The Alligator's Mouth Award 2020 Winner

last updated 24 June 2020

We are delighted to announce the winner of The Alligator’s Mouth Award 2020!

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We are so excited that King Coo: The Curse of the Mummy’s Gold by Adam Stower has won The Alligator’s Mouth Award 2020. Run by Bright and The Alligator’s Mouth bookshop, the children’s book prize celebrates the best books for 6-8-year-olds.

The judges praised King Coo (the second title in the series published by David Fickling Books) for being ‘thrilling, witty and subversive’.

The 2020 winner was announced via an online video, where author/illustrator Nick Sharratt revealed that Adam Stower had scooped the top spot. You can watch the full video below:

This is the second year of the award which champions highly illustrated fiction. Gardners Books, who have supported the prize from the outset, joined this year as an official partner.

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Speaking about his win, author and illustrator Adam Stower said: ‘It is such a joy to win The Alligator’s Mouth Award. Illustrations play a huge part in my story-telling, so winning this award that celebrates highly illustrated children’s fiction is truly an honour. Thank you so much. I will treasure it.’

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Nick Sharratt, who joined the 2020 judging panel following his 2019 win of the inaugural prize with Nice Work for the Cat and the King (Alison Green Books, Scholastic Children’s Books), commented: ‘King Coo: The Curse of the Mummy’s Gold has got it all. It is a rip-roaring, hilarious tale of adventure. It’s got bags of humour and loads of warmth. It also has, at the heart of it, a fantastically unconventional character: King Coo, the girl with the beard!’

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Bright Director and Judge Arabella Stein said: ‘I am thrilled with Adam’s win – King Coo: The Curse of the Mummy’s Gold thoroughly deserves to be recognised as a triumph of storytelling and illustration. Every child should have the opportunity to read brilliant books like this one, and I hope this award encourages talented authors and illustrators to keep creating exciting and engaging stories. Especially now, it is so important to celebrate and share fantastic books for children.’

Adam Stower reading an extract from the book

Keep up to date with the awards by visiting The Alligator’s Mouth Award Website and following #AlligatorsAward on Twitter.