The 2024 Booktrust Storytime Shortlist - The Best Books For Sharing With Young Children
Published on: 09 July 2023
BookTrust, the UK’s largest children’s charity has revealed the 2024 shortlist for the BookTrust Storytime Prize, highlighting the best books for sharing with babies and children under five.
Selected by a panel of expert librarians from across the country, the five shortlisted titles for the 2024 Prize are:
- Zeki Rise And Shine by Anna McQuinn & Ruth Hearson (Alanna Max)
- Are You A Monster by Guilherme Karsten (Happy Yak)
- The Perfect Present by Petr Horáček (Otter-Barry Books)
- Just Breathe, Bear by Christianne C. Jones & Oriol Vidal (Raintree Publishers)
- I Am Happy by Michael Rosen & Robert Starling (Walker Books)
The shortlisted titles are a brilliant collection of books that cover foundational aspects of early years learning and development. From a joyful celebration of the morning routine (Zeki Rise And Shine), the chance to be loud and have fun together (Are You A Monster) and a heart-warming journey of imagination and friendship (The Perfect Present), to a gentle journey of managing emotions (Just Breathe Bear) and an energetic exploration of feelings and self-expression (I Am Happy).
Copies of the books will be available in all libraries again participating in BookTrust Storytime and will be used with specially created resources and activities to create memorable story sharing experiences that attract new visitors to libraries and keep them coming back.
BookTrust Storytime was developed in collaboration with families, libraries and local authorities and designed to support libraries across England and Northern Ireland.
With the aim of inspiring and engaging families with children under the age of five, especially those on lower incomes, with books, stories and rhymes, Storytime sessions encourage them to make visiting their local public library a regular part of family life.
Instilling a reading habit as early in life as possible helps to build confidence and enjoyment of sharing books and has been proven to positively impact children’s mental wellbeing, health, education and creativity – reading and sharing stories is shown to improve life chances and give children the best start.
Families and librarians taking part in BookTrust Storytime 2023-24 will also once again have the chance to vote for their favourite book and the creators of the winning title will receive a £5,000 prize.
Last year’s prize winner was ‘Can You Tickle A Tiger?’ by Bobbie Brooks & Carrie Hennon (Imagine That).
Topics: News, Storytime Prize
