Peterborough children’s author wins book prize after impressing judges including Princess Beatrice and Dermot O’Leary

The £5,000 literary award, supported by Amazon and the National Literacy Trust, recognises great storytelling in books for children under five which have been published within the past year.

Benji, both the author and illustrator, told a story of growing up with his tale following Tad, the smallest tadpole in a big pond. Worried about being left behind by her brothers and sisters, Tad one day takes a big leap into an adventurous future.

Speaking about his book, Benji said: “Tad’s story is about taking your time to grow up, even though you are the smallest, slowest tadpole in the pond, or if you always feel like you’re at the back. Don’t worry because you will always get there in the end.”

HRH Princess Beatrice, the award’s patron since 2017, announced this year’s winner on the Oscar’s Book Prize website in a video filmed from her home. The announcement also included endorsements from fellow judges broadcaster and children’s book author Dermot O’Leary, creator of the Horrid Henry children’s book series Francesca Simon, Youth Libraries Group chair Jake Hope, director of Amazon EU Books Simon Johnson, and Viveka Alvestrand and James Ashton, founders of the award and Oscar’s parents.

Speaking about her support for the prize, HRH Princess Beatrice said,: “I felt so lucky to be able to read each of shortlisted books for Oscar’s Book Prize. This year the quality of entries was unprecedented and the judges decided to extend the shortlist from five to six. Benji Davies, congratulations on what is a remarkable book of a lovely story. I had so much fun reading it myself.”

Speaking about his win, Benji added: “To win Oscar’s Book Prize in 2014 with The Storm Whale was an incredible feeling and I am very pleased to have won the Ppize for a second time with Tad - I really can’t believe it. When I wrote the story I wanted it to help small children navigate life in those early years. I couldn’t be prouder.”

The 2020 shortlist for the first time featured six books:

Tad by Benji Davies (HarperCollins)

The Suitcase by Chris Naylor-Ballesteros (Nosy Crow)

A Mouse Called Julian by Joe Todd Stanton (Flying Eye Books)

Alphonse, There’s Mud on the Ceiling! by Daisy Hirst (Walker Books)

I Am a Tiger by Karl Newson and Ross Collins (Macmillan)

The Runaway Pea by Kjartan Poskitt and Alex Willmore (Simon & Schuster)

For more on the six shortlisted stories, visit www.amazon.co.uk/obp.

Oscar’s Book Prize is awarded in memory of Oscar Ashton who loved children’s stories and died aged three-and-a-half of an undetected heart condition.

This year, the prize received the highest number of entries in its seven year history =/ 128 submissions from children’s writers and illustrators from across the UK.