publication date: Feb 3, 2012
From a young
James Bond to a reluctant
teenage superspy, an infamous
boy wizard and an underage
First World War soldier, miniature action heroes abound in the
shortlist which features the
bestselling children’s fiction books published in the last ten years, with only
one book per author included.
The
ten books competing for the
accolade (in title order) are:
- Alex Rider Mission 3: Skeleton Key by Anthony Horowitz (Walker Books, 2002)
- Candyfloss by Jacqueline Wilson, illustrated by Nick Sharratt (Random House Children’s Books, 2006)
- Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney (Puffin, 2008)
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J K Rowling (Bloomsbury, 2003)
- Horrid Henry and the Football Fiend by Francesca Simon, illustrated by Tony Ross (Orion Children’s Books, 2006)
- Mr Stink by David Walliams, illustrated by Quentin Blake (HarperCollins Children’s Books, 2009)
- Private Peaceful by Michael Morpurgo (HarperCollins Children’s Books, 2003)
- The Series of Unfortunate Events: Austere Academy by Lemony Snicket (Egmont Books, 2002)
- Theodore Boone by John Grisham (Hodder & Stoughton, 2010)
- Young Bond: SilverFin ─ A James Bond Adventure by Charlie Higson (Puffin, 2005)
The
shortlist for the vote is made up of the
ten bestselling (by volume)
fiction books of the last ten years for
five to 11 year olds with a first publication date between January 2002 and December 2011. Only the
top-selling book per individual, named
author is included.
The
shortlist will feature on
Blue Peter’s website for
three weeks, during which time children
under the age of
16 can log on with their
BBC iD and vote for their favourite. The
vote will close at
4pm on Thursday 23 February.
The winning book will be announced on
Blue Peter on 1 March (5.45pm, CBBC), alongside the winner of the annual
Blue Peter Book of the Year Award on a special show dedicated to books to tie-in with
World Book Day. Blue Peter will invite the winning author to collect a ‘
Best Children’s Book of the Last Ten Years’ trophy on the show.