This is the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award 1
Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award Photo: Roine Karls
son In the spirit of Astrid Lindgren Few have done more for the right of children to a rich inner life than Astrid Lindgren. The creator of stories beloved the world over, she was a renewer of children’s literature. She was also a steadfast humanist who made her voice heard in the public debate, always with a focus on children and their future. When, in 2002, her voice finally fell silent, the Swedish government founded the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, an annual prize given to those who continue to work in the spirit of her legacy of imagination, bravery, respect and empathy, and maintaining the highest level of artistic excellence. ‘A child alone with her book creates, somewhere in the secret room of her soul, her own pictures that surpass everything else. Human beings must have these pictures. The day when children’s imaginations can no longer make them will be a day when all of humanity is impoverished.’ Astrid Lindgren, 1958