UKLA Book Awards 2026 winners announced

The UKLA Book Awards 2026 have been announced, with winners across four categories ranging from 3-14+. The award aims to highlight books that will inspire reading and provide engaging classroom reads.

The UKLA Book awards are uniquely shadowed by teachers around the UK who, like the judges, assess the impact of the books upon the children and young people reading for purpose and pleasure in their classrooms before casting their votes.

11-14+ UKLA Book Award Category

Beth O'Brien's Wolf Siren has won the 11-14+ Category of the UKLA Book Awards 2026. Wolf Siren also won this year's Carnegie Medal for Writing.  The UKLA judges, in the only national award judged by teachers, crowned Beth O'Brien the 11-14+ category winner at a ceremony held at the UKLA International Conference in Glasgow on 3rd July.

An own voices, allegorical, feminist retelling of the fairytale classic, which 'challenges our interpretation of the environment and the 'wolves' in our community', it was also praised by the judges for its 'sensitive and tender portrayal of grief', the 'subtle but important representation', 'vivid world building' and the way that it takes ' a shared cultural capital and progresses it' and celebrates 'the collective strength of women' and 'the power in community'.

The Shadowers' Choice vote in the 11-14+ category went to a UKLA past winner, Jason Reynolds, for his Carnegie-shortlisted novel, 24 Seconds from Now, praised as an 'antidote to toxic masculinity'.

7-10+ UKLA Book Award Category

Alistair Chisolm's Reek, a dystopian future vision of a polluted world dominated by greed, has won the 7-10+ Category. The judges praised the 'accessible storytelling' and the 'important social justice themes' explored in the book which conveys both fear and hope, drawing young readers into a story that feels 'thrilling and frighteningly possible' and 'empowers children to consider the world around them.'

Chisholm is Scottish and his publisher Barrington Stoke, which publishes books to support struggling readers, is also based in Scotland, in Edinburgh.  Ailsa Bathgate from Barrington Stoke said, "With Reek, set in a futuristic dystopian Edinburgh, Alastair showcased his mastery of his craft, packing so much into our shorter word count and delivering a gripping, action-packed story that also manages to convey important messages about greed, fairness and the looming climate catastrophe. It's particularly special to see him receive the award in his homeland of Scotland this evening."

Alistair Chisholm added "I'm overjoyed to see Reek win the UKLA Book award! Reek is about how anyone can change the world, and that's something I try to hold on to, so seeing it resonate with others is wonderful."

The Shadowers' Choice in this category is another Carnegie-shortlisted title, Birdie, by J P Rose. Set in post-war 1950s Yorkshire, Birdie is a stirring and heartfelt story of belonging, friendship, and self-discovery.

3-6+ UKLA Book Award Category

The joyful, interactive Don't Think of Tigers by Alex Latimer won the hotly contested 3-6+ category. The narrator of this book just can't draw tigers; in fact, they are hilariously bad at drawing them! Praised by judges as a 'joy to read aloud' that 'worked perfectly across the whole of this age range' teaching young children 'how their minds work' as well as 'all the different ways to do art'.

The Shadowers' Choice in this category was Once I Was a Tree by Eoin McLaughlin and Guilherme Karsten, which invites readers to explore the life cycle of trees in a way that is 'educational, thought-provoking and delightfully entertaining'

3-14+ Information Books Category

Described by judges as a 'genius concept', the winner of the Information Books 3-14+ category is Frog, by Isabel Thomas and Daniel Egnéus. A 'visually stunning', 'philosophical' text, which explains the story of life on earth by answering the narrator's question: "If frogs come from eggs, and eggs come from frogs, where did the first frog come from?" With 'carefully poetic prose' that reads aloud well, this is a book which works for a wide age range. Older children are inspired to 'think about things they already know in a different way'.

The Shadowers' Choice in this category is Graphic Novel Builder by Edward Ross, which was also popular with a wide age range and became an excellent resource for the classroom. 'No matter who you are or what your age is, this book invites everyone to learn, create, and connect through the power of graphic novels'

For UKLA the judging process and giving classroom practitioners the opportunity to read high quality new children's books is integral to the award's aims. Research carried out by members of UKLA (Cremin et al 2008) clearly demonstrated the links between teachers' knowledge of children's books and the likelihood of pupils reading for pleasure. Despite this evidence, teachers are seldom given time to read new books or the funding to purchase them when they do.

Some 85 teacher judges are involved in this initial part of the process, with 12 nominated by their colleagues to go on to form the final judging panel which selects the winners of the UKLA 2026 Book Awards. They read the shortlists from all four categories.

UKLA Book Awards 2026 Shortlist

3-6+
A Wild Walk to School, written and illustrated by Rebecca Cobb (Macmillan)
Bothered by Bugs, written and illustrated by Emily Gravett (Two Hoots)
Don't Think of Tigers, written and illustrated by Alex Latimer (Andersen Press)
Don't Trust Fish, written by Neil Sharpson and illustrated by Dan Santat (Andersen Press)
Once I was a Tree, written by Eoin McLaughlin and illustrated by Guilherme Karsten (Nosy Crow)
The Search for Carmella, written and illustrated by Chloe Savage (Walker Books)
 
7-10+
After, written by Pádraig Kenny (Walker Books)
Birdie, written by JP Rose (Andersen Press)
Dragonborn, written by Struan Murray (Puffin)
Dungeon Runners: Hero Trial, written by Kieran Larwood and illustrated by Joe Todd-Stanton (Nosy Crow)
Evie and Maryam's Family Tree, written by Janeen Hayat (Guppy Books)
Reek, written by Alastair Chisholm and illustrated by George Caltsoudas (Barrington Stoke)
 
11- 14+
Black Star, written by Kwame Alexander (Andersen Press)
The Boy I Love, written by William Hussey (Andersen Press)
The Line They Drew Through Us, written by Hiba Noor Khan (Andersen Press)
Twenty-Four Seconds From Now, written by Jason Reynolds (Faber)
When the Bones Sing, written by Ginny Myers Sain (Electric Monkey)
Wolf Siren, written by Beth O'Brien (HarperCollins)
 
Information Books 3-14+
Choose Your Own Evolution, written by Jules Howard and illustrated by Gordy Wright (Nosy Crow)
Frog, A Story of Life on Earth written by Isabel Thomas and illustrated by Daniel Egnéus (Bloomsbury)
Graphic Novel Builder: The illustrated guide to making your own comics, written and illustrated by Edward Ross (Collins)
Me and My Hair, written by Kimberley Kinloch and illustrated by Jessica Gibson (Usborne)
The Endless Sea, written by Chi Thai and illustrated by Linh Dao (Walker Books)
University of Cambridge: There's No Such Thing as a Silly Question, written by Mike Rampton and illustrated by Guilherme Karsten (Nosy Crow)