Verena Hochleitner receives the Nöstlinger Prize for diversity and humor!

Verena Hochleitner receives the Nöstlinger Prize for diversity and humor!

Wien, Österreich - On April 2, 2025, Verena Hochleitner was awarded the renowned Christine Nöstlinger Prize. Alexander Potyka, the chairman of the Austrian publisher Association, emphasized the versatile talent of Hochleitner, which is characterized by her subtle narrative art and strong visual language. Her works invite readers to rediscover the world and amstood by their humorous examination of diversity. Well-known personalities such as Christiana Nöstlinger and Barbara Waldschütz congratulated the artist on this honor and praised her creative contribution to child and youth literature.

In her creative work, Hochleitner addresses equality and female right to self -determination. Her picture books, such as "Dog Salon" and "The Loving Cook", offer perspectives on social diversity and the needs of different groups. The jury paid tribute to Hochleitner's consistent attitude to these topics and her youth novel "Flicker", which represents the friendship of three young people, overcome prejudices. Hochleitner, who was born in Vienna in 1969 and grew up in Upper Austria, studied graphic design at the University of Applied Arts and has established himself as one of the most diverse representatives of the Austrian children's and youth literature.

artistic diversity and influence

Verena Hochleitner combines humor with respect in her works and thus opens unusual areas of action for your characters. Her illustrations are internationally exhibited and have been awarded multiple awards, including the outsanding artist award for child and youth literature in 2013. In addition, she quotes Christine Nöstlinger as a significant influence of her reading biography, which underlines her connection to Austrian literary history.

The jury for the Christine Nöstlinger Prize 2025 was made up of several renowned minds in the industry, including Stefanie Schlögl, Linda Wolfsgruber and Andrea Zsutty. Cultural City Councilor Veronica Kaup-Hasler praised Hochleitner's ability to make complex topics accessible to the youth with empathy and humor. Your creative work includes various formats, including Silent Books and an extensive youth novel.

contextualization in child and youth literature

The importance of child and youth literature (KJL) increasingly gains influence in literature and cultural studies as well as in translation research. This also proves current analyzes that deal with the imparting of cultural diversity in KJL. The discussion about the representation of own and foreign cultures in children's literary texts asks central questions about ideologization and aesthetics of reception. Hochleitner's work helps to integrate and reflect on these topics into contemporary literature.

Through their works, which are both linguistically and visually appealing, Hochleitner represents the cultural differences and challenges. Nganzfeld as well as new media forms, such as comics and graphic novels, require innovative considerations of the text-image relations. Hochleitner plays a significant role in this context, since their works celebrate cultural diversity and stimulate social dialogues.

The Christine Nöstlinger Prize awarded Heinz Janisch last year, and Hochleitner follows him as an outstanding voice in child and youth literature. Their diverse presentation of complex topics in accessible form earns great recognition and respect.

For more information about Verena Hochleitner and her award, read the reports from Kleine Zeitung and Börsenblatt . In order to learn more about the current trends in child and youth literature, you can also visit Peter Lang