Feng Zikai Chinese Children's Picture Book Award facts for kids

The Feng Zikai Chinese Children's Picture Book Award is a special prize given every two years. It celebrates the best original Chinese children's picture books. The award also honors the talented writers, artists, and publishers who create these books.

This award is named after Feng Zikai (1898-1975). He was one of China's most famous illustrators. The Feng Zikai Award is important because it's the very first international award for Chinese children's picture books.

The Chen Yet-Sen Family Foundation helps pay for the award. This group is based in Hong Kong and helps kids learn to read. The first awards were given out in July 2009. Since then, they have been given every two years. This award is a bit like the Caldecott Medal in the United States. The Caldecott Medal also honors the best American picture book for children each year.

Why This Award Matters

Many of the best children's picture books in Chinese-speaking areas are translated from other languages. This means they might not always feel real or familiar to Chinese children. The Feng Zikai Award wants to fix this. It helps to create more high-quality, original Chinese picture books.

The award celebrates the amazing work of writers and illustrators. By doing this, it hopes to encourage more people to create and share wonderful children's picture books.

Reading is super important for kids as they grow up. The Feng Zikai Award also wants to get more children excited about reading. It helps build a strong reading culture for kids in Chinese-speaking parts of the world.

What Winners Receive

The top prize is called the "Best Children's Book Award." The winner of this award gets US$20,000! The people who organize the award also buy 3,000 copies of the winning book. These books are then given to schools.

There are also other special awards. Winners of the "Judging Panel's Recommended Illustration Award" and the "Judging Panel's Recommended Writing Award" each get US$10,000.

Plus, ten authors receive the "Outstanding Children's Picture Book Award." Each of these authors wins US$1,000.

Award Winners

The 7th Awards, 2021

• Best Chinese Children's Picture Book Award - winner
  • "Sudan's Rhino Horn" 《蘇丹的犀角》 by author Dai Yun 戴芸 and illustrator Li Xingming 李星明

• Outstanding Chinese Children's Picture Book Award
  • "Happy Birthday" 《生日快樂》by Adeline Ko 高佩聰 (author and illustrator)
  • "Button Soldier" 《鈕扣士兵》by Jiu’er 九兒 (author and illustrator)

The 6th Awards, 2019

• Best Chinese Children's Picture Book Award - winner
  • "About the Grandmother's Horse"《外婆家的马》 by Xie Hua 谢华 (author) and Huang Li 黄丽 (illustrator)

• Outstanding Chinese Children's Picture Book Award
  • "A Maverick Piggy" 《一个特立独行的猪》by Zhang Ning 张宁 (author and illustrator)
  • "Under the Same Moon" 《同一个月亮》by Jimmy Liao 几米 (author and illustrator)

The 5th Awards, 2017

• Best Chinese Children's Picture Book Award - winner
  • "Where Does Rice Come From?" 《盘中餐》 by Yu Hongcheng 于虹呈(author and illustrator)

• Outstanding Chinese Children's Picture Book Award
  • "Where is the Hero?" 《杯杯英雄》by Chao-Lun Tsai 蔡兆伦 (author and illustrator)
  • "Waiting" 《等待》by Adeline Ko 高佩聰 (author and illustrator)

The 4th Awards, 2015

• Best Chinese Children's Picture Book Award - winner
  • "Kata, Kata, Kata" 《喀噠喀噠喀噠》by Bei Lynn 林小杯 – author and illustrator

• Outstanding Chinese Children's Picture Book Award
  • "Granny couldn't fall asleep" 《棉婆婆睡不着》by Liao Xiaoqin 廖小琴 (author) and Zhu Chengliang 朱成梁 (illustrator)
  • "Tooth, tooth, throw it on the roof" 《牙齿牙齿扔屋顶》by Liu Xun 劉洵 (author and illustrator)

The 3rd Awards, 2013

• Best Chinese Children's Picture Book Award - winner
  • "I see a bird" 《我看见一只鸟》by Liu Bor-Leh 刘伯乐 – author and illustrator

• Outstanding Chinese Children's Picture Book Award
  • "The very slow snail"《很慢很慢的蝸牛》 by Chih-Yuan Chen (author and illustrator) 陈致元 (author and illustrator)
  • "Ali loves animals" 《阿里愛動物》by Li-Huang Huang 黄丽凰 (author) and Chih-Ming Huang 黄志民 (illustrator)

The 2nd Awards, 2011

• Judging Panel’s Recommended Award
  • "Going to the Marketplace"《進城》by Cookie Lin 林秀穗 (author) and Chien-Hung Liao 廖健宏 (illustrator)
  • "Door"《門》by Tao Juxiang 陶菊香 (author and illustrator)

The 1st Awards, 2009

• Best Chinese Children’s Picture Book Award
  • "A New Year's Reunion" by Yu Liqiong 余丽琼 (author) and Zhu Chengliang 朱成梁 (illustrator)

This first winning book was later translated into English. It was even chosen as one of the 10 Best Illustrated Books of the Year by the New York Times Book Review in 2011.

• Judging Panel’s Recommended Writing Award
  • The King of Hide and Seek《躲貓貓大王》 by Zhang Xiaoling (author) 张晓玲 (author) and Pan Jian 潘坚 (illlustrator)

• Outstanding Children’s Picture Book Award
  • "The Morning Market at Lotus Town"《荷花鎮的早市》by Zhou Xiang (author and illustrator) 周翔 (author and illustrator)
  • "Me and My Bike"《我和我的腳踏車》by Ye Ande 叶安德 (author and illustrator)