The Young Quills Awards for historical fiction

The Historical Association has announced the winners of the 2020 Young Quills for Historical Fiction.

The winners in each category are as follows:

6-9 years category:

The Closest Thing to Flying  by Gill Lewis (Oxford University Press)

Gill Lewis said of her book, " Researching the women founders of the RSPB was fascinating. The initial work they did, to stop the use of feathers in fashion, has had far reaching benefits today. The conservation work by the RSPB has saved habitats and helped many species. 

10-13 years category:

Our Castle by the Sea  by Lucy Strange (Chicken House)

Lucy Strange said, "Of all my books, Our Castle by the Sea has the strongest message - a plea for humanity and hope, using its historical context to touch upon social and political themes that are still powerfully relevant today."

14 years + category:

The Stolen Ones by Vanessa Curtis (Usborne Publishing)

Vanessa Curtis was delighted to win the Teen Category of the Young Quills Awards and said, "I really enjoy my work as a teller of untold true stories from history and winning this award makes it even more worthwhile. Many thanks."

Highly commended:

6-9 years category:
Winter of the Wolves  by Tony Bradman (Bloomsbury)

10-13 years category:
The Diver's Daughter - A Tudor Story by Patrice Lawrence (Scholastic)

Plus a special mention to all the 'Voices' series of books of which this is just one, which open up the past to include many different voices of those that were there.

14 years + category:
The Fountains of Silence by Ruta Sepetys (Penguin)

The Historical Association distributed all the books entered by the publishers to the judging schools, who then reviewed the books to help create the shortlists.