The 2014 winners of the Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medals — the UK’s Newbery and Caldecott equivalents — were announced on Monday. The awards are presented annually by the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP).

Kevin Brooks was awarded the Carnegie Medal, recognizing "the writer of an outstanding book for children," for his novel The Bunker Diary (Puffin).

Jon Klassen and his Caldecott Medal-winning picture book This Is Not My Hat (Walker, published in the US by Candlewick; reviewed and starred in the September/October 2012 Horn Book Magazine) received the Greenaway Medal "for distinguished illustration in a book for children."

     In a press release, Helen Thompson, Chair of the Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medal judging panel, said of the judges' choices,

Children and teenagers live in the real world; a world where militia can kidnap an entire school full of girls, and where bullying has reached endemic proportions on social media. Exploring difficult issues within the safe confines of a fictional world creates essential thinking space, and encourages young people to consider and discuss their own feelings and reactions. I believe that the books being published for children and young people are often better researched, better written and more thought provoking than most adult books, and this year's CILIP Carnegie & Kate Greenaway books are no exception.

Kevin Brooks has created an entirely credible world with a compelling narrative, believable characters and writing of outstanding literary merit.

Jon Klassen's darkly humourous illustrations are a joy to behold. Deceptively simplistic, the expressions and events that he captures, which range from the sublime to the sinister, are utterly wonderful.

The press release also contains the short lists for the two awards and lists of previous winners. The authors will both receive £500 in books to donate to their local libraries. Klassen will additionally receive the £5,000 Colin Mears Award cash prize.

Congratulations to Kevin Brooks, Jon Klassen, and their publishers!