The Roald Dahl Funny Prize
Booktrust, in association with Children’s Laureate Michael Rosen, is delighted to announce the inaugural Roald Dahl Funny Prize.
This new prize has two categories –
The Funniest Book for Children Aged Six and Under
The Funniest Book for Children Aged Seven to Fourteen.
Fiction, non-fiction and poetry will be welcomed.
Shortlists
A shortlist of six books in each category was announced on 8 September to tie in with the third Roald Dahl Day on 13 September.
The Funniest Book for Children Aged Six and Under
Stick Man by Julia Donaldson, illus. Axel Scheffler (Alison Green Books)
Elephant Wellyphant by Nick Sharratt (Alison Green Books)
The Great Paper Caper by Oliver Jeffers (HarperCollins Children’s Books)
The Witch’s Children Go to School by Ursula Jones, illus. Russell Ayto (Orchard Books)
There’s an Ouch in My Pouch! by Jeanne Willis, illus. Garry Parsons (Puffin Books)
Manfred the Baddie by John Fardell (Quercus Books)
The Funniest Book for Children Aged Seven to Fourteen
Mr Gum and the Dancing Bear by Andy Stanton, illus. David Tazzyman (Egmont Press)
Paddington Here and Now by Michael Bond, illus. RW Alley (HarperCollins Children’s Books)
Stop in the Name of Pants! by Louise Rennison (HarperCollins Children’s Books)
Cosmic by Frank Cottrell Boyce (Macmillan Children’s Books)
Aliens Don’t Eat Dog Food by Dinah Capparucci (Scholastic Children’s Books)
Urgum and the Goo Goo Bah! by Kjartan Poskitt, illus. Philip Reeve (Scholastic Children’s Books)
Commenting on the shortlist, Michael Rosen said:
"It was a joy and a half to sit round a table, knee-deep in funny books, talking about them with a group of clever, humorous and thoughtful people. Almost all children love funny books, it's what helps hook them into the reading habit. Parents are always on the lookout for funny books to read to their children or to give them as surprises and presents. Now, with these 12 titles, pared down from hundreds that we received, we have the cream of this year's crop. I swear I heard Roald Dahl chortling in the background as we waved the books at each other. I should add that there was a good deal of discussion, argument - is this a smile-book a laugh-book? Is this a book that adults will find funny and children won't? Does it matter if the text is funny but the pictures aren't? And vice versa? Does a funny book need a perfect punchline?
We think we've covered all ages here from a two year old's giggle to a teen's wry snort. Which ones will be the winners? Why not read all twelve and pick your own?"
The winner of each category will receive £2,500, which will be presented at an awards ceremony in London on 13 November 2008.
Competition
Win the chance to attend the Funny Prize award ceremony! Find out more.
More about the prize
Michael Rosen explains:
'If there had been a prize for funny books when Roald Dahl was writing, he would have won it with every book he wrote! That’s why this award was named in his honour.
'Children love funny books but when adults draw up lists of the best books they nearly always leave the funny ones out. When I became the Children’s Laureate, I said that my job should be as an ambassador for fun. That's why I came up with the idea of this funny prize, all part of the job!”
The Roald Dahl Funny Prize aims to:
> promote laughter and humour as a feel-good factor when reading, by encouraging families to read together and discover the pleasure of humorous (funny) books. This in turn will reinforce the message that reading together promotes family well-being.
> draw attention to funny books as readable and enjoyable books. We hope that the prize will enable these books to gain a profile that makes them more accessible to children and young people. The prize will work to achieve this through a range of activities supported by libraries, teachers and parents.
> reward and encourage authors (and illustrators) who write and illustrate books using humour in their stories, poetry and fiction. By creating these awards we hope to promote a vibrant area of publishing often overlooked by other awards.
