Little Rebels Book Award Short List 2020

The Boy Who Loved Everyone

Jane Porter and Maisie Paradise Shearring

£7.99 £7.59

WINNER - Dimitri has just started at his nursery and, as ever, he's keen to share his love. At story time, he tells Liam he loves him. At playtime, he tells Sophie, Stella and Sue he loves them. At lunchtime, he tells the dinner lady he loves her too. And so the day goes on, with Dimitri's heart bursting with each new encounter. But he can't help noticing that no one says they love him back. Can Mum help him understand the many different manifestations of an overflowing heart? Described by Catherine Barter on the Little Rebels Award website as "A moving and nuanced picture book exploring love, friendship and emotional expression". Age 4-7, Paperback 24pp

The Closest Thing to Flying

UK) Lewis Somerset Gill (

£7.99 £7.59

Two parallel lives which echo and weave in and out of each other: Semira and her mother live in present day England, their immigration status insecure, ruthlessly controlled by the man who 'enabled' their escape from Eritrea when Samira was aged just 7; Hen, a child living in Victorian England, is suffocating under the conventions of her family but is introduced by her magical Aunt Kitty to new forms of self-expression and freedoms: animal rights activism (inspired by the origins of the RSPB), the struggle for women's suffrage and women's and girls' first forays into cycling. Discovering Hen's diaries and alongside new friend Patrick (whose family have escaped domestic violence), Semira is emboldened to embark on her own flights of freedom, discovering her skills as a cyclist but also discovering the strength and courage to take herself and her mum to a place of refuge. Lewis' trademark expert storytelling sweeps up a range of social justice issues in a passionate call for compassion and freedom, all driven by a protagonist with enviable strength and bravery. Age 9-13, Paperback 223pp

King Leonard's Teddy

Phoebe Swan

£7.99 £7.59

King Leonard is rich. Very rich. He has everything he wants. And, then also, a little bit more. And when those things stop working or get a little grubby, he simply replaces them. Single-Use-Leonard is his name. But tragedy strikes one night when the stuffing bursts out of his most beloved Teddy. Because as any child with a favourites toy knows, a thing like Teddy is completely and utterly irreplaceable. Can King Leonard make do and mend after all? On being shortlisted for the Little Rebels Award 2020, Phoebe Swan described her books as a challenge to our culture's fondeness for "over consumption and waste" while Catherine Barter on the Little Rebels Award website calls the shortlistee title, "A warm and witty picture book with a strong message about community and sustainability." Age 4-7, Paperback 36pp

The Little Island

Smriti Prasadam-Halls, Smriti Halls, et al.

£6.99 £6.64

There was once a farm where all the animals lived and worked in a mutually supportive democracy. But, one day, the geese (and ducks) decide that they simply do not have enough room for the other animals. Surely, they muse, life was pleasanter and greener and rosier before their patch got quite so... busy? And so the ducks, under the instructions of the geese, bring down the footbridge which links their island to the mainland. But, as time passes and labour is meager and 'community' even thinner, their lives become all the poorer and their patch of land becomes vulnerable and exposed. Can the bridge be built back up? A modern parable fusing Animal Far with Brexit! Both author and illustrator have described this book as one they hoped would counter the messages of hatred so prevalent post-Referendum. Age 4-7, Paperback 29pp

Now or Never: A Dunkirk Story (Voices #1)

Bali Rai

£6.99 £6.64

Private Fazal Khan leaves his home in India to join Company 32, supporting the British in World War II, including the beach battlefield at Dunkirk. Initially proud to enlist, Fazal begins to question his own loyalty when he starts to encounter hostilities well inside of enemy lines. 1.5 million Indians volunteered towards the UK's efforts during World War 2, forming what is still the biggest volunteer force in modern history. And yet, barely any of those stories are ever heard or told. Now or Never forms part of an important new series -Voices from Scholastic UK (edited by Tony Bradman)- designed to uncover and amplify Black and Minority Ethnic lives in UK History. On being shortlisted for the Little Rebels Award 2020, Bali Rai said about his historical novel "A lot of these stories are unknown...those unheard stories need to be brought to the fore...it's dreadful that we don't understand UK History in the correct way". Age 9-14, paperback 202pp

Sneaky Beak

Tracey Corderoy and Tony Neal

£6.99 £6.64

"Trouble sleeping? You need the Snores-Galore Mega Bed right away! Is your bath bubbly enough? Our Super-Whirl Turbo Tub has it ALL!" Bear and Hamster are more than happy with the rhythms of their daily life. Until salesperson and expert marketeer, Sneaky Beak pipes up to suggest they could have things even better... A clever story about materialism and consumerism. On being shortlisted for the Little Rebels Award 2020, Tracey Corderoy said, "This book makes you think about what's really important in life." Age 4-7, Paperback 24pp

Sofia Valdez, Future Prez

Andrea Beaty and David Roberts

£13.99 £13.29

"A dreamer. A doer. A real-life go-getter. Most people like good, but Sofia likes better". The Beaty/Roberts team find themselves on the Little Rebels Shortlist for the 3rd time! (see also Rosie Revere and Ada Twist). From her very first toddler years, Sofia has wanted to help people- from shopping for neighbours to walking their pets. And, her political-badges-toting Abuelo is always by her side, keeping a watchful eye. But when Abuelo trips and hurts himself on a pile of rubbish (Mount Trashmore) , Sofia decides to aim her acts of kindness a little higher... a project that takes her to City Hall and beyond... On being shortlisted for the Little Rebels Award 2020, Beaty said of her young activist, "Sofia understands that kindness is the beginning of all bravery." Age 4-7, Hardback 36pp