York writer misses out in Costa competition

CHILDREN'S AUTHOR Frances Hardinge tonight won the 2015 Costa Book of the Year for her supernatural tale The Lie Tree.
The winner of the childrens book category Frances Hardinge poses for photographs with her book The Lie Tree at the Costa Book Awards in London, Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2016.  (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)The winner of the childrens book category Frances Hardinge poses for photographs with her book The Lie Tree at the Costa Book Awards in London, Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2016.  (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)
The winner of the childrens book category Frances Hardinge poses for photographs with her book The Lie Tree at the Costa Book Awards in London, Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2016. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)

Hailed by judges as “a fantastic story”, the Victorian detective novel is the first children’s book to scoop the coveted prize for 14 years.

It saw off competition from debut novelist Andrew Michael Hurley’s gothic horror story The Loney and esteemed York-born author Kate Atkinson’s A God In Ruins.

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The last children’s book to win the prestigious prize was Philip Pullman with The Amber Spyglass in 2001.

Despite entering the evening as a betting underdog, the judging panel declared The Lie Tree the winner at an event in central London, after an hour and a half of deliberating.

Judging panel chairman James Heneage said: “First and foremost, Frances Hardinge’s The Lie Tree is a fantastic story.

“It is an important book, not only because it is a great narrative, with great characterisation, but because its central message of possibility for an intelligent girl who is out of touch for the age in which she lives is a very important one and, I would argue, relevant for today.

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“I think lots of 14-year-old girls today would also feel they are quite often out of touch - which could be in anything from boys to motor cars to the art on the walls.

“I think this brilliantly articulates what goes in a clever 14-year-old girl’s mind, particularly one who has this deep interest in science.”

The Lie Tree follows the story of teenager Faith as she tries to uncover the details of her father’s mysterious death.

The budding scientist finds a tree which, when fed with lies, bears fruit that acts as a gateway to understanding previously incomprehensible truths.

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Her struggle for answers is set against the backdrop of a male-dominated Victorian society, where women were “seen and not heard”, Mr Heneage said.

All five nominees for the best book award had already triumphed in separate Costa award categories, including first novel award, novel award, biography award, poetry award and children’s book award.

The Costa Book Awards solely considers authors living in the UK and Ireland.

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