Book of the Year - Non-Fiction: Lifestyle & Illustrated
Book of the Year - Non-Fiction: Lifestyle & Illustrated Winner and Shortlist
This year’s shortlist is one to tickle the tastebuds, with no fewer than four foodie books in the mix, from Greek-inspired everyday dishes to the not-so-humble baked potato, Insta-friendly recipes to the meals eaten by a Hollywood star. Rounding out this category is a manifesto for midlife and a beautifully illustrated celebration of the garden.
The Winner
What I Ate in One Year
Stanley Tucci
Fig Tree
Stanley Tucci has become one of the most popular faces of food writing since his memoir Taste, capturing readers’ attention with everything from titbits from his dinner table to his iconic negroni recipe. What I Ate in One Year took this year’s crown for its “classy” approach to food writing that also offers vignettes of the actor’s working and family life.
Our judges adored how the collection of diary entries offered both a “big celebration of food” and quieter meditations on death, life and parenting. What I Ate in One Year represented “event publishing”, our panel agreed. Fig Tree approached the campaign with the same passion Tucci has for his favourite meals, developing a “seamless” initiative that maximised his available time. It is an example of “fun” and “quirky” publishing that has made Tucci’s writing instantly recognisable.
The Shortlist
A Better Second Half
Liz Earle
Yellow Kite
Billed as a “manifesto for midlife women”, A Better Second Half is Liz Earle’s biggest-selling book ever, with sales up 51% on her previous book, The Good Menopause Guide. Yellow Kite focused on driving pre-orders, partnering with cutting-edge wellness brands and Waterstones for pre-order prize draws and securing high-profile media coverage, including serial and first interview with the Telegraph’s Saturday magazine, while a 10-date book and ticket tour ensured chart-topping sales on publication.
Drawn to the Garden
Caroline Quentin
Frances Lincoln
Unable to carry out her usual hectic filming schedule over lockdown, actress Caroline Quentin turned to her garden, sharing her joys and disasters on Instagram. Frances Lincoln spotted the potential, and the result is both written and illustrated by Quentin. As a self-confessed “non-expert”, this giftable hardback stood out among other gardening titles. After the last-minute cancellation of a theatre tour, the marketing team pivoted to secure multiple independent bookshop events at short notice and indie support was central to the book’s success.
Greekish
Georgina Hayden
Bloomsbury Publishing
Bringing the author’s “universally cookable” everyday recipes with Greek roots to a whole new audience was Bloomsbury’s ambition for Georgina Hayden’s fourth cookbook. The jacket design was key, inspired by Matisse’s cut outs, the gorgeous, saturated colour palette made the book really stand out online and on the shelves. Social advertising to the author’s digital native audience, as well as a retailer spread from indies to supermarkets, helped deliver the author’s best-ever sales for Greekish.
So Good
Emily English
Seven Dials
Seven Dials was one of multiple publishers that approached Instagram’s EmtheNutrionist about a book. Once Emily English was on board, the publisher targeted both her established digital followers and a stretch audience of 35+ buyers with young families. Using fan comments and rotating recipe images in online advertising, and lining up traditional media in the form of a TV appearance on This Morning, Seven Dials set up a major cookery brand of the future: So Good achieved an incredible 35,000 pre-orders and shifted over 100,000 copies (TCM), making it the biggest cookery debut of 2024.
Spud Man's Spudtacular Baked Potato Cookbook
Spud Man
HarperNorth
Ben Newman, aka Spudman, runs his Spudwagon in the centre of Tamworth, regularly livestreaming to his five million followers. HarperNorth spotted his distinctive pink Mohican, star quality and excellent baked potatoes, and organised a publicity blitz to propel the author to offline stardom. Recipes from the book were serialised and extracted in the Sun, Closer and the Daily Mail, and Spudman appeared on BBC Breakfast, This Morning and Saturday Kitchen.
What I Ate in One Year
Stanley Tucci
Fig Tree
Following Stanley Tucci’s first foodie memoir Taste, his literary agent (and wife) suggested he keep a diary to capture his days, his thoughts and his meals. When the 2023 Hollywood writers’ strike put his filming projects on hold, What I Ate in One Year was born. Fig Tree had limited time with the busy actor-author for publicity and, making use of every moment, had him record a 30-second script for the radio ads and video-on-demand trailer while he was working on the audiobook. What I Ate in One Year was the top-selling autobiography from a non-UK writer in 2024.
