About The Hampshire Book Award

An annual award for the best paperback fiction title published in the previous year for the 11-14 age group.

The judges of the award are Year 8 students from participating schools (secondary schools subscribing to the School Library Service).
Many schools participate in regional HBA events during the voting period and representatives from all schools are invited to the final voting and discussion day in June.

The shortlist of six titles is announced in March with the winner announced in June.
The winning author is then invited to a presentation at Winchester Guildhall in the Autumn.

Aims of the award

• To promote the enjoyment of reading
• To foster a reading ethos within the school
• To draw attention to the most rewarding and accessible fiction for the age group
• To challenge students to critically assess books and to make a reasoned argument in group discussions.

Shortlisted titles 2008

Winner:

Skulduggery Pleasant – Derek Landy
Stephanie's uncle Gordon is a writer of horror fiction. But when he dies and leaves her his estate, Stephanie learns that while he may have written horror, it certainly wasn't fiction.  Pursued by evil forces intent on recovering a mysterious key, Stephanie finds help from an unusual source – the wisecracking skeleton of a dead wizard.
A fun and pacy read with well-drawn and delightfully colourful characters, this is a thrill-a-minute adventure.

The boy in the striped pyjamas – John Boyne
It is 1943 and nine-year-old Bruno’s soldier father is ordered by someone called ‘The Fury’ to a place called ‘Out-With’, where he is to be Camp Kommandant.  The whole family accompany him and, from the windows of his new home, Bruno can see a high-wired compound, inhabited by people in striped pyjamas.  At first, Bruno is totally innocent but, in a shocking denouement, is eventually led to a full understanding of the world beyond the wire fence.  An extraordinary novel of the horrors of the holocaust.

Nathan Fox: Dangerous times – L. Brittney
Nathan Fox is an actor in the same company as Will Shakespeare.  A skilled acrobat, with many other talents, he catches the eye of England’s Spymaster General.  Recruited as an agent – and partnered with fearless spy John Pearce – Nathan is trained at a School of Defence in the arts that will keep him alive.  His first mission takes Nathan Fox to Venice – into the eye of an explosive situation involving the formidable General Othello.
An exciting read, full of historical references and with the added twist of Shakespearian influences.

School’s out forever – James Patterson
Max Ride and her five friends grew up in a science laboratory called ‘The School’.  They were created as an experiment; an experiment that made them very special and gave them the power to fly.  But when an 'experiment' this secret and this special escapes from the School, the scientists are pretty keen to make sure the world never finds out about them.  Soon, Max and the other children find themselves on the run from the fearsome ‘Erasers’,

whilst they try to track down their parents and deal with the insistent voice in Max’s head that tells her that her mission in life is to save the world.
Speed, suspense and excitement abound in this intriguing adventure.

H.I.V.E – Mark Walden
Thirteen-year-old master criminal Otto Malpense has been chosen to attend H.I.V.E, the top secret school of villainy. But there is one small catch – he cannot leave until his training is complete.  There’s no way Otto is going to spend six years studying something he has such a natural talent for.  He is left with one option.  Escape.  He just needs to figure out how.
Super slick, all action and very funny, this has been described as “James Bond meets Artemis Fowl with a dastardly twist – even the goodies are baddies”.

Kat got your tongue – Lee Weatherly
A girl wakes up after a terrible car accident and doesn’t know who she is. “You’re Kathy” the doctors tell her.  But the girl’s never heard of Kathy and the person in the mirror is a complete stranger.  It is only after she finds her old diary – written in a voice no longer her own – that Kat begins to discover the terrible secrets of her previous life.

Hampshire Book Award 2008

Voting Day

The 2008 Hampshire Book Award has been won by Derek Landy for his debut novel ‘Skulduggery Pleasant’ – a pacy thriller starring the wise-cracking skeleton of a dead wizard.  Year 8 students from over 50 secondary schools around the county participated in the award, which culminated in a final Voting and Discussion morning on 24^th June.  Representatives from participating schools met at Winchester Discovery Centre for a lively debate about the six books shortlisted for the award and voted for their favourite.  

Students then took part in a Kid Lit quiz, hosted by Anne Marley, Head of Children's and Schools Library Services, while their teachers were given a guided tour of the facilities at the new Winchester Discovery Centre.

It is hoped that Derek Landy, who lives and works in Ireland, will be able to come and receive the award in person, when he is next on tour in the UK.

Previous Winners

• 2007 Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
• 2006 The Spook's Apprentice by Joseph Delaney
• 2005 Private Peaceful by Michael Morpurgo
• 2004 A Little Piece of Ground by Elizabeth Laird
• 2003 Skeleton Key by Anthony Horowitz