Information Book Award longlist and new book club announced

The School Library Association has announced the longlist of 34 non-fiction books for the Information Book Award, together with the launch of a book club opportunity for schools focusing on the longlisted titles.

Schools that take part in the IBA Book Club, based around the Information Book Award, will have the opportunity to vote for four winners in the Children's Choice categories of the Information Book Award. Every school that signs up to the IBA Book Club will be entered into a draw to receive a free set of the shortlisted books.

The awards, now in their 15th year, are sponsored by Hachette Children's Group and Peters. The judging panel will select a shortlist next month and winners will be announced at an awards ceremony later this year. Four Children's Choice accolades, one in each age category and an overall winner, will be chosen by participating schools.

IBA Bookclub

Each participating IBA Bookclub school will receive a set of useful resources to support their book club. Schools that aren't selected to receive a free book bundle will be able to purchase the shortlisted books at a reduced price from Peters, helping as many schools as possible to take part in the voting process.

An exciting new addition for this year is a Golden Bookmark, which will be hidden in three book bundles. Any school that receives a Golden Bookmark will have the chance to attend the Award Ceremony in person and nominate a pupil to present one of the Children's Choice Awards.

Research demonstrates positive outcomes for bookclubs

This year the SLA is placing even greater emphasis on the importance of the IBA Book Club and how book clubs can have positive educational and wellbeing outcomes. A new study released last week, ‘Social Reading Spaces', by HarperCollins UK in collaboration with SLA, trialled an innovative new approach to book clubs. 17 school libraries across the UK ran social book clubs with no expectation or pressure to read, instead fostering conversations and book talk in a relaxed and pressure-free setting. The study found that as well as having a positive impact on educational outcomes and reading ability, the book clubs also improved social connection between young people and increased wellbeing, providing a safe space for them to express their emotions.

Key dates for the Information Book Award and Book Club 

6th May - 11th June: schools can register to take part in the IBA Book Club at: www.sla.org.uk/iba-book-club (everyone who registers is entered into a draw to win a FREE set of books in one of the age categories)
17th June: the IBA shortlist will be announced
24th June: selected schools will be sent the shortlisted books and other schools can purchase for cost price from Peters to take part in the IBA Book Club
Ongoing: Schools can share Book Club activities and photos on social media using #IBABookClub
End of June: Three lucky schools who find a Golden Bookmark in their book bundle will be able to nominate a pupil to present one of the Children's Choice Awards
18th October: Children's Choice vote closes
End of November: Awards Ceremony with students presenting Children's Choice Awards

Victoria Dilly, CEO of the SLA hopes that more schools will sign up to the IBA Book Club this year than ever before, "not only to vote for the Children's Choice IBA Award winners, but to discover the joy book clubs can bring". She added, "The IBA longlist showcases a diverse collection, with topics including Culture, Technology, Nature, Sport and STEM, which shows the endless possibilities for engagement with non-fiction. Information books are fundamental to school libraries and provide librarians with tools to help their students gain knowledge and insight."

Helen Cleaves, chair of the judges, said: "The IBA offers a valuable focus on high-quality information, at a time when young people are often bombarded by opinion, interpretation and 'alternative' facts. We can't wait to hear feedback from schools as they delve into this wonderful selection of books and students get stuck into judging.”

The 2025 Information Book Award longlist reveals the quality of Information Books available for children and young people, spanning everything from burps to skateboards and politics to physics.  The IBA Longlist for each age category is as follows:

Age 0-7 (12 books)
Along Came A ... Burp!, Saskia Gwinn, illustrated by Paula Bowles (Templar Books)
Celebrations and Festivals: Diwali, Sital Gorasia Chapman, illustrated by Darshika Varma (Quarto)
Finding Home, Mike Unwin, illustrated by Jenni Desmond (Bloomsbury Children's Books)
First Questions and Answers: Why Do We Need Worms?, Katie Daynes, illustrated by Moesha Kellaway (Usborne)
How to Shine at Primary School, Kit Brown, illustrated by Allison Steinfeld (Wren & Rook, Hachette Children's Group)
The Life-Changing Magic of Skateboarding, Sky Brown, illustrated by Shaw Davidson (Magic Cat Publishing)
A Little Blue Dot, Maren Hasenjäger (Mama Makes Books)
Me and My Hair, Kimberley Kinloch, illustrated by Jessica Gibson (Usborne)
Patience, Rachel Williams, illustrated by Leonie Lord (Magic Cat Publishing)
This Book Will Make You an Artist, Ruth Millington, illustrated by Ellen Surrey (Nosy Crow)
Welcome to Our Playground: A Celebration of Games Children Play Everywhere, Moira Butterfield, illustrated by Harriet Lynas (Nosy Crow)
What is AI?, Neal Layton (Hodder Children's Books, Hachette Children's Group)

Age 8-12 (12 books)
50 Ways Into Football, Dan Freedman and Daniel Gee (Wren & Rook, Hachette Children's Group)
All About Flags, Robin Jacobs, illustrated by Ben Javens (Cicada Books)
Amazing Asia, Rashmi Sirdeshpande, illustrated by Jason Lyon (Quarto)
Colossal Words for Kids, Collette Hiller, illustrated by Tor Freeman (Quarto)
Gold Rush, Flora Delargy (Quarto)
How to Say No to Your Phone, Brad Marshall (Magic Cat Publishing)
How to Walk on the Moon and Other Incredible Ideas About Physics, William Potter, illustrated by Richard Watson (Arcturus Publishing)
Inside Story: How the News Works, ITN Productions, illustrated by Terri Po (Templar Books)
The Jellyfish Garden: Explore their Curious World, Paola Vitale, illustrated by Rossana Bossù (Post Wave Children's Books)
On Track, Tom Adams, illustrated by Tom Jay (Quarto)
Our Cosmos, Professor Raman Prinja, illustrated by Suzie Mason (Welbeck Children's Books, Hachette Children's Group)
She Speaks: The Women of Greek Myths in their Own Words, Honor Cargill-Martin, illustrated by Camelia Pham (Magic Cat Publishing)

Age 13-16 (10 books)
Alastair Campbell Talks Politics, Alastair Campbell (Red Shed, Farshore)
Black History for Every Day of the Year, David and Yinka Olusoga, illustrated by Kemi Olusoga (Macmillan Children's Books)
Deborah Meaden Talks Money, Deborah Meaden (Red Shed, Farshore)
Explodapedia: Rewild, Ben Martynoga, illustrated by Moose Allain (David Fickling Books)
History for Beginners, Andy Prentice and Tom Mumbray, illustrated by Paul Boston (Usborne)
The History of Information, Chris Haughton (DK Children's)
An Illustrated History of Urban Legends, Adam Allsuch Boardman (Flying Eye Books)
Queerbook, Malcom Mackenzie, illustrated by Emily A. Foster (Red Shed, Farshore)
Seriously HAPPY, Ben Aldridge (Quarto)
The Usborne Teen Survival Guide, Caroline Young, illustrated by The Boy Fitz Hammond, Laura Wood (Usborne)