It is only the second time in the 55-year history of the Gouden Griffel that a Flemish author wins the award. Furthermore, it is a first that the author, the illustrator and the publisher all are Flemish.
‘The secret of the nightingale's throat', published by De Eenhoorn, is an adaptation of the famous fairy tale by H.C. Andersen, ‘The nightingale'. For his first children's book, Verhelst delivered a jewel of a text, wonderfully illustrated with paintings by Carll Cneut.
Since its publication in September 2008, the book has won a bunch of prizes. In Flanders, ‘The secret of the nightingale's throat' was awarded the Golden Owl for Children's and Youth Literature (Gouden Uil Jeugdliteratuur), a Book Cub (Boekenwelp), a Book Feather (Boekenpluim) and the Plantin-Moretus Readers' Vote for the most beautiful cover. In the Netherlands, the book has won the Woutertje Pieterse Prize, a Zilveren Griffel and now also the Gouden Griffel. The picture book also got a White Raven Special Mention in Germany.
Internationally, ‘The secret of the Nightingale's throat' has aroused a lot of interest. The book will be published in French, German, Spanish, Italian, Slovenian, Korean and Chinese (Taiwan).
Verhelst and Cneut publish their books with the support of the Flemish Literature Fund.
