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We've been looking at the books longlisted for The Guardian's Children's Fiction Prize 2009 and we're impressed. Picking the shortlist - never mind the winner - is going to be no easy job.

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|author=Bernard Beckett

|title=Genesis

|rating=4

|summary=An intriguingly styled sci-fi book of ideas, which takes old themes in a very modern approach and gets us hooked on wide-ranging concepts in a commendable way.

}}

|author=Sally Gardner

|title=The Silver Blade

|rating=5

|summary=An absorbing historical thriller, dark-edged and awash with atmosphere and intrigue. A healthy dollop of magic makes everything all the more interesting. Though it is a sequel to The Red Necklace, it can be enjoyed to the fullest even without having read the first entry in the series. Highly recommended.

}}

|author=Terry Pratchett

|title=Nation

|rating=4.5

|summary=It takes a good few pages to really get going, but Pratchett's first non-Discworld for a while is really rather good once it hits its stride. Lots of things to say about love, religion and power and lots of rooms for laughs too.

}}

|author=Morris Gleitzman

|title=Then

|rating=4.5

|summary=A holocaust story of great pain combined with courage and hope. It's beautifully written and observed and is accessible on every emotional landscape.

}}

|author=Julie Hearn

|title=Rowan the Strange

|rating=5

|summary=Diagnosed with schizophrenia, a young teenager is sent to a psychiatric hospital at the very start of World War II. This is quite possibly the most amazing work of children's fiction our reviewer has read in the last two years.

}}

'''Winner'''

|author=Mal Peet

|title=Exposure

|rating=5

|summary=More wonderful stuff from Mal Peet in a genre-defying novel of great thematic depth and complexity. Hung around an updating of Othello, it talks about football, homelessness, politics and celebrity culture, and it grabs you from beginning to end.

}}

|author=Siobhan Dowd

|title=Solace of the Road

|rating=5

|summary=Heartbreaking road trip novel with an unforgettable central character. Moments of intense pathos combine with humour to create a book of tremendous quality. Highly recommended.

}}

|author=Marcus Sedgwick

|title=Revolver

|rating=5

|summary=Densely written and chilling in every sense of the word, Revolver is a rare little gem for teens and adults alike.

}}