Mr. Christie's Book Awards facts for kids
The Mr. Christie's Book Awards (also known as the Prix du livre M. Christie in French) were important Canadian literary awards. They were given out by a company called Nabisco (through its division, Christie, Brown & Company). These awards were created to celebrate amazing books for children and young people in Canada. Many people thought of them as the "Giller Prize for children's authors," which shows how respected they were. The awards ran for many years but stopped in 2004.
History of the Mr. Christie's Book Awards
The Mr. Christie's Book Awards started in 1990. Their main goal was to encourage and celebrate excellent books written for Canadian kids. To win, authors and illustrators had to be Canadian citizens or permanent residents.
When the awards first began, they had four main categories:
- Awards for the best writing in English books.
- Awards for the best illustrations in English books.
- Awards for the best writing in French books.
- Awards for the best illustrations in French books.
Things changed a bit over the years to make the awards even better.
Changes in Categories
In 1993, the awards for writing were split into two age groups:
- Books for kids aged 8 and under.
- Books for kids aged 9 to 14.
Then, in 1994, another big change happened. The awards decided not to judge writing and illustrations separately anymore. Instead, they focused on the overall book. They also increased the age categories to three:
- Books for kids aged 7 and under.
- Books for kids aged 8 to 11.
- Books for kids aged 12 to 16.
These changes helped make sure that books for all different ages of young readers were recognized.
Award Winners
Over the years, many talented Canadian authors and illustrators won Mr. Christie's Book Awards. These awards celebrated a wide range of children's books, from picture books for the youngest readers to novels for teenagers. Winning a Mr. Christie's Book Award was a big honor and helped many great Canadian children's books become more well-known.
The awards recognized books in both English and French, highlighting the rich and diverse world of Canadian children's literature. Many of the winning books explored themes important to young people, from adventure and fantasy to stories about growing up and understanding the world.
