Issue date: 6 March 2025
To celebrate World Book Day and West Sussex Libraries’ Centenary this year, our Schools Library Service has announced the winner of its West Sussex Picture Books to Shout About! Award for 2025.
The overwhelming winner, voted for by children from 40 primary schools across the county is Who Ate Steve? written by Susannah Lloyd and illustrated by Kate Hindley.
The winning story is both a story about measuring and comparing sizes and an amusing lesson about the animal food chain.
The book has an approach to storytelling where the narrator shows an awareness of the readership as the story unfolds, and this style has proved very popular with the five to 11 year-olds who participated in the Picture Books to Shout About! award.
Winning author, Susannah Lloyd, said: “I am delighted that Who Ate Steve has won the West Sussex Picture Books to Shout About Award! I am beaming from ear to ear that Marcel and Steve, badly behaved as they are, have won the approval of the children of West Sussex! Thank you!”
One of our participating primary schools said: “The children were really enthused and excited by the stories and were very keen to talk about them, deciding which one was their favourite, and why. Taking part in the live chats with the authors gave confidence to the children to start writing and illustrating their own stories, both in school and at home.”
Cllr Duncan Crow, Cabinet Member for Community Support, Fire and Rescue, said: “It’s great that so many of our primary school children have taken part in voting for their favourite picture book, especially in this special year for our West Sussex Library Service, where we are celebrating a century of libraries being in the heart of the local community.
“Services that our libraries bring to the community fit in with Our Council Plan priority of helping people and communities fulfil their potential, which includes encouraging a love of books and reading.”
The other books shortlisted were:
- Heavy Metal Badger by Duncan Beedie
- The Boy, The Troll and the Chalk by Anne Booth and David Litchfield
- A Wild Walk to School by Rebecca Cobb
All the shortlisted titles, including the winner, are available to borrow from your local library.
World Book Day is celebrated on 6 March and is an annual celebration of books, authors, illustrators and the joy of reading. To find out more visit www.worldbookday.com
For more information about the book awards and services provided by the West Sussex Schools Library Service email sls@westsussex.gov.uk or call 01903 704828.
