Katrina Nannestad Wins Book Links Award for Children’s Historical Fiction

Congratulations to Katrina Nannestad whose book All the Beautiful Things published by Harper Collins has won this year’s Book Links Award for Children’s Historical Fiction.

This is the third time that she has won this award having won in 2023 with Waiting for the Storks and in 2021 for We Are Wolves.

In each one of these novels, she takes a little-known aspect of WW2 and shows how it impacts children, who are powerless victims struggling to survive, often at intense personal cost. She has tackled Wolfskinder, child soldiers, Himmler’s Lebensborn program and now in All the Beautiful Things she writes about the impact of Aktion T4, the Nazi program for involuntary euthanasia, inspired by their vision for a strong, pure German race.

Anna lives in Berchtesgaden, Hitler’s second home. She is a perfect physical example of his preferred German race, strong, blond and blue eyed, but her little sister, Eva, is different. She is frail and needs time to learn new things, but she brings joy to all who know her because she is the embodiment of unquestioning loving and giving. Her family hide her in their apartment but soon that is not enough to keep her safe.

Other people become involved, and Anna has to learn to trust and to question, to make new friends and to challenge herself to protect those she loves.

One of the strengths in Katrina’s books is her careful characterisation of complex people with foibles and fears who are trying to make sense of a world where the rules have changed. As is expected now of one of Nannestad’s WW2 stories we have a rich mix of ethical and moral issues that challenges young readers to think about their world. Themes of loyalty, tolerance, patriotism, and more are here, always embedded in a warm loving family, rich in affection and humour. It is the bedrock of this strong family love that allows the reader to come to grips with the confronting issues presented here. Another strength here is the depiction of ordinary Germans living in a world created by Hitler and his supporters. Not every German was a Nazi.

Judges’ Comments

All the Beautiful Things by Katrina Nannestad seamlessly interweaves meticulous historical research with beautiful and suspenseful storytelling creating memorable and lovable characters. Her writing from grounding the reader in an unfamiliar time and place through to her pacing and imagery recounts a powerful story in a lyrical compelling voice. This unforgettable story presents timeless ethical and moral issues just as important now as then, showing readers how historical fiction can be a mirror to ourselves and our current world.

Congratulations to Katrina and thank you to all who entered the award for supporting our mission to increase the understanding and appreciation of history by children through enjoyable and accessible fiction.

StoryLinks Book review