Phoenix Book Award

Dan Smith wins 2017 Phoenix Book Award for Boy X

Huge congratulations to Dan Smith who won the Phoenix Book Award 2017 for Boy X!

On 4th May 2017 students from Elmgreen, Dunraven, Lilian Baylis, La Retraite, Streatham & Clapham High School and Platenos gathered at The Norwood School for the much anticipated finale celebration.

It was a fantastic morning filled with student presentations, film and drama. We were very lucky to have two of the shortlisted authors, Dan Smith and Katherine Woodfine, in attendance. Both gave fantastic presentations on their love of reading, their books and inspirations.

We were also very honoured to host Mayor Marcia Cameron who delivered an inspiring speech on her love for reading before handing out prizes and certificates to the students.

All 4 of the shortlisted books had been thoroughly enjoyed by the book groups - but the winner, as voted for by the students, is the gripping thriller Boy X by Dan Smith!

Message from Dan:

"These kinds of awards always mean so much because the readers choose their favourite books, write reviews, and vote for the winner. In the case of the Phoenix Book Award, the students even choose the shortlist. On the day, the students were amazing - different schools championed different books, giving presentations, showing films, and there was even a short piece of drama written especially for the occasion! And when it was time to announce the winner, it was so exciting to hear Boy X being called out! The students were fantastic, the organisation was perfect, and it was a huge honour to win. Thank you to everyone who voted for Boy X - the trophy is now proudly displayed on my bookshelf."

Photos from the event can be found in our Photo Gallery.

Dan Smith's response to 2017 shortlist place

DAN SMITH SAYS: "I am honoured and thrilled that Boy X has been shortlisted for the Phoenix Book Award! I wrote the book in the hope that younger readers would enjoy the adventure, so it's especially exciting to be shortlisted for an award like this - where the younger readers are in charge and they get to choose and vote for their favourites!"

G R Gemin's response to 2017 shortlist place

G R GEMIN SAYS: "When you write a book you are communicating, but you never know how your writing will be received by readers. So when Sweet Pizza was shortlisted for the Lambeth Phoenix Award it made all the hard work worthwhile.

I believe the book has an important message for its readers, which is we all have a story, and that history does not necessarily begin in the country in which we are born. We all have histories: our parents, grandparents and carers all have their stories which are important to know and remember. In the story of Sweet Pizza Joe finds out about the history of his grandfather and great grandfather. You too can do the same - you can ask your parents and grandparents or carers about their stories, their histories. It is called oral history. It is just as vital as the many history books and stories that you will come to know through your school work and research.

So I invite you to find out about your family histories and record them in a document, on paper or on computer, because I guarantee that as you grow older you will be glad you did it, as it will be a record that is unique to you and your family for years to come.

Thank you for shortlisting Sweet Pizza, I'm really sorry I can't be at the award event but I wish you enjoyment in reading and discovering all there is to know about your families and where you come from."

Robert Beatty's response to 2017 shortlist place

ROBERT BEATTY SAYS: "Thank you so much for nominating Serafina and the Black Cloak for the 2017 Lambeth Phoenix Book Award. I am so pleased and honored that the first book in the Serafina Series is one of your favorite books this year. I wrote Serafina and the Black Cloak with my daughters when they were 10 and 12 years old. They helped me to create the Serafina character and the story. They were very excited to hear about being nominated for this award. So, thank you for that.

Also, if you haven’t done so already, please be sure to watch the book trailers for the first two books in the series. My family and I made these trailers near our home where the books are set. My wife made the beautiful costumes, my younger daughter plays the Serafina role, and my older daughter plays the role of Lady Rowena (book 2). We even used our dog in the trailer! :)

http://robert-beatty.com/serafina-book-trailer/
http://robert-beatty.com/serafina-twisted-staff-book-trailer/

Good luck in the final phase of Book Award process. We look forward to learning the results. And best of luck with your studies and the remainder of the school year.

2017 Shortlist Announced

The shortlist for the 2017 Phoenix Book Award has been announced. Please visit our Books page for full details.