James Reckitt Hull Children’s Book Award Shortlists 2026

The ‘must-read’ children’s books of the year have been announced as the shortlist for the 19th James Reckitt Hull Children’s Book Award is released.

The awards aim to foster a love of reading by introducing young people to new writers and titles they might not normally pick up.

Children from schools around the city will once again be receiving a delivery of exciting newly published books and will also be given the opportunity to meet their authors in the coming months. It will be then up to the pupils to vote for their favourite story in National Storytelling Week in February (Picture Book Award) and at The Big Malarkey Festival in June, to decide who should be crowned the winners.

Separated into three age categories, the shortlists are as follows:

EYFS/KS1 Picture Book Award Shortlist:

• A Million Chameleons - Rachel Morrisroe and Aysha Awwad / Hodder

• Basil Dreams Big - Lu Fraser and Sarah Warburton / Simon and Schuster
• Jenny Peckles Lays Eggs with Speckles - Rachel Emily and Paul Delaney / Farshore
• Llama Library - Holly Ryan and Ella Bailey / Rocket Bird Books
• Tiny McToot - Barry Falls / Farshore

The KS2 Book Award Shortlist:

• Grimstink - Daniel Peak / Firefly Press
  
• Jed Greenleaf - Kieran Larwood / Faber
  
• The Scream of the Whistle - Emily Randall-Jones / Chicken House
  
• Speedwheels 3000: The Race Against Crime - Jenny Pearson / Usbourne
  
• Starspill - Catherine Fisher / Firefly Press

The KS3 Book Award Shortlist:

• The Boy in the Suit - James Fox / Scholastic
• Dragonborn - Struan Murray / Penguin
• Gloam - Jack Mackay / Rock the Boat
• Inkbound: Meticulous Jones and the Skull Tattoo - Philippa Leathley / Harper Collins
• People Like Stars - Patrice Lawrence / Scholastic

Over the course of 2025, newly published titles, suitable for young people throughout the primary age range and into KS3, were read by Hull Libraries’ army of volunteers, who reviewed and scored each title. This information was then used to draw up the shortlist.

Previous award winners have included Simon James Green, Ross Montgomery and Helen Rutter - a list of all our winners can be found here:

https://jreckittlibrarytrust.co.uk/projects/james-reckitt-hull-childrens-book-award

For further information about the James Reckitt Hull Children's Book Award contact: [email protected]