Heartstopper by Alice Oseman has won the Readers’ Choice prize at the Books Are My Bag Readers Awards, with the writer also winning the Breakthrough Author award.

Now in their seventh year, the awards are the only prizes featuring shortlists curated by booksellers and winners chosen by readers.

Heartstopper has sold more than one million print copies and has been adapted for a Netflix series which came out in April 2022, receiving more than 52 million views to date according to the streaming service. After crowdfunding a limited print-run edition, in which she met her funding goal in less than two hours, Oseman published Heartstopper Volume One in Spring 2019 with Hachette Children’s Group, followed by Volume Two in July of the same year. Since then, two further volumes have been released and a colouring book. Oseman scooped the Breakthrough Author award with readers overwhelmingly voting for her Heartstopper series.

“Thank you so much everyone for voting for Heartstopper as the Readers’ Choice," she said. "Thank you to everyone who’s been involved in the journey of Heartstopper over the years. It’s been such an amazing year for Heartstopper, so this award really means a lot.”

In a strong year for LGBTQ+ authors and books, The Transgender Issue by Shon Faye won the Non-Fiction award.

Juno Dawson’s Her Majesty’s Royal Coven, a LoveReading Star Book, which follows a top-secret government department of witches, won the Fiction award. 

Erik J Brown’s debut, All That’s Left in the World, which blends a queer love story with a post-apocalyptic thriller, took home the YA Fiction award.

Lemn Sissay’s The Fire People, a collection of British Black and Asian poetry, won in the Poetry category.

The Children’s Fiction award went to Loki: A Bad God’s Guide To Being Good by Louie Stowell, the "doodle-heavy diary" of trickster god Loki.

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