The Middler has been shortlisted for the 2020 Waterstones Children's Book Prize - Nosy Crow Skip to content
Posted by Sam, February 6, 2020

The Middler has been shortlisted for the 2020 Waterstones Children’s Book Prize

We’re delighted to announce that The Middler, by Kirsty Applebaum, has been shortlisted for the 2020 Waterstones Children’s Book Prize in the Books for Young Readers category!

Launched in 2005, the enormously popular Waterstones Children’s Book Prize celebrates the best children’s literature from the previous year. The prize is divided into three categories – Illustrated Books, Young Readers, and Older Readers – with a winner selected from each category as well as one overall winner.

Eleven-year-old Maggie lives in Fennis Wick, enclosed and protected from the outside world by a boundary, beyond which the Quiet War rages and the dirty, dangerous wanderers roam.

Her brother Jed is an eldest, revered and special. A hero. Her younger brother is Trig – everyone loves Trig. But Maggie’s just a middler; invisible and left behind. Then, one hot September day, she meets Una, a hungry wanderer girl in need of help, and everything Maggie has ever known gets turned on its head.

The Middler is gripping story of forbidden friendship, loyalty, and betrayal, perfect for fans of Malorie Blackman, Meg Rosoff and Frances Hardinge. Through Maggie, the bold and often hilarious narrator, we experience the trials and frustrations of being the forgotten middle child, the child with no voice, even in her own family.

If you haven’t picked up The Middler yet, you can read the first few chapters below:

Buy the book.

You can also listen to a preview of the audiobook, brilliantly narrated by Adjoa Andoh, below:

Buy the audiobook.

Recently longlisted for the Branford Boase Award, we’re incredibly proud of all the praise The Middler has been receiving lately.

You can pick up a copy of the book at Waterstones here. The winners will be announced later in the year. For more information about the award, and to view the shortlist, click here.

Congratulations, Kirsty!

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