After Stockholm: What Jon Klassen’s N704m prize says about Nigerian illustrators.
Five million kronor — about $530,000 (N704 million) — the world’s largest prize for children’s literature.Created in 2002 by the Swedish government to honour Astrid Lindgren, the prize […] The post After Stockholm: What Jon Klassen’s N704m prize says about Nigerian illustrators appeared first on Vanguard News .
By Chukwuma Ajakah On May 25, at the Stockholm Concert Hall, Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden handed Canadian illustrator Jon Klassen the 2026 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award.
Created in 2002 by the Swedish government to honour Astrid Lindgren, the prize this year picked Klassen from 263 candidates in 74 countries.
Born in Winnipeg in 1981, Klassen came through animation — Coraline, Kung Fu Panda 2 — before I Want My Hat Back (2011). This Is Not My Hat made him the first to win both the American Caldecott and Britain’s Kate Greenaway Medal for the same book. The jury: “Through his subtle and evocative storytelling in words and pictures, Jon Klassen opens new perspectives on our place in the universe.” In Bologna where the win was announced, Klassen said: “This is incredible news. I’m so blown away.” In Stockholm: “I will spend as much time as possible going forward trying to express what this award means to me.
MSEApp News is publishing an original rewrite of this tip for readers, based on reporting associated with Vanguard.