for the information, knowledge management and library profession. Our goal is to put information and library skills and professional values at the heart of a democratic, equal and prosperous society.  
• CILIP is a registered charity, no. 313014. The YLG is a special interest group of CILIP who work to preserve and influence the provision of quality literature and library services for children and young people, both in public libraries and school library services. 
• YLG has 12 regional committees covering all of the UK, and each committee advertises and democratically recruits a judge to represent them on the panel of judges. Each judge serves a two-year term and each year the panel is a unique mix of new and experienced judges led by the Chair of Judges. Following the independent diversity review of the Awards, CILIP introduced a co-opting procedure so that if this recruitment process does not result in a sufficiently diverse and representative judging panel, up to two judges will be co-opted to join the panel. 
• In 2024, the judging panel includes 12 volunteer judges from CILIP’s Youth Libraries Group and Chair of Judges Maura Farrelly. Find out more about this year’s judges here. 

About Scholastic 

• For 100 years, Scholastic Corporation has been encouraging the personal and intellectual growth of all children, beginning with literacy. Having earned a reputation as a trusted partner to educators and families, Scholastic is the world’s largest publisher and distributor of children’s books, a leading provider of literacy curriculum, professional services, and classroom magazines, and a producer of educational and entertaining children’s media. The Company creates and distributes bestselling books and e-books, print and technology-based learning programs for pre-K to grade 12, and other products and services that support children’s learning and literacy, both in school and at home. With 15 international operations and exports to 165 countries, Scholastic makes quality, affordable books available to all children around the world through school-based book clubs and book fairs, classroom libraries, school and public libraries, retail, and online. 
• The longlist is available to order on their shop now. Learn more at www.scholastic.com.  

About ALCS 

• The Authors’ Licensing and Collecting Society (ALCS) is a not-for-profit organisation started by writers for the benefit of all types of writers. Owned by its members, ALCS collects money due for secondary uses of writers’ work. It is designed to support authors and their creativity; ensure they receive fair payment and see their rights are respected. It promotes and teaches the principles of copyright and campaigns for a fair deal. It represents over 120,000 members, and since 1977 has paid over £650million to writers.  
• For more information visit www.alcs.co.uk. 

About First News 

• First News is the official media partner for the Yoto Carnegies 2024. 
• First News provides children and young people with a reliable and age-appropriate news source through their award-winning newspaper, app and learning resources. 
• First News was founded by Nicky Cox MBE and Sarah Thomson in 2006 with a mission that remains true today: to offer trustworthy, age-appropriate news to children, enhance critical thinking skills, promote reading for pleasure, and nurture global citizenship.  
• First News is the number one national newspaper for children reaching over 2.6 million children every week at home and at school.  
• Expertly written by award-winning journalists, First News takes the fear our of sensationalised world events that children hear by providing a balanced and truthful view of the world, carefully, and sensitively written to explain the background to stories in the news.  
• For more information visit www.firstnews.co.uk.