The Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals released longlists yesterday for the Carnegie Medal (author of a book for children & young people) and Kate Greenaway Medal (illustrator), but the announcement was greeted with criticism.
Winners will each receive £500 (about $625) worth of books to donate to their local library, a golden medal and a £5,000 (about $6,235) Colin Mears Award cash prize. You can find the complete CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway longlists here. Shortlists will be announced March 16 and winners named June 19.
One title from each of the medal shortlists will also be named recipient of the new Amnesty CILIP Honor "for a book that most distinctively illuminates, upholds or celebrates freedoms. The honor aims to increase awareness of how great children's books encourage empathy and broaden horizons."
Tricia Adams, chair of the judging panel, described the longlists as "outstanding, showcasing the huge range of storytelling to be found in this vibrant area of publishing... The subject matter that emerges from the two lists--stories about refugees, our relationship with the natural world, and living with disability and loss--reflect the very real issues children have to deal with. In turbulent times, we need children's books to provide a safe space from which to help make sense of the world."
But the longlists sparked immediate criticism for not including a single black, Asian or minority ethnic (BAME) writer among the 40 titles, the Bookseller reported. Sunny Singh, co-founder of the Jhalak Prize for Book of the Year by a Writer of Color, called the absence of BAME writers from the longlists a "deliberate snub," while Wei Ming Kam, sales and marketing assistant at Oberon Books and co-founder of the BAME in Publishing group, called the lack of diversity "appalling."
"The books you read as a child stay with you for life, so it is obvious that a lack of diverse books for children adversely affects kids who don't see themselves reflected on a regular basis," Kam said. "The importance of knowing that someone like you wrote a book you loved cannot be understated.... This is basic stuff, and I'm so, so tired of needing to say it all the time. We need to engage and empower more writers of color to submit to agents and publishers, but we also need to push and give recognition to those who get published--what is the point if they aren't supported?"
CILIP CEO Nick Poole said the organization "acknowledged and respected" the concerns expressed, adding: "The longlist, shortlist and winners are selected by youth librarians who work with children and young people every day in schools and communities. As members of the library and information profession, they have made a commitment to our professional Ethical Principles, the first of which is 'concern for the public good in all professional matters, including respect for diversity within society, and the promoting of equal opportunities and human rights.' These principles guide all of our work on behalf of readers and library users.
"The books on the longlist are judged on merit and on an equal playing field. This year's longlist represents, in the opinion of the judges, the very best books of the year, with no consideration of gender or ethnicity of either the writer, illustrator or audience. The broad subject matter of this year's longlist--stories about refugees, disability and migration--illustrates the breadth of range that the Medals are known for."