by Tom Storr, Project Editor, Westchester Education UK & International
We were delighted to attend The British Book Awards 2022 – also known as the Nibbies – last month to celebrate the best publishing successes of the past year and to recognise the contributions of everyone who had a hand in bringing the books to life.
The ceremony this year returned to the Great Room of Grosvenor House Hotel. Initially built as an ice rink, where Queen Elizabeth II first learned to skate, it is now one of the largest ballrooms in Europe.
There was a buzz of excitement in the air throughout the evening, as we witnessed an inspiring selection of books being showcased. It was lovely to catch up with colleagues and chat with our guests from DK, IPG, and Pearson on our fabulous table. We all left the event with extremely long reading lists.
Westchester sponsored the Academic, Educational & Professional Publisher of the Year and, for the second time in three years, Jessica Kingsley Publishers took home the prize – huge congratulations to them. The judges noted: “There is a real social mission to its publishing and it’s tightly tied to the communities it serves.”
A loud cheer in the room followed the announcement that the coveted Overall Book of the Year prize had been awarded to Marcus Rashford MBE for his first children’s book, You Are a Champion, written in collaboration with journalist Carl Anka.
It was also a night to remember for Dapo Adeola who took home two Nibbies! The first was for his “visionary” picture book Hey You!, featuring artwork from Adeola and 18 other talented illustrators. Later in the evening, he was crowned Illustrator of the Year.
Many congratulations to all the other winners and shortlisted authors, booksellers, editors, illustrators, literary agents, marketers, publicists, and rights and sales teams. It’s great to see the publishing industry continue to thrive despite facing unprecedented global challenges in the last couple of years.
Follow this link on The Bookseller to read about all the winners.
Click here for a video stream of the live event.