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Hans Christian Andersen Award 2013 goes to the Czech Republic

It is our pleasure to announce that one of this year´s Hans Christian Andersen Awards was given to Hana Hanáčková and Miroslava Čápová – the two main organizers of the project „The Night with Andersen“, supporting children´s interest in reading. Both organizers received the prize personally from the Hans Christian Andersen Award Committee on 2 April 2013 in Odense – at the birthplace and on the anniversary of the world famous Danish storyteller´s birthday.

H.C. Andersen

The Hans Christian Andersen Award has been awarded by the Hans Christian Andersen Award Committee since 1996 to organizations, institutions and also individuals who contributed to the promotion and spreading of knowledge all around the world, about the most important Danish writer, H. C. Andersen. In 2004 this prize was awarded also to Danish Queen Margrethe II who beside other things, created animations for the movie The Snow Queen.


Prizewinners in 2013

Actor Christian Steffensen, Denmark, awarded for a lifelong interest in H. C. Andersen and promotion of his work throught his own artistic production
Composer David Lang, USA, for composition The Little Match Girl Passion (2007)
Mirka Čápová a Hana Hanáčková, the Czech Republic, (from the Department of Children Literature in the Library BBB Uherské Hradiště) for arranging The Night With Andersen

Andersen předávání cen
Mirka Čápová (by the microphone ) and Hana Hanáčková at the award ceremony

Andersen u busty
From the left: Laureate Hana Hanáčková, Consul Barbora Stejskalová and laureate Mirka Čápová by H. C. Andersen´s bust


Press Release

Noc s Andersenem

The first The Night With Andersen took place in 2000 in the Library of Bedřich Beneš Buchlovan in Uherské Hradiště. Little readers could experience an adventurous night with fairy-tales, competitions, games and surprises. Since the first time, the event has expanded to many places around the Czech Republic, Europe and around the world.

Leureates Hana Hanáčková and Mirka Čápová commented on the award:

„In 2000 we didn´t have any idea that our little regional event would grow and become a common project in the community of libraries. Due to the Children Libraries Club in the Czech Republic, and willing organizers who liked the idea of supporting the development of children´s reading through Andersen´s fairy-tales, the children can now during one magical evening, experience literature and cultural adventures, which can bring a child‘s soul closer to a  life-long love for books.

Every Night With Andersen brings us a feeling of togetherness, joy and hapiness. Our joy is even greater this year because our effort was noticed far beyond the borders of our country, in the land of H. C. Andersen. It will be a big encouragement and reward to visit the birthland of the author of so many fairy-tales and personally receive the prize on behalf of all the organizors of Night With Andersen all over the world…“

This year´s The Night With Andersen took place on 5 April 2013. Children readers in Denmark also had the opportunity to meet this night as The Night With Andersen was prepared for them by the Czech group (Český kroužek) and Czech school (Česká škola).

Attachments

Press_release_HCA_2013_1 33 KB DOC (Word document) Jun 26, 2013