The Little Rebels Book Award

It is a huge honour and joy to share that We Are Here has made the long-list for The Little Rebels Children’s Book Award. I submitted the book to four awards several months ago, and it didn’t make the cut for three of them. I had all but given up hope, however, Little Rebels was truly the one I cared most about. 

‘The Little Rebels Children’s Book Award is a prize for radical fiction aimed at children aged 0-12. The award is given by the Alliance of Radical Booksellers and was established in conjunction with Letterbox Library. The award is now administered by Letterbox Library and Housmans Bookshop.’

Like so many others, I watched and read the news stories in horror and helplessness. Time and time again, tiny boats packed well over capacity with desperate humans, capsizing in the English Channel and Mediterranean. 

Each time I felt more helpless and wondered what I could do, if anything. In true writer's fashion - I wrote a poem! I am aware of just how futile and privileged it is to sit and write poetry from a far, from a warm home, with my family beside me and food in the fridge. But it occurred to me that if writing a poem or story and making it into a book is the least I can do - then I should absolutely do it.  

And so having written the text - which came out as a spoken word poem, I almost immediately decided to illustrate it and make this my third published book. I wrote We Are Here with the sole purpose of trying to increase empathy and understanding for those who seek safety for themselves and their families - by any means necessary. Because isn't that what we would all do? Isn’t that what we all deserve!?

We Are Here is, I think, quite radical. It’s not a traditional picture book in that it is not aimed at very young children, although they can of course enjoy the pictures and perhaps get the general impression of the mother and child making a difficult journey.

I always knew this book would be ‘heavy’. But what I really wanted was for it to be both heavy and light enough to move people of all ages - perhaps to tears, but also to instil a sense of hope in humanity prevailing. 

When you’re creating a project - whatever it is - it’s almost impossible to know how it will be received. I suspected that it would be a much harder ‘sell’ than a book about talking animals, fairies or giant singing doughnuts, (ooh - now there’s an idea!), but I hoped that whoever picked it up would be glad they did and they would remember it and even share it with others. 

It’s not easy for tiny indie-publishers to get their books ‘out there’. There are extremely prohibitive restrictions that large wholesalers place on us which ultimately deter many booksellers from ordering our books. Marketing can be expensive and as someone that prefers hermit-life to tiktocking, I don’t exactly bring in a huge following. 

So - just to be longlisted for this incredible award is a huge honour and a sign that We Are Here is valued. And for it to be recognised and valued in any way within the realms of radical fiction - is already a huge win and will, I’m sure, have a positive impact on the book's ability to reach new readers.