Winner of children’s fiction writing competition is revealed in Cranleigh

A Cranleigh school has revealed the winner of its writing competition dedicated to children’s fiction.
Tamsin signing a copy of her bookTamsin signing a copy of her book
Tamsin signing a copy of her book

Hundreds of young readers from across the South East gathered together for the Awesome Book Awards 2019 hosted by Cranleigh School and Cranleigh Prep School.

This year Tamsin Winter won the top prize for her first children’s novel, Being Miss Nobody.

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She was introduced on stage by Cranleigh pupil Amelie Lewis who is a big fan of the book and voted for Tamsin.

Amelie said: “Being Miss Nobody is a brave and topical book for our generation.

“It’s book we can all learn from and one that stays with you after you have finished reading it. I loved it!”

Tamsin told how reading is the best thing you can do for your brain but also your heart.

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She added: “It increases your empathy and caring and getting young people reading will really make a difference to their lives.”

She was presented with her prize and trophy by the winner of last year’s Awesome Book Award, Peter Bunzl.

The awards celebrate the best new fiction authors for young readers aged between seven and ten. To be eligible for the 2019 award, titles had to be a UK-based author’s debut novel, suitable for able readers in the listed age group, appealing to both boys and girls and available in paperback from May 2018.

Being Miss Nobody deals with bullying, grief, peer pressure and social media. It’s the story of Rosalind Banks, an 11-year-old girl who doesn’t speak and who starts an anonymous blog to expose her school’s bullies. But as the blog starts trending things spiral out of control and Rosalind must find her true voice.

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Tamsin said: “I wanted to write a story that included all the pressures that children are growing up with. Social media can be a way to create and connect but also can bring real pressure and difficulty,”

During the ceremony, introduced by Neil Brooks, Cranleigh Prep School’s headmaster, the shortlisted authors read extracts from their work and the overall winner was announced at the end of the evening.

Neil Brooks added: “It’s my first Awesome Awards as head of Cranleigh Prep School, and I am genuinely delighted to see so many young readers coming together to celebrate stories and the love of reading. It’s a really special award because it’s the only one where pupils vote for the books themselves, so it means a great deal to the authors.”

Previous Awesome Book Award winners are Ross Welford, who won the 2017 competition for Time-Travelling with a Hamster and Peter Bunzl who won with Cogheart.

For more see www.awesomebookawards.com

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