The Bookseller.com

9th January 2009

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Children's illustrators compete for prize

28.01.08 Alison Flood

Booktrust has selected a longlist of 27 children's illustrators as part of its Big Picture campaign, which is intended to raise the profile of children's picture books. Ten winners will be selected from the 27 illustrators by the Big Picture committee, and will be revealed by Michael Rosen at the Bologna Children's Book Fair on 31st March.

The ten winners will participate in promotional activity intended to raise the significance and importance of illustration. This will include collaboration with Rough Guides to produce The Rough Guide to Picture Books, due in April 2008. The illustrators will also be appearing in a range of library, festival and bookshop events and promotions throughout 2008. They will also be involved with Waterstone's promotional campaign over the summer, "If you Liked….You'll Love", which is designed to introduce readers to modern illustrators and remind them of much loved classics.

The longlisted illustrators are:

Deborah Allwright
Laura Carlin
Alexis Deacon
Polly Dunbar
Lisa Evans
Shelley Fowles
Emily Gravett
Mini Grey
Laura Hambleton
Oliver Jeffers
Simone Lia
Sam Lloyd
David Lucas
Sarah Massini
Mei Matsuoka
Sam McCullen
Alice Melvin
Gwen Milward
Catherine Rayner
David Roberts
Viviane Schwarz
Joel Stewart
Il Sung Na
Kanako Usui
Vicky White
Thomas Doherty
Mungo M'Cosh

The Big Picture judging committee comprises author and illustrator Anthony Browne, Nicolette Jones, Antonia Byatt, director of literature strategy at Arts Council England, and author Malorie Blackman.

children's Alison Flood illustrator