Administered by NASEN (the National Association of SpecialEducational Needs) it is amongst the least well-known of children’s book awards, but one which surely deserves greater recognition.
It is the award which exists to recognise mainstream children’s books that present a positive image of (or message about) disability.
The reason for its low profile is surely due (at least in part) to the fact that there are only a handful of books each year which are even eligible, despite the fact that it welcomes books for all ages.
Despite considerable recent activity in this area (and in particular Scope’s In the Picture project) only a handful of new children’s books published each year actually feature disabled characters. With so few books nominated by publishers, the award often passes by largely unnoticed.
Considering the volume of children’s books published every year, and the fact that as many as one in five children are disabled in some way, it’s rather reprehensible that so few books suitably reflect the diverse society we live in, and that even fewer do so in a really effective and fully-rounded way.
A total of 25 titles were submitted for the 2009 award – more than the previous year. However, many of these nominations – despite being great reads – were in fact completely irrelevant to the theme of disability. Likewise, a number of books touched on disability without adding any real depth or value.
Whilst admittedly this made the role of judging easier, the members of the panel were more than a little disappointed.
The panel comprised myself (a book consultant, passionate about the subject of disability in books), Kathy Saunders (creator of ‘Happy Ever Afters’), Ros Bartlett (teacher) and students Sophie, Gabriella, Rachel and Harry from the Earls High School in the West Midlands.
The panel was also ably assisted by a group of staff and students from Treloar School and College in Hampshire. This was a new development for 2009 and around 20 students read and reviewed books, feeding their views back to the main panel. This feedback from young disabled people brought new insight to the judging process and we envisage developing this pilot further in future years.
Due to the small number of eligible books, it was relatively straightforward to refine the list down to just a handful of real gems. These were in turn pruned down to a shortlist of just three:
Dandylion by Lizzie Finlay (published by Red Fox).
This is a bright, quirky and very original picture book. It’s the story of a new arrival in class (Dandylion) who creates complete chaos (not to mention bags of fun) in a rather orderly and ordinary classroom. When his unconventional behaviour is considered too disruptive, his future at the school looks uncertain. Then thankfully a teacher conjures up an unusual and fun way of ensuring that Dandylion can indeed be included and accepted. The book offers a lively style of illustration and represents a wonderful celebration of differentness. The nature of Dandylion’s ‘disability’ is non-specific, and the panel felt that by using the book in early years settings, a powerful message about celebrating diversity could be shared.
Zelah Green: Queen of Clean by Vanessa Curtis (published by Egmont).
In Zelah, we meet a girl whose life has become dominated by OCD. Zelah is (in her own words) “packed off to a place with some crazy people” to try to confront her disorder. The book follows her progress, but we also meet a number of other characters, each facing their own challenges which include eating disorders and self-harming. It is a thoroughly engaging and very ‘readable’ book, which offers a valuable insight into OCD and other common disorders, through really convincing and likeable characters. It’s a rare that a book successfully tackles such hard-hitting issues, whilst remaining thoroughly entertaining throughout. Importantly, it also provides a message which is both realistic and ultimately hopeful.
Running on Cracks by Julia Donaldson (published by Egmont): overall winner.
This is the story of a 14-year-old runaway, Leo, and the powerful friendships she develops in her new life on the streets of Glasgow. The main focus of the book is Leo’s own predicament (the question of what or who she is running from, why and what will happen to her), however what makes the book even more intriguing (and so relevant to this award) is its sensitive and realistic treatment of adult mental health problems.
This a subject which is so often misunderstood by society – and undoubtedly neglected by children’s books. The judges felt that this book could play a valuable role in reducing stigma and fear of the unknown. It is lively, accessible, tense, compelling - and extremely well written. Whilst all three shortlisted titles were loved by the panel, it was this book’s broad, cross-gender appeal and fast-paced drama which successfully won it first place.
While it is commendable that an award like this exists to celebrate such exceptional titles, we need more books such as these – many more. These are not ‘specialist’ books for ‘special’ audiences, but rather mainstream reads with mass-market appeal.
I would therefore use this opportunity to urge more publishers to consider their lists and whether they have anything relevant (and if not – why not?) I would like to urge publishers, writers and illustrators to be creative, be inspired, be brave – and find ways to include more disabled characters.
The resources are there to help you – for example Scope’s In the Picture website ( www.childreninthepicture.org.uk) and Booktrust’s Equal Measures seminar at the London Book Fair (contact me for details).
We hope that with your help we can ensure that children’s books really do start to better reflect the diverse world we live in.
Alexandra Strick, Booktrust Consultant (disability issues)
