Richard Allen Chase Memorial Award 
Eligibility, Guidelines & Fees

Criteria

The Richard Allen Chase Memorial Award recognizes and honours excellence in Canadian children’s literature written for an elementary school-aged audience (Grades 4-6/Ages 9-12) having at its heart themes such as compassion, kindness, humanity, environmentalism, inclusivity and/or connection to the land. The celebration of diversity is an equally significant element to achieving excellence. A work of excellence in Canadian children’s literature should also be successful in making people feel a sense of belonging in their communities.

The criteria for selecting the winning and shortlisted titles are viewed through each juror’s lens. In identifying excellence, the judges shall consider the following criteria:

• Quality of the text and illustrations (if present).
• Conveys evident themes of compassion, kindness, humanity, environmentalism, inclusivity and/or connection to the land.
• Appropriateness of style and presentation. Books should have notable qualities in all of the elements pertinent to it, such as interpretation of theme and concept.
• Books need to be self-contained and not dependent on other media for its enjoyment.
• Presentation of information including accuracy, clarity and organization.
• Treatment of the material (in the case of non-fiction) or elements of the story that draw upon or are inspired by real cultures, folklore and history should be done respectfully and authentically.
• Books should have been written for a youth audience (Grades 4-6/Ages 9-12) and should achieve excellence of presentation.
• Book is to be considered as a contribution to literature.
• The popularity of a book and didactic intent are not to be considered.
• The prize will be split equally between the author and illustrator. If the winning title is a translated work, the author will retain 70% of their portion with 30% being awarded to the translator.

Eligibility Requirements

• Books must be published between January 1 and December 31, 2024. 
• Both the author and illustrator must be Canadian citizens, permanent residents of Canada (minimum two-year residency), or First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples of the land that is now called Canada.
• No posthumous submissions.
• Books may be published in Canada or abroad.
• Books must be first foreign or first Canadian editions. New editions or re-issues of previously published titles are not eligible for submission.
• Books must be in English.
• Translations are eligible, provided the translator is a Canadian citizen, permanent resident of Canada (minimum two-year residency), or First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples of the land that is now called Canada.
• Only advanced picture books (both fiction and non-fiction) suitable for young readers Ages 9-12 (Grades 4-6) are eligible.
• Books being submitted for consideration must be original works.
• Books based on traditional stories (e.g., folk literature) will be considered if the book is the result of original research and the retelling and interpretation are the writer’s own.
• Books based on recorded songs are not eligible.
• Books written as part of a series or published in serial form will be judged as separate entries and must be able to ‘stand-alone’.
• The award is only for books in the printed format, as distinct from digital (i.e., ebooks) and audio-visual formats.
• Books in manuscript form are not eligible.
• All books must have an ISBN and be distributed in Canada.
• Self-published books are eligible for submission provided they have a valid ISBN.