The Guardian prize, founded in 1967, has a tradition of finding new voices in children's fiction before the rest of the world is aware of them. Past winners include Philip Pullman, Jacqueline Wilson and Mark Haddon. The prize is also the only children's fiction prize to be judged by peers. This year's judges are Philip Reeve, who won last year with A Dark-ling Plain; Linda Newbery, winner of this year's Costa children's book of the year with Set in Stone; and Eleanor Updale, creator of the Montmorency novels.

Jenny Valentine has been longlisted for her debut novel FINDING VIOLET PARK, which was published in January 2007. FINDING VIOLET PARK is a quirky and original voyage of self discovery and identity triggered by a lost urn of ashes. 16-year-old Lucas first hears of Violet Park at the taxi office in the middle of the night. She means nothing to him: she is dead. All that remains of her is in a box on a shelf. But just knowing that she once existed sends Lucas on a moving and thought-provoking mission that helps him to understand much more about his own life.

Jenny has been longlisted alongside:
The Boyhood of Burglar Bill, by Allan Ahlberg
Stoneheart, by Charlie Fletcher
The Falconer's Knot, by Mary Hoffman
Fearless, by Tim Lott
The Penalty, by Mal Peet
The Truth Sayer, by Sally Prue
Mr Gum and the Biscuit Billionaire, by Andy Stanton and illustrated by David Tazzyman

The winner, who will receive a cheque for £1,500, will be announced in the Guardian on September 28.

Photo: Alex Valentine