Excelsior Award Blue 2024


2024 Shortlist

The books on the Excelsior Award Blue shortlst have been designated as suitable for children aged 11+ (or Key Stage 3 in schools)

Click on the book's title for extra information


Peter David revisits one of his greatest Hulk hits with a return to Joe Fixit! Gone are the ripped-up shorts of the Hulk of yore - this enforcer prefers the slick style of a suavely striped suit, and the Hulk has traded in "monster" for "mobster" as he lends his strength to the Las Vegas casino scene. Of course, the Kingpin has his own ideas about who the toughest guy in town is, and now it's up to Spider-Man to keep the two of them from destroying Sin City!

Everyone wants to know who the mysterious grey-skinned enforcer really is - and Spidey is on the case (complete with location-appropriate disguises)! 

Details

Writer: Peter David

Artist: Yildiray Cinar

Published by Marvel Comics

ISBN-13: 978-1302947330

In a world where fairies are bought and sold to the highest bidder, humans aren’t exactly on friendly terms with the fae folk. But friendship is exactly what Anne Halford seeks with Challe, her new fairy bodyguard, though he’s not so keen on the idea. As his new master, Anne tasks him with escorting her through a particularly dangerous area, but with a reluctant bodyguard eager to escape a life of servitude, she’ll have to deal with a lot more than she bargained for…

Details

Writer: Miri Mikawa

Artist: Yozorano Udon

Published by Yen Press

ISBN-13: 978-1975367329

"I'm gonna tell you a story, and I'm gonna ask that you let me finish before you say anything. Here’s the deal - on midnight of January 1st, 2000, the world ended. But it wasn’t technology that killed it: It was magic. Now, years later, the Earth has transformed. Magic works (sort of). People are happy (sort of). But this new world isn’t stable, and unless Marguerite de Pruitt and her canine pal, Daisy, do something about it, it’ll tilt into deadly chaos. Good thing they’ve been training their whole lives for this and are destined to succeed. Or so they think".

Details

Writer: Ryan North

Artist: Erika Henderson

Published by Penguin

ISBN-13: 978-0593224847

Bruce Wayne has died, and it’s left Terry McGuiness on his own taking on the mantle of Batman. Left with limited resources, Terry must face a new state-of-the-art A.I. that has emerged in a Neo-Gotham that has no faith in Batman. Even with all of that, Terry will have to face off against his old adversaries, The Jokerz, and look to Barbara Gordon for support. Without Bruce in his ear, can Terry McGuiness become the protector that Neo-Gotham needs?

Details

Writer: Collin Kelly & Jackson Lanzing

Artist: Max Dunbar

Published by DC Comics

ISBN-13: 978-1779517562

On the edge of burnout, Vern decides to return to his family in the Sunshine State to start over. Starting a new dead-end job as a custodian at Quasar - a local science facility with a shady motive - he shrugs on his uniform, grabs a mop and bucket, and trudges off to clean up. Black holes? Space-time anomalies? Galactic ooze? Things aren't entirely what they seem at Quasar, and when Vern accidentally plugs in a mysterious machine and finds himself standing on the brink of the destruction of every planet in the Multiverse, he finds himself presented with the greatest question of all: what is the point?

Details

Writer: Tyrell Waiters

Artist: Tyrell Waiters

Published by Nobrow

ISBN-13: 978-1913123093

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