Ly Lan was honoured for a work of fiction titled “Tu truyen mot con heo” (An autobiography of a pig) published by the Tre (Youth) Publishing House.
The writer, born in southern Binh Duong province in 1957, has dedicated her entire life to creating a number of works, including stories, poems, novels and proses, and translating many foreign ones for children. She is also the translator of the famous series of fantasy novels “Harry Potter” into Vietnamese.
This year, the Khat Vong De Men (Cricket Desire) prize was presented to a draft comic titled “Thu vien ky bi” (Mysterious Library) by 14-year-old Le Sinh Hung; “Cuoc phieu luu cua De Ut” (An adventure of De Ut), a four-volume comic series by LinhRab and published by the Kim Dong Publishing House; and “Duoi khung troi ngat xanh” (Under the blue sky), a draft novel by Lu Mai.
This prize was also granted to “Trang oi… tu dau den?” (Dear the moon… where are you from?), a song by Thai Chi Thanh based on a poem by Tran Dang Khoa; and “Vuong quoc nho bi mat” (The secret little kingdom), a poem by La Thanh Ha with illustrations by Nhu Quynh released by the Ha Noi Publishing House and Crabit Kidbooks.
Deputy General Director of the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) Nguyen Thi Su presented the Khat Vong De Men prize to Le Sinh Hung at the event.
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Poet Tran Dang Khoa (left) and Editor-in-chief of the The thao va Van hoa newspaper Le Xuan Thanh (right) present the grand prize “Hiep si De Men” to a representative of writer Ly Lan. (Photo: VNA)
The jury also honoured the series of children’s books by writer May, comprising “Banh mi goi xinh” (The pretty slice of bread) and “Ong gia Noel va cuoc phieu luu cua doi giay moi” (Santa Clause and the adventure of the new shoes), in the “Vun dap tam hon” (Nurturing the soul) collection of the Kim Dong Publishing House. “Con khi vang Bap o Ru Mo” (Bap, the yellow monkey in Ru Mo), a draft novel by Dang Chuong Ngan, was also commended.
The "De Men Awards for Children" 2024 attracted the biggest number of entries so far, with 135 works, created or completed between January 1, 2023 and April 20, 2024.
As part of the presentation ceremony, an exhibition of illustrations from “Cuoc phieu luu cua De Ut” was also held. The comic is an adaptation of “De Men Phieu Luu Ky” (Diary of a Cricket), one of the most well-known Vietnamese children’s books, by To Hoai.
The annual "De Men Awards for Children", launched by the VNA’s The thao va Van hoa (Sports and Culture) Newspaper in 2020, aims to honour the best works by and for children. The award title is taken from the main character in “De Men Phieu Luu Ky”.
