The most popular book amongst Salford school kids is Lara Williamson's A Boy Called Hope, which won the Salford Libraries Children's Book Award this week.
The novel centres on eleven year old Dan Hope, who wants to go the moon – but more importantly wants his father back. His dad, apparently, legged it with the girl from the chip shop and was never seen again; until Dan spots him on telly reading the news.
"I want to express my gratitude to the youngsters of Salford who have not only sat down and enjoyed my book, but taken the time to really understand it and comment on it" said Lara Williamson after winning the award "I dreamed about writing a book and it seemed like an impossible dream, but bit by bit I realised I had something - hope. And now A Boy Called Hope exceeded all of my expectations and I am delighted."
The Award is part of a campaign by Salford Schools' Library Service to promote more reading, enjoyment and understanding of books in the city, and school students critiqued the works of shortlisted authors as part of the process of choosing a winner.
"This is the thirteenth year of the Salford Children's Book Awards" said Sarah Spence, Head of Libraries "It is wonderful to watch so many young people engaging on such a level with literature. The Award offers those involved the chance to voice their opinions on youth books and even meet the authors of their favourite reads. As a result, we are seeing more and more young people reading and enjoying books, engaging with the scheme and benefitting from the programmes we run within the community."
The other titles shortlisted include: Thirteen Chairs by Dave Shelton, Boy in the Tower by Polly Ho-Yen, Scarlet Ibis by Gill Lewis, The Executioner's Daughter by Jane Hardstaff and The Ultimate Truth by Kevin Brooks.
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