Leanne McDonagh, joint winner with Oein DeBhairduin of the Judges’ Special Award for 'Why the Moon Travels'. Photo: Julien Behal Photography
Pádraig Kenny, winner of the Honour Award for Fiction for 'The Monsters of Rookhaven'. Photo: Julien Behal Photography
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A modern-day retelling of The Children of Lir legend, with a feminist twist, has won the coveted Book of the Year award at the 2021 Children’s Books Ireland awards.
The book, titled Savage Her Reply by Galway-born author Deirdre Sullivan and Dublin-based illustrator Karen Vaughan, is described as “a haunting reimagining of the Irish legend of The Children of Lir for young adult readers”.
Ms Sullivan, who also won the same top award along with Ms Vaughan for Tangleweed and Brine in 2018, was praised for her “wonderfully lyrical prose”.
The awards, sponsored by KPMG, were announced yesterday as part of the International Literature Festival Dublin. They honour excellence in literature for children and young readers across six categories.
Ms Sullivan said: “It means a huge amount as a writer to receive recognition from an organisation like Children’s Books Ireland that does such necessary and powerful work for Ireland’s young readers.
“Savage Her Reply was a book that allowed me to interrogate old stories, but also to connect with them and the vast amount they still have to offer us.
Pádraig Kenny, winner of the Honour Award for Fiction for 'The Monsters of Rookhaven'. Photo: Julien Behal Photography
“Aífe’s isolation from the world around her, her struggles with her mental health and the abuse she experiences as a young woman are oddly prescient right now.”
Ms Vaughan said she was honoured to receive the award for her illustrations.
“Being recognised by Children’s Books Ireland, an organisation that not only works relentlessly to instil a love of reading in children but champions Irish illustrators and authors, is such an enormous honour.
“The experience of working on a book as fierce, tender, and human as Savage Her Reply is something I’ll treasure.”
Children’s Books Ireland CEO, Elaina Ryan, said: “We are proud to recognise the excellent work of all our shortlisted authors and illustrators, whose work has comforted, excited and absorbed readers through an extremely difficult year.
“Karen Vaughan and Deirdre Sullivan’s retelling of a classic folk tale from a feminist perspective gives voice and power to women whose stories have not traditionally been heard in a clear and distinctive voice.”