Cleaver Award presented to Oleg Lipchenko

IBBY Canada President Patricia Ocampo presented the 2009 Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Award to Oleg Lipchenko at a book launch held at Nicholas Hoare Books in Toronto on October 7, 2010. Mr. Lipchenko received a cheque for $1,000 and a certificate honouring his work on Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, published by Tundra Books, which was also celebrating the publication of his latest work, Humpty Dumpty and Friends.

This year’s jury – comprised of a Montreal school librarian; children’s librarian at the National Library and Archives of Quebec; and Master’s in Children’s Literature student from BC – had this to say about the winner:

“Oleg Lipchenko has turned this classic story into a rich experience for readers greeting Alice for the first time, as well as for those who know the original…Lipchenko’s illustrations are more than images on a page; they are an homage to the surreal quality and humor of Lewis Carroll’s text.”

The annual IBBY Canada Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Award, established in 1985, honours outstanding artistic talent in Canadian picture books.