CRIMEFEST, one of Europe’s leading crime writing conventions, has given away more than £5k worth of books to children in inner city schools across Bristol.
Shortlisted titles from its award categories for Best Crime Novel for Children, aged 8-12, and Best Crime Novel for Young Adults, aged 12-16, were distributed to nine primary and five secondary schools across Bristol, with the help of Bristol’s independent bookshop Max Minerva.
Max Minerva has also collaborated with CrimeFest to host 2022’s shortlisted author Anthony Kessel at two school events on 13 May, thanks to support from CrimeFest sponsor, Specsavers., There will also be panel event at the convention with Anthony and Ella Risbridger.
Anthony Kessel’s The Five Clues and Ella Risbridger’s The Secret Detectives are both in contention for CrimeFest’s Best Crime Novel for Children award.
CrimeFest is one of the few crime genre awards that celebrate books for children and young adults.
Adrian Muller, Co-host of CRIMEFEST, said: “Children and young people have had a torrid time in the last two years, particularly with disruptions to their social life and school, and now with the anxieties of war in Ukraine. Reading offers escapism, solace, comfort and connection. The crime fiction genre is a popular gateway into reading as it’s so accessible and popular. We want to celebrate the role of these books encouraging reading for young people; these authors deserve critical acclaim, just as equally as those writing for adults.”
Hosted in Bristol, CRIMEFEST is one of the biggest crime fiction events in Europe, and one of the most popular dates in the international crime fiction calendar, with circa 60 panel events and 150 authors over four days.
Sam Taylor, Co-Founder at Max Minerva’s, said: “We’re really proud to support CrimeFest in their incredibly generous donation of £5k of books to Bristol schools. With thrillers and mysteries having such strong appeal to young readers, these books will be very gratefully received by the librarians and eagerly read by the pupils. We love how this genre helps children and teenagers face their fears and find in themselves the bravery, independence and resilience they see in the characters.”
Bristol is also the film location for season two of Amazon Prime’s teen spy thriller, Alex Rider, by Eleventh Hour Films. Horowitz is Executive Producer, and one of the shortlisted authors in this year’s Best Children’s Book category.
Adrian added: “When you look at the influence and success of Anthony Horowitz, and of course JK Rowling who was born near Bristol, it’s clear children’s and young adult fiction can be huge business for publishers. Given the commercial importance and the emotional and educational impact of books and reading, we want to give these authors the acclaim they richly deserve.”
Leading reviewers of fiction for children and young adults, alongside the members of the School Library Association (SLA) form the CRIMEFEST judging panels, to establish the award shortlists.
Now in its 15th year, the winners of the CrimeFest awards will be announced during the convention, which is hosted 12-15 May at the Mercure Bristol Grande Hotel.
