The UK's oldest and most prestigious children’s book awards

The CILIP Carnegie Medal 2009 was posthumously awarded to Siobhan Dowd for ‘Bog Child’, and the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal 2009 was awarded to Catherine Rayner for ‘Harris finds his Feet’.



Two years after her untimely death from breast cancer at the age of 47, Siobhan Dowd’s fourth and final novel, ‘Bog Child’, has been awarded the UK’s premier accolade for children’s writing.

“This is the greatest endorsement of the quality of Siobhan’s writing yet,” comments her editor and publisher, David Fickling, “The CILIP Carnegie Medal has real integrity and is unique amongst literary awards: there is no prize money; it does not reflect the commercial interests of publishers and book-sellers; it does not depend on votes or the celebrity status of the author. Judged by librarians who spend their lives connecting young people to good writing it is the purest recognition of quality writing for children.”

Set in Northern Ireland at the height of the Troubles, the story opens in 1981 close to the North-South border as teenager Fergus McCann makes an illicit raid to the South to gather peat and discovers a child’s body buried in the bogs, perfectly preserved for 2,000 years. The child’s history unfolds as Fergus struggles with the challenges of being a teenager as well as the pressure on him to take sides in the conflict.

“Set against the bleakest of backdrops, ‘Bog Child’ is profoundly heartwarming,” comments Chair of the Judges, Joy Court, “This is thanks to Dowd’s extraordinary ability to illuminate the dark corners of human existence. The reader is drawn totally into Fergus’s world; the turbulence of adolescence is vividly portrayed and equally vividly evoked is the political conflict of the time. A truly outstanding novel of great humanity.”

The CILIP Carnegie Medal is the UK’s oldest and most respected award for children’s writing. Since 1937, the judging panel of children’s librarians has recognised world class writers and frequently spotted fresh talent ahead of the market.


Inspired by a wild hare and her own large-ish feet, Edinburgh-based illustrator Catherine Rayner has won the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal 2009, the UK’s most prestigious award for children’s book illustration.

‘Harris Finds His Feet’ was inspired by a real and magical encounter with a hare in the wild. Harris, a small hare with big feet goes out into the world with his Grandad, from whom he learns not only how to hop high into the sky and run very fast, but also about the joys of growing up and of independence.

Joy Court, Chair of the Judges, comments, “Harris is a triumph, from the way he moves and his expressions to his velvety fur. His relationship with his Grandad is beautifully evoked as are the textures of the exquisite landscapes around him, in a book which oozes charm and glows with colour.”

The CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal, established in 1956 and named in honour of the distinguished illustrator is awarded for outstanding illustration in a children’s book. Since a bequest left in 2000 by children’s book and illustration collector, Colin Mears, the winner receives a cheque for £5,000 in addition to the coveted medal.

Both medals are awarded annually by CILIP: the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals.