Anna Fiske has previously been nominated for the Brage Prize in the children's and young adult books category four times, and won in 2018 in the with her illustrated novel The River. Yesterday, during the award ceremony she received this year's honorary award for her literary work. 

Anna Fiske (b. 1964) is an award-winning author, illustrator, and cartoonist. She has written and illustrated close to 70 picture books, illustrated books and comic books. She's also illustrated a number of books for other authors. Fiske’s playful and distinctive style, both literary and pictorial, has earned her numerous awards and honours for her works. Several of her books have been published with great success abroad, and she is published in over 20 countries.

«Receiving the Brage Honorary Prize for my life's work deeply moves me and means a great, great, great deal.» says Anna Fiske. «In my encounters with readers of all age groups, I have had the joy of giving and receiving, an inspiration that has contributed to make my journey as an author one big adventure. It is in my meetings with them that I feel the books are alive, and gain a life of their own in the reader's thoughts and imagination.»

From the jury statement:

This year's Honorary Prize goes to an innovative, diverse, and distinctive artist.

We are recognising an author who possesses an extraordinarily playful style, and who has published book after book brimming with humour, warmth, and engaging dissemination of knowledge. An authorship that for many years has succeeded in offering readers new, alternative perspectives on the world around us, making us see things in a new and different light.

This author has a big heart for those who struggle to find their place in existence, a big heart for those who don't quite fit in, and a big heart for those who face greater challenges in life than others.

Her books appeal to a broad audience, largely due to her expressive, poetic, and questioning storytelling filled with simple, wise explanations where text merges with peculiar and richly detailed illustrations, making you want to read them again and again.

Through text and illustrations, often difficult topics are addressed, such as all the big and strange feelings we have inside us: anger, jealousy, grief, infatuation, happiness, shyness, and fear. Or big questions about different life stages are posed – in the bravest possible way. Always excellent starting points for further discussion between young and adult readers.

The author's unusual style, both visually and literally, has generated many readers both at home and abroad, as well as a number of highly prestigious awards.