Thank You!

Dear followers of the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award blog,

We started this blog in 2009 in order to make it easier for you to follow our work. But time changes and so do we! During 2018 we decided to put this blog on hold and will therefore not be writing any new posts. We would like to thank those of you who have been with us all this time, especially those of you who have been writing for us! And don’t worry, the blog will be kept alive for you to read previous – and still inspiring post.

Want to stay up to date with ALMA? Please sign up for our newsletter to make sure you don’t miss any information on upcoming events or reports on the laureates! You can easily subscribe, just follow the links below:

Sign up for our English newsletter

Sign up for our Swedish newsletter

Please also welcome to follow us on Twitter and Facebook. Keep up your work for children’s literature worldwide!

Kind Regards
The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award office in Stockholm, Sweden

Nominees for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award 2019 to be announced

The candidates for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award 2019 will be presented on October 11th at the Frankfurt Book Fair. The award amounts to SEK 5 million (approx. EUR 570 000), making it the world’s largest award for children’s and young adult literature. So far, eighteen laureates have received the award. The current laureate is the American author Jacqueline Woodson, with her successor due to be announced 2 April. 

According to the tradition, the ALMA jury chair Boel Westin will present the nomination list at the Frankfurt Book Fair. The nominees are authors, illustrators, oral storytellers and promoters of reading who have been suggested by more than 100 nomination bodies from around the world with in-depth knowledge about children’s and young adult literature.

Welcome to join us on Thursday October 11th at 5 pm at the Frankfurt Kids Stage, Foyer 5.1 / 6.1.
See the full programme here.

The nomination list of 2019 will be available on http://www.alma.se/en shortly after the programme. The 2019 ALMA laureate will be announced on April 2nd.

For questions and interviews, please contact Communications Officer Mariella Kucer +46 76 540 10 17, mariella.kucer@alma.se

Previous ALMA laureates

2018 Jacqueline Woodson, United States

2017 Wolf Erlbruch, Germany

2016 Meg Rosoff, United Kingdom/United States

2015 PRAESA, South Africa

2014 Barbro Lindgren, Sweden

2013 Isol, Argentina

2012 Guus Kuijer, The Netherlands

2011 Shaun Tan, Australia

2010 Kitty Crowther, Belgium

2009 Tamer Institute, Palestine

2008 Sonya Hartnett, Australia

2007 Banco del Libro, Venezuela

2006 Katherine Paterson, United States

2005 Ryôji Arai, Japan and Philip Pullman, United Kingdom

2004 Lygia Bojunga, Brazil

2003 Christine Nöstlinger, Austria and Maurice Sendak, United States

The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award (ALMA) is the world’s largest award for children’s and young adult literature. The award, which amounts to SEK 5 million, is given annually to a single laureate or to several. Authors, illustrators, oral storytellers and reading promoters are eligible. The award is designed to promote interest in children’s and young adult literature. The UN convention of rights of the child is the foundation of our work. An expert jury selects the laureate(s) from candidates nominated by institutions and organisations all over the world. The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award was founded by the Swedish government in 2002 and is administrated by the Swedish Arts Council.

Jacqueline Woodson in Sweden to receive the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award 2018

The American author Jacqueline Woodson is in Sweden to receive the world’s largest award for children’s and YA literature, the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award 2018, presented by H. R. H. Crown Princess Victoria. Members of the press are invited to cover the ALMA award ceremony in the Stockholm Concert Hall on May 28 from 5:45 p.m. to app. 7:00 p.m.

Jacqueline Woodson, an American author who writes about turning points in young people’s lives, is in Sweden to receive the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award. During ALMA week May 22-28 Woodson will meet Swedish media and do author talks, meet students and visit Astrid Lindgren’s childhood home in Vimmerby. The visit concludes with the festive award ceremony in the Stockholm Concert Hall where H. R. H. Crown Princess Victoria will present Jacqueline Woodson with the prize diploma and Swedish Minister for Culture and Democracy Alice Bah Kuhnke will give an address in her honor. Navid Modiri will act as master of ceremonies. The program for invited guests also includes artist performances and entertainment.

For credentials, please contact Mariella Kucer at mariella.kucer@alma.se or +46 (0)76–5401017.

Pictures and high-resolution video from the ceremony will be published in the ALMA digital newsroom the same evening.

About Jacqueline Woodson
Jacqueline Woodson was born in 1963 and currently lives in Brooklyn. She published her first book in 1990 and has since written more than 30 titles, translated into some ten languages. She writes about turning points in young people’s lives and relationships in a world of prejudice and adversity. Her most celebrated title is the award-winning memoir Brown Girl Dreaming, shortly to be published in Swedish by Natur & Kultur as Brun flicka drömmer, translated by Athena Farrokhzad.

For more information, please contact:
Mariella Kucer, Communications Officer
Tel: +46 (0)76 540 10 17
E-mail: mariella.kucer@alma.se

The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award (ALMA) is the world’s largest award for children’s and young adult literature. The award, which amounts to SEK 5 million, is given annually to a single laureate or to several. Authors, illustrators, oral storytellers and reading promoters are eligible. The award is designed to promote interest in children’s and young adult literature. The UN convention of rights of the child is the foundation of our work. An expert jury selects the laureate(s) from candidates nominated by institutions and organisations all over the world. The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award was founded by the Swedish government in 2002 and is administrated by the Swedish Arts Council.

ALMA Laureate Jacqueline Woodson to Sweden

The American author Jacqueline Woodson will visit Stockholm to accept the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award. She will take part in a week of ALMA events from May 22–28, including lectures, school visits, meetings with young people and a trip to Astrid Lindgren’s childhood home in Vimmerby. Her visit will conclude with a ceremony at the Stockholm Concert Hall on May 28, in which H.R.H. Crown Princess Victoria will present her with the award.

Here are some of the events scheduled for ALMA week in Stockholm, May 22–28:

May 22, 6 PM: Jacqueline Woodson lectures in the auditorium of Kulturhuset Stadsteatern.Free admission.

May 23, 9–11 AM: Visit to the teachers, students and school librarian of Hjulsta Elementary in Tensta. Meeting with a representative of Woodson’s Swedish publisher, Natur & Kultur.

May 24, 9–11 AM: Study trip to the Lava Library; meeting with school classes. May 24, 2 PM: Meeting with the Swedish Academy for Children’s Books.

May 25–26:Visits to Astrid Lindgren’s school and Astrid Lindgren’s Näs in Vimmerby.

May 28, 6 PM: Award ceremony at the Stockholm Concert Hall with artist performances and special guests. H.R.H. Crown Princess Victoria will present the award. Minister for Culture and Democracy Alice Bah Kuhnke will give an address.

For interview requests and press credentials for the award ceremony, kindly contact our press officer.
The following times have been reserved for interviews with the laureate:
Tuesday, May 22, 1–3 PM
Wednesday, May 23, 2–3:30 PM
Thursday, May 24, 11 AM–noon

About Jacqueline Woodson
Jacqueline Woodson was born in 1963 and currently lives in Brooklyn. She published her first book in 1990 and has since written more than 30 titles, translated into some ten languages. Her books deal with turning points in young people’s lives and personal relationships in a world of barriers and prejudice. Her most celebrated title is the award-winning memoir Brown Girl Dreaming, to be published in Swedish by Natur & Kultur. Brun flicka drömmer (Swedish title) will be released on May 24 in a translation by Athena Farrokhzad with cover art by Sara R. Acedo. Translations of more books by Woodson are planned.

The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award (ALMA) is the world’s largest award for children’s and YA literature and one of Sweden’s foremost literary awards, now in its sixteenth year. The prize amount is five million Swedish kronor, awarded annually to one or more recipients working in the spirit of Astrid Lindgren. The purpose of the prize is to promote interest in children’s and YA literature. Our work is founded in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, among which is the right to cultural life and the arts. A jury of experts selects each year’s winner(s) from candidates nominated by institutions and organizations worldwide. The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award was established by the government of Sweden in 2002 and is administered by the Swedish Arts Council.

The American author Jacqueline Woodson is the laureate of Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award 2018

Jacqueline Woodson is an American author, born in 1963 and residing in Brooklyn, New York. She is the author of more than thirty books, including novels, poetry and picture books. She writes primarily for young teens, but also for children and adults. One of her most lauded books is the award winning autobiographical Brown Girl Dreaming (2014).

The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award (ALMA) is the world’s largest award for children’s and young adult literature. The award amounts to 5 million Swedish krona (approx. $613,000 or EUR 500 000) and is given annually to a single laureate or to several.

The citation of the jury reads:
“Jacqueline Woodson introduces us to resilient young people fighting to find a place where their lives can take root. In language as light as air, she tells stories of resounding richness and depth. Jacqueline Woodson captures a unique poetic note in a daily reality divided between sorrow and hope.”

Jacqueline Woodson frequently writes about teens making the transition from childhood to adult life. Masterful characterization and a deep understanding of the adolescent psyche are hallmarks of her work. Her books are written in the first person, usually from a female point of view. Racism, segregation, economic injustice, social exclusion, prejudice and sexual identity are all recurring themes. In January she was named National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature in the United States.

“It’s important to hold up mirrors for kids to see their experience is legitimate. Too often those mirrors aren’t there for them,” says Woodson.

Woodson made her authorial debut in 1990 with Last Summer With Maizon, the first book in a trilogy about a friendship between two girls. The Dear One, a story about teen pregnancy, came out the same year. After Tupac and D Foster (2008) is a story about the meaning of everything, about freedom and realizing that all is not what it seems. Passionate, lightning-bolt love is portrayed in If You Come Softly (1998). In Beneath A Meth Moon (2012), the fifteen-year-old protagonist must face uncomfortable memories to leave her past behind and break free of a drug addiction.

In Brown Girl Dreaming, a free-verse memoir for which she received the prestigious National Book Award, Woodson not only describes her own childhood in South Carolina and later New York, but also shines a light on African-American history. The young Jacqueline grew up in the 1960s and 1970s, decades marked in the US by civil rights marches, police brutality and violence. The book’s detailed descriptions of characters and settings reveal fault lines in society, pointing out the differences between different groups. Woodson’s most recent novel, Another Brooklyn, published in 2016 and a National Book Award nominee, portrays the fascination and challenges of growing up as a young girl in the Brooklyn of the 1970s.

Her books have been translated into more than ten languages.Woodson’s many honours include the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award, the Los Angeles Times Book Prize and the Newbery Honor Awards.

A complete list of Jacqueline Woodson’s works is at www.alma.se/en under the heading Laureates.

Author Website: www.jacquelinewoodson.com

The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award will be presented by H.R.H. Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden in a ceremony at the Stockholm Concert Hall on May 28, 2018.

Further Information
Mariella Kucer, Communications Officer
Phone: +46 (0)76 540 10 17
E-mail: mariella.kucer@alma.se

The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award (ALMA) is the world’s largest award for children’s and young adult literature. The award amounts to SEK 5 million and is given annually to a single laureate or to several. Authors, illustrators, oral storytellers and reading promoters are eligible for the award, which is designed to promote interest in children’s and young adult literature. The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child is the foundation of our work. An expert jury selects the laureate(s) from candidates nominated by institutions and organisations all over the world. The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award was founded by the Swedish government in 2002 and is administrated by the Swedish Arts Council.

The world’s largest award for children and young adult literature to be announced on March 27

Welcome to cover the 16^th announcement of the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award (ALMA), the world’s largest award for children’s and young adult literature.The Swedish award amounts to approx.EUR 570 000 and is presented annually to a single recipient or to several.

When & Where:
Tuesday March 27 at 12:45pm CEST, Bio Victor/ Filmhuset, Borgvägen 1-4 in Stockholm.

The 2018 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award (ALMA) Laureate will be announced in Stockholm, Sweden on March 27 by Jury Chairman Boel Westin in connection with the jury’s final meeting. Opening speakers are Ulrika Stuart Hamilton, Chair at the Swedish Arts Council, and Alice Bah Kuhnke, Swedish Minister for Culture and Democracy. The announcemnet will be followed by a presentation of the laureate by jury member Katarina Kieri.

Last year’s laureate was the German illustrator Wolf Erlbruch. Previous laureates include Meg Rosoff (2016), Philip Pullman (2005), Kitty Crowther (2010), Barbro Lindgren (2014) and Shaun Tan (2011). For this year’s award, 235 candidates from 60 countries are nominated. The list of candidates is available here.

Footage and images
Press content, along with press releases, will be available on www.mynewsdesk.com/alma March27th from 13:15 pm CET onwards and throughout the day:

Audio recording of the phone call to the laureate

Broadcast-quality b-roll of the announcement

Soundbites / interviews with the Jury Chairman

High-resolution still images of the event

In addition: images and video from the Bologna Children’s Book Fair where the announcement will be broadcasted live.

Accreditation and interviews
Please contact Mariella Kucer, Communications Officer +46 8 519 264 17 / +46 76 540 10 17, mariella.kucer@alma.se

Live broadcast
We are also able to offer media outlets the opportunity to broadcast the event live on their webpage via an embed codeOR a IP-broadcaster. If interested, please let us know by replying to this email or by contacting us at mariella.kucer@alma.se.

The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award (ALMA) is the world’s largest award for children’s and young adult literature. The award, which amounts to SEK 5 million, is given annually to a single laureate or to several. Authors, illustrators, oral storytellers and reading promoters are eligible. The award is designed to promote interest in children’s and young adult literature. The UN convention of rights of the child is the foundation of our work. An expert jury selects the laureate(s) from candidates nominated by institutions and organisations all over the world. The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award was founded by the Swedish government in 2002 and is administrated by the Swedish Arts Council.

Previous ALMA laureates:

2017 Wolf Erlbruch

2016 Meg Rosoff

2015 PRAESA

2014 Barbro Lindgren

2013 Isol

2012 Guus Kuijer

2011 Shaun Tan

2010 Kitty Crowther

2009 Tamerinstitutet

2008 Sonya Hartnett

2007 Banco del Libro

2006 Katherine Paterson

2005 Ryôji Arai & Philip Pullman (shared)

2004 Lygia Bojunga

2003 Christine Nöstlinger & Maurice Sendak (shared)

Thank You!

Dear followers of the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award blog. We started this blog in 2009 in order to make it easier for you to follow our work. But time changes and so do we! We have now decided to put this blog on hold and will not be writing any new posts. We would like to thank those of you who have been with us all this time, especially those of you who have been writing for us! And don’t worry, the blog will be kept alive for you to read previous – and still inspiring post.

Want to stay up to date with ALMA? Please sign up for our newsletter to make sure you don’t miss any information on upcoming events or reports on the laureate or laureates of the 2018 award! You can easily subscribe on our website, just follow this link. Please also follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Keep up your work for children’s literature worldwide!

Kind Regards
The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award office in Stockholm, Sweden

Nominate for the 2019 award

Today the nomination process for the 2019 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award opens. We welcome you to submit your nomination by following this link to our online form.

Only nominating bodies approved by the jury have the right to nominate candidates. The list of nominators is available on alma.se/en. These organisations represent countries from all over the world, and when submitting a nomination they’re taking the opportunity to present the children’s and young adult literature, and reading promotion activities, of their respective countries.

Each nominating body can nominate a maximum of four candidates: two candidates from the organisation’s own country and two candidates from other countries. Attached you will find further information on the nomination process and regulations. Please note that the final date for submitting nominations is May 15, 2018.

The award office would like to establish a closer contact with our nominating bodies and we are always interested in receiving updates on the activities of your organisation. You are most welcome to contact the award office and/or meet us at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair, March 26-29. You will find us in Hall 21, Stand C46.

The name of the 2018 laureate(s) will be revealed at a press conference held in Stockholm on Tuesday March 27 at 13.00. This announcement will be broadcast live on our website as well as to the Bologna Children’s Book Fair, and you will receive an invitation by post to this event at the fair shortly.

Please let us know if you have any questions regarding the nomination process, and we look forward to receiving your nomination!

Kind regards,

Helen Sigeland, Director
Mariella Kucer, Communication officer
Lisa Haglund, Desk officer

Nominees announced for the world’s largest award for children and young adult literature 2018

Next year, 235 candidates from 60 countries will be in the running for the world’s largest and most prestigious children’s literature award, the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award. This was announced today by ALMA jury chairman Professor Boel Westin at the Frankfurt Book Fair.

Click here for the complete list of nominated candidates for ALMA 2018!

“The nomination list is a gold mine for anyone interested in international children’s and YA literature. I hope that this list will be spread and used in all possible situations concerning reading and storytelling.” says professor Boel Westin after making the announcement.

More than hundred nominating bodies worldwide have proposed candidates for the 2018 award. This time, the jury has 235 candidates from 60 countries to consider. All continents are represented among the nominated writers, illustrators, reading promoters and storytellers. Many candidates are re-nominated, but this year’s list also includes 40 new names. United Kingdom has the highest number of nominees. New countries to enter the nomination list are Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Antigua and Barbuda.

So far, seventeen laureates have received the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award (ALMA). The latest recipient is the German illustrator Wolf Erlbruch, who exclaimed “Oh dear” when he got the call from the jury earlier this spring. The award rewards works or activities of the highest quality but the laureates must also embrace the humanistic values that Astrid Lindgren treasured.

“The jury now has the hard but very pleasant and rewarding job of finding one or more laureates for 2018. We have meetings once a month and between meetings we read piles of books and documents. I look forward to learn more about the works and the activities of the candidates.” says Boel Westin.

The laureate or laureates of the 2018 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award will be announced in Stockholm and Bologna immediately following the jury’s final meeting on March 27 of next year.

The nomination event is a co-operation with the Frankfurt Book Fair and took place at the Kids Stage (Hall 3.0 K 139).

For information or interview requests, please contact
Mariella Kucer, Communications Officer
Phone: +46 (0)76 5401017
E-mail: mariella.kucer@alma.se

The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award (ALMA) is the world’s largest award for children’s and young adult literature. The award, which amounts to SEK 5 million, is given annually to a single laureate or to several. Authors, illustrators, oral storytellers and reading promoters are eligible. The award is designed to promote interest in children’s and young adult literature. The UN convention of rights of the child is the foundation of our work. An expert jury selects the laureate(s) from candidates nominated by institutions and organisations all over the world. The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award was founded by the Swedish government in 2002 and is administrated by the Swedish Arts Council.

Nominees for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award 2018 to be announced on October 12

The candidates for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award 2018 will be presented on October 12 at the Frankfurt Book Fair. So far, seventeen laureates have received the Award, the latest recipient is the German illustrator Wolf Erlbruch. The award amounts to SEK 5 million (approx. EUR 570 000), making it the world’s largest award for children’s and young adult literature.

The list of nominated candidates is a gold mine for anyone interested in international children’s and young adult literature – and would not be possible without the work of more than a hundred nominating bodies from all over the world. Welcome to join us when the list of names is revealed!

Programme 12 October at 4 pm CET
4.00 pm Welcome by Gabi Rauch-Kneer, vice president of Frankfurter Buchmesse
4.05 pm Prof. Boel Westin, Chairman of the ALMA Jury and Journalist Marcel Plagemann, present the work of Wolf Erlbruch.
4.40 pm Helen Sigeland, Director of ALMA, about upcoming events.
4.45 pm Prof. Boel Westin, Chairman of the ALMA Jury, reveals the candidates for the 2018 award.

The event is a co-operation with the Frankfurt Book Fair and takes place at the Children’s Book Centre (Hall 3.0 K 139). The nomination list of 2018 will be available on www.alma.se/en shortly after the programme.

Earlier ALMA laureates

2017 Wolf Erlbruch, Germany
2016 Meg Rosoff, United Kingdom/United States
2015 PRAESA, South Africa
2014 Barbro Lindgren, Sweden
2013 Isol, Argentina
2012 Guus Kuijer, Netherlands
2011 Shaun Tan, Australia
2010 Kitty Crowther, Belgium
2009 Tamer Institute, Palestine
2008 Sonya Hartnett, Australia
2007 Banco del Libro, Venezuela
2006 Katherine Paterson, United States
2005 Ryôji Arai, Japan and Philip Pullman, United Kingdom
2004 Lygia Bojunga, Brazil
2003 Christine Nöstlinger, Austria and Maurice Sendak, United States

For questions and interviews with Boel Westin or director Helen Sigeland, please contact
Communications Officer Mariella Kucer +46 76 540 10 17, mariella.kucer@alma.se

The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award (ALMA) is the world’s largest award for children’s and young adult literature. The award, which amounts to SEK 5 million, is given annually to a single laureate or to several. Authors, illustrators, oral storytellers and reading promoters are eligible. The award is designed to promote interest in children’s and young adult literature. The UN convention of rights of the child is the foundation of our work. An expert jury selects the laureate(s) from candidates nominated by institutions and organisations all over the world. The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award was founded by the Swedish government in 2002 and is administrated by the Swedish Arts Council.