Wellington couple wins children’s book award

The Wellington children’s booksellers, commentators and judges Ruth and John McIntyre have won the Storylines Betty Gilderdale Award, given for outstanding long-term service to the genre of books for children and young adults.

The Storylines Children’s Literature Trust, honouring Auckland literary historian and writer Betty Gilderdale, makes the national award annually to teachers, writers, agents, translators and others who have actively promoted children’s literature for young people in New Zealand.

Ruth and John McIntyre have run The Children’s Bookshop, a highly regarded specialist bookseller in Wellington, since 1992. Both have served in recent years as judges for the New Zealand Post Children’s book awards. John is also well-known as a children’s book reviewer on National Radio, and previously served on the board of Booksellers New Zealand.

'Ruth and John McIntyre’s contribution to children’s literature, especially in their support of children’s writers and illustrators, has been outstanding over a long period of time,’ says Dr Libby Limbrick, chair of the Storylines Trust.

'They have done much to nurture the growth of children’s literature in New Zealand and also to ensure that children have access to the best of literature from elsewhere.'

Previous winners of the award have included Dorothy Butler, Elsie Locke, Graham Beattie, Ray Richards, Dame Katerina Te Heikoko Mataira and Dr Glyn Strange.

The Betty Gilderdale Award will be presented at a function in Wellington on 21 November.