The shortlists for the British Book Awards 2023, also known as The Nibbies, were announced in London, UK on Friday, March 17, 2023.
The British Book Awards or Nibbies were founded by Fred Newman, the founder, editor, and publisher of Publishing News who ran them from 1990–2009. They were then acquired by Agile Marketing who renamed it the National Book Awards. In 2017, the award was acquired by The Bookseller who reverted it to the original name British Book Awards or The Nibbies. In 2020, Bernardine Evaristo, Candice Carty-Williams, and Oyinkan Braithwaite were among the winners while David Olusoga was the sole winner in 2021. In 2022, the winners were Caleb Azumah Nelson, Marcus Rashford with Carl Anka, Jade LB, and Dapo Adeola and 18 illustrators.
The shortlists for 2023 were announced with Alice O’Keeffe, books editor of The Bookseller and overall chair of the Books of the Year saying: “this year’s fiction shortlists run the gamut from fresh new voices, with a pleasing number of debuts from older writers to big brand authors of many years standing with an established readership still going strong. It’s the second year for our Discover category, showcasing books from traditionally underrepresented writers, which is even broader in scope, with memoir, essay, and poetry alongside new fiction. In non-fiction this year, moving true-life stories are particularly prominent, a reminder of the power of reading to help us make sense of the world.”
The awards shortlists are in the categories of fiction, fiction debut, nonfiction lifestyle, nonfiction narrative, children’s fiction, children’s nonfiction, children’s illustrated. discover, crime and thriller, page-turner, audiobook: fiction, and audiobook: nonfiction. This was not a great year for writers of African descent with only five categories in the twelve on offer containing them. They are;
Début Fiction Book of the Year supported by Good Housekeeping
- Honey & Spice, Bolu Babalola (Headline Review, Headline Publishing Group)
Discover Book of the Year supported by Magic Radio Book Club
- The Secret Diaries of Charles Ignatius Sancho, Paterson Joseph (Dialogue Books)
- Home is Not a Place, Johny Pitts and Roger Robinson (William Collins, HarperCollins)
Children’s Fiction Book of the Year supported by The Week Junior
- Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun, Tọlá Okogwu (Simon & Schuster Children’s Books UK)
Children’s Non-fiction Book of the Year supported by The Week Junior
- Am I Made of Stardust?, Dr Maggie Answers the Big Questions for Young Scientists by Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock and illustrator Chelen Ecija (Buster Books, Michael O’Mara Books)
- Girlhood Unfiltered, Ebinehita Iyere (Knights Of)
- You Can Do It: How to Find Your Voice and Make a Difference, Marcus Rashford and Carl Anka (Macmillan Children’s Books, Pan Macmillan)
Non-fiction: Narrative Book of the Year supported by The Big Issue
- A Visible Man, Edward Enninful (Bloomsbury Publishing)
Responses
Bolu Babalola, “Over the moon to share that HONEY SPICE has been shortlisted for the British Book Awards Book Of The Year for Début Fiction at the #BritishBookAward! 🍯🌶🤍 Dream come true. My first ever book nom. So grateful to everyone who takes romcoms seriously.”
Paterson Joseph tweeted, “🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟Thanks @thebookseller @dialoguebooks @HenryHolt #IgnatiusSancho #TSDOCIS”
Tọlá Okogwu tweeted, “Still blown away by this news to be honest. So thrilled that Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun has been shortlisted for #BritishBookAwards Children’s Fiction Book of the Year and with the most amazing selection of books. Congratulations to everyone shortlisted. #Nibbies”
Ebinehita Iyere tweeted, “Couldn’t be prouder of @MilkHoneyBees 🐝🥳”
Edward Enninful tweeted, “Thank you for your support.”
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