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9 year old’s story about a refugee child is a competition winner

9 year old Frasier Cox won The Book People’s 2017 Bedtime Story Competition with his beautiful poem inspired by the theme of friendship.

The Book People ran the competition earlier last year and from the 1300 entries a shortlist of 3 stories were chosen from different age ranges- 5-7 years, 8-9 years, and 10-11 years. The shortlisters were respectively Jackson Mendoza, Frasier Cox, and Amy Chick. From those three winners one final overall winner had to be decided upon by three judges.

Frasier’s story was written in the style of a poem and is about a hypothetical friendship between himself and a refugee boy. His warmth, empathy, and humanity shone through and won him the coveted prize of having his book illustrated and published. After being told of his success, Frasier told The Book People:  “I’m really pleased and very excited to have won The Bedtime Story Competition and can’t wait for my story to be made into a real book. I love reading and writing stories and to know that my book will be read by children all over the country makes me very proud.”




Watch the announcement of the winning story

Here is what the judges had to say about Frasier’s story:

Claudia Winkleman, television personality and mother, was the head judge. She remarked: “I was blown away by the standard of the stories and writing from all the entries into Book People’s Bedtime Story Competition. Frasier’s story, is incredibly touching and thought provoking and it’s absolutely remarkable a 9-year-old boy has written such a thoughtful story. Frasier is a very worthy overall winner and I can’t wait to see the final version with Alison Brown’s brilliant illustrations once it’s been made into a real book next year.”

Christian O’Connell, Campaign Ambassador, and competition judge said: “I really enjoyed reading the entries from this year’s competition, but Frasier’s story was my favourite. The fact a 9-year-old boy showed us what so many people and politicians forget, that we are all connected in this world. We have more in common than we think. Such a big-hearted idea and story all told in a beautifully moving poem. Frasier is a very, very special young man. This actually moved me to tears the first time I read it. This is just what we need in the world right now, we need to send Donald Trump a copy of this when it comes out!”

Fellow judge, Sarah Walden, is the Group Buying and Merchandising Director. She said: ‘I was extremely impressed at the quality of the writing and imagination shown in this year’s Bedtime Story competition. However, Frasier’s story stood out from among the crowd. There’s a Little Boy the Same as Me contains an incredibly considerate message which really struck a chord with me. We’re delighted to be able to bring Frasier’s story to life and celebrate his unique and compassionate perspective on one of the most pertinent social issues of our time.’

Alison Brown, illustrator, was called in to illustrate the winning book: “If a top adult author tried to write these sentiments in a child’s voice, I don’t think they could have done a better job! It just sounds like it comes from the heart, very authentic and moving. The imagined scenes make for lots of lovely images, too.”

Watch Frasier’s interview with Sky News

Watch Frasier read his published book

Frasier worked closely with Alison Brown and children’s literature publishers Little Tiger and has turned his story into a picture book which is now available to purchase! The book is sold exclusively by TheBookPeople.co.uk and at least 35% of the price of each book sold will be donated to Save the Children: a charity that fights every single day for the children’s wellbeing.

Follow this link to purchase your own copy and help Save the Children.




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