The Children’s Book Award shortlist for 2026
The Children’s Book Award shortlist for 2026
We’re delighted to announce the Children’s Book Award 2026 shortlist today. Children from the 10 FCBG testing groups read almost 500 books submitted by the publishers and registered almost 58,000 votes, from which the Top 10 has been selected. The full shortlist is as follows:
Books for Younger Children
· Creepy Pair of Underwear! — Aaron Reynolds & Peter Brown (Simon & Schuster)
· Gozzle — Julia Donaldson & Sara Ogilvie (Macmillan Children’s Books)
· The Tortosaurus — Katie Cottle (Little Tiger)
· There’s a Shark in My Pants! — Michelle Harrison & David Tazzyman (Simon & Schuster)
Books for Younger Readers
· Murray and Bun! Murray the Pirate — Adam Stower (HarperCollins Children’s Books)
· Pablo and Splash: Roman Holiday — Sheena Dempsey (Bloomsbury Children’s Books)
· Supa Nova — Chante Timothy (Nosy Crow)
Books for Older Readers
· Fear Files: Hide and Seek — Christopher Edge & Mathias Ball (Walker Books)
· My Name is Samim — Fidan Meikle (Floris Books)
· The Last Dragon on Mars — Scott Reintgen (Rock the Boat)
We’ll be kicking off a blog tour of all 10 titles later this week!
Children across the UK are encouraged to get involved. Copies of the books can be purchased at a discount from our partner supplier Heath Books here https://www.heathbooks.co.uk/federation-of-childrens-book-groups-childrens-book-award-2026 and online voting will be opened on Monday 23rd March here https://fcbg.org.uk/childrens-book-award-2026/
The deadline for voting is 12 noon on Friday 8th May and category winners and the overall winner of the most popular children’s book published in 2025 will be announced at a ceremony in Birmingham on 13th June, attended by representatives from all our local groups and livestreamed on the FCBG YouTube channel.
Sarah Stuffins, Children’s Book Award Coordinator, commented “The Children’s Book Award is unique in giving children a direct voice in celebrating the books they love most. This year’s shortlist represents an exciting mix of adventure, humour, and heartwarming stories that will inspire young readers everywhere. This year’s shortlist highlights the growing popularity of illustrated chapter books, including for older readers. It is particularly heartening to see debut authors represented alongside more established names.”
