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New Nordic Prize for children's and young people's literature

The Nordic Council has decided to establish a brand new prize for children's and young people's literature. The prize will be awarded for the first time in 2013 and will be independent of the Nordic Council's prestigious Literature Prize.

Nov 01, 2012

"A Nordic children's and young people' literature prize, along with a number of other activities, will give a marked and visible boost for children and young people's reading", says the Norwegian Minister of Culture, Hadia Tajik.

Photographer
Magnus Fröderberg/norden.org

The ministers of culture from the five Nordic countries received broad support from the Nordic Council politicians to the proposal for a brand new Nordic prize for children's and young people's literature. The children's and young people's literature prize will now be the fifth in the series of prestigious prizes with the existing Literature Prize as the absolute beacon.

The Nordic ministers of culture thus received the politicians and the Nordic Council's Culture Committee's final approval for their desire to strengthen and highlight culture for children and young people in the Nordic Region.

"A Nordic children's and young people' literature prize, along with a number of other activities, will give a marked and visible boost for children and young people's reading. We have seen that the other Nordic culture prizes help to draw both Nordic and international attention to culture, and we should exploit this with children and young people too", explains Hadia Tajik.

The existing literature prize - the Nordic Council Literature Prize - is the oldest of the Nordic Council's prizes. It celebrates its 50th anniversary this year and is considered by most people to be the beacon amongst the prestigious prizes with great Nordic and international impact. The Nordic ministers of culture hope for the same effect with the new prize for children's and young people's literature:

"In the Nordic countries we have a fantastic tradition for children's and young people's literature at a very high level. Children's and young people's literature is an important part of our Nordic identity, which also enjoys great international recognition. I am, therefore, extremely pleased that we have now succeeded in gaining broad political support to establish a Nordic prize for this kind of literature", says the Norwegian Minister of Culture, Hadia Tajik.

Contacts

Jesper F. Schou-Knudsen
Phone +45 33 96 03 55
Email jsk@norden.org

Anna Enemark
Phone +45 29 69 29 23
Email anen@norden.org