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Chris Riddell and Pamela Butchart are among the authors shortlisted for this year’s Blue Peter Book Awards.
The awards are divided into two categories – best book with facts and best story – and three books are shortlisted in each.
In the best book with facts category, the shortlisted titles are Animalium by Jenny Broom and Katie Scott (Big Picture Press), Corpse Talk: Season 1 by Adam Murphy (David Fickling Books) and The Silly Book of Side-Splitting Stuff by Andy Seed and Scott Garrett (Bloomsbury).
In the best story award, the shortlisted titles are Boy in the Tower by Polly Ho-Yen (Doubleday Children’s), Goth Girl and the Fete Worse Than Death by Chris Riddell (Macmillan Children’s Books) and The Spy Who Loved School Dinners by Pamela Butchart and Thomas Flintham (Nosy Crow).
Anna James, editor of We Love This Book and one of the judges, said: "I'm really pleased with the shortlists that we've chosen, which have something for any reader. What I love about the three books we've chosen for the best story award is that you could give any of them to any reader and they'll be captivated straight away. The three books withfacts are wonderfully varied and show the different but wonderful ways that authors and illustrators are creating fact books for children at the moment.”
The shortlist was announced live on CBBC’s Blue Peter yesterday (4th December) by author and former children’s laureate Michael Morpurgo. As well as James, the judges were author Liz Pichon, Rastamouse creator Michael de Souza and Blue Peter editor Ewan Vinnicombe.
Around 200 children from 10 schools in the UK will now read the shortlist and vote for their favourites in each category. The winner will be announced on World Book Day on the 5th March 2015.
Last year, Tony Robinson won the award for book with facts with Weird World of Wonders: World War II, illustrated by Thomas Flintham (Macmillan Children's Books). Katherine Rundell received the story award for Rooftoppers (Faber Children’s).