Hurray for the Crystal Kite Shortlisters and Don't Forget to Vote!

The annual Crystal Kite Award is a peer-given award to recognize great books from 15 SCBWI regional divisions around the world.  Last year the award for the UK and Europe was won by Dave Cousins with 15 Days Without a Head. This year our region is the UK and Ireland and the award will be won by one of the lovely ladies pictured below. Many Congratulations to Elizabeth Wein, Candy Gourlay, and Teri Terry!

Elizabeth                               Candy                                   Teri

Here are their shortlisted books:

Rose Under Fire  by Elizabeth Wein

Rose Justice is a young pilot with the Air Transport Auxiliary during the Second World War. On her way back from a semi-secret flight in the waning days of the war, Rose is captured by the Germans and ends up in Ravensbrück, the notorious Nazi women's concentration camp. There, she meets an unforgettable group of women, including a once glamorous and celebrated French detective novelist whose Jewish husband and three young sons have been killed; a resilient young girl who was a human guinea pig for Nazi doctors trying to learn how to treat German war wounds; and a female fighter pilot and military ace for the Soviet air force. These damaged women must bond together to help each other survive. This companion volume to Code Name Verity explores themes of friendship and loyalty, right and wrong, and unwavering bravery in the face of indescribable evil.

Shine  by Candy Gourlay

This is not a ghost story even though there are plenty of ghosts in it. And it's not a horror story though some people might be horrified. It's not a monster story either, even though there is a monster in it and that monster happens to be me. Forced to hide herself away from the superstitious island community of Mirasol, thirteen-year-old Rosa seeks solace online. There she meets Ansel95, and as the friendship moves from virtual to real, Rosa discovers that she's not the only one with something to hide.. From the author of the critically-acclaimed Tall Story, comes a haunting, intense and moving novel which weaves myths and ghosts into a modern setting. As Rosa's social life blossoms, how will she seize the freedom to be who she really is?

Fractured  by Teri Terry

Kyla's memory has been erased, her personality wiped blank, her memories lost for ever. Or so she thought. Kyla shouldn't be able to remember anything. But she can - and she's beginning to realise that there are a lot of dark secrets locked away in her memories. When a mysterious man from her past comes back into her life, she thinks she's on her way to finding the truth. But the more she learns about her history, the more confusing her future becomes...

 Voting closes Wednesday 30th April.
Log in to your home page on scbwi.org and vote from there.