Mr. Christie's Book Awards facts for kids
The Mr. Christie's Book Awards (French: Prix du livre M. Christie) was an important Canadian award for children's books. It was given out by a company called Christie, Brown & Company, which was part of Nabisco. The awards stopped in 2004. Many people thought of these awards as being like the "Giller Prize" but for authors who wrote books for kids.
History of the Awards
The Mr. Christie's Book Awards were created to celebrate and encourage excellent books for Canadian children. To win, authors and illustrators had to be Canadian citizens or permanent residents. The very first awards were given out in 1990.
How the Categories Changed
When the awards first started, they had four main categories:
- Awards for writing in English
- Awards for illustrations in English
- Awards for writing in French
- Awards for illustrations in French
In 1993, the writing categories were split up based on age. There was one category for books for kids aged 8 and under, and another for books for kids aged 9 to 14.
Then, in 1994, the rules changed again. The awards decided not to judge writing and illustrations separately anymore. Instead, they created three new age groups for all books:
- Age 7 and under
- Ages 8 to 11
- Ages 12 to 16
The Mr. Christie's Book Awards recognized many talented Canadian authors and illustrators over the years, celebrating their contributions to children's literature until the awards ended in 2004.
