POSITIVE, EMPOWERING OR INNOVATIVE REPRESENTATION IN 2025 WINNERS OF UKLA BOOK AWARDS
- Carnegie winner is teachers’ and Shadowers’ Choice in 11-14+ category
- A wonderful autistic role model stars in 3-6+ category winner
- A book to revolutionise the history curriculum wins the Information category
- 7-10+ winner showcases inspirational and important untold WW2 history
@The_UKLA #UKLA25 #teachersbookawards
Margaret McDonald’s astonishing debut novel, Glasgow Boys, continues to sweep the board of prizes, after winning the Carnegie Medal for Writing, as the UKLA judges, in the only national award judged by teachers, crown her the 11-14+ category winner at a ceremony held at the UKLA International Conference in Liverpool on 27th June. She even goes one better in the hard fought UKLA contest, winning the Shadowing schools’ and student teachers’ vote too! The story of the emotional lives of two young men in Glasgow, with their hard-won resilience to overcome past traumas and encounters in the care system, showing that even the most fraught childhood is not without hope, was praised for its ‘beautifully balanced dual narrative’ that is ‘authentic, raw and emotional’ and yet manages to be both ‘hopeful and inspirational’; ‘It should be a GCSE set text,’ was the judges conclusion.
Editor Alice Swan from Faber said: “It is enormously rewarding to see Glasgow Boys achieve this recognition from such a prestigious panel of experts, not least because this is a book about two boys emerging from the care system and shines a light on what it might be like to have no traditional support network at a time when you’re moving from childhood to adulthood. We are so proud that this exquisitely-written, hopeful, uplifting debut, about how to love against the odds, is receiving such high praise.”
The rare occurrence of winning both the judges’ award and the Shadowers’ Choice Award was repeated in the 3-6+ category, where Gina Kaminski Saves the Wolf by the team of Craig Barr-Green and Francis Martin, was the winner. This joyful twist on a traditional tale, which portrays a confident autistic child, determined to challenge problems and identify solutions and coping strategies, was praised for really capturing the power of story and the importance of telling your own story. Judges admitted that it had ‘transformed their understanding of autism’
The 7-10+ category generated intense discussion both amongst the Shadowers and at the final judging meeting. It was clearly felt that each book on the shortlist could have been a worthy winner. For the judges the ‘masterful storytelling’ of Hiba Noor Khan in Safiyyah’s War, which reveals the important and virtually unknown history of the Muslim community’s efforts to rescue Jews in Paris in WW2, could not be more ‘timely, important and relevant to modern audiences’ who are witnessing current events in the Middle East. In contrast it was the authentic, highly relatable representation of children’s lives impacted by poverty in the UK, as shown in picture book author Tom Percival ‘s first novel, The Wrong Shoes, which won the Shadowers’ Choice Award.
The winner of the Information Books 3-14+ category was praised as ‘an essential resource’ which ‘brilliantly challenged the narrative of history ‘ and combats the ‘white Eurocentric view’, providing evidence which is ‘fascinating and compelling’ Brilliant Black British History, passionately written by Atinuke and illustrated by Kingsley Nebechi, is a comprehensive study of people with black skin in Britain from 300,000 thousand years ago to the present day. The Shadowers’ Choice in this category has an entirely complementary theme in its emphasis that all life is of value. The eye-opening Slug Life, by Moesha Kellaway, follows Stevie, the world’s grumpiest slug. as he learns amazing facts about slugs and discovers why he should be proud to be one.
For UKLA it is the judging process and giving classroom practitioners the opportunity to read high quality new children’s books that is as important as finding an overall winner. 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.
From the 87 teacher judges involved in this unique process, twelve are nominated by their colleagues to go on to form the final judging panel, which decided these powerful winners of the UKLA 2025 Book Awards. They read the shortlists from all four categories, regardless of the age group they teach, which adds a fascinating insight to the impassioned debate. As judge Sarah Spikesley said: ‘ Not only has this been the most fantastic opportunity to meet with colleagues to discuss books in real depth, but it has also reignited my passion for what we as teachers do. To recognise the power that books have and the impact they can have on the young people in our care.’ Fellow judge Liam Smaje concurred: ‘ It has transformed reading across our school.’
As Chris Lockwood, Awards Chair said: “When our final panel of teacher judges met in Liverpool in May, they were faced with some very difficult decisions, because of the strength of all four shortlists. They approached the tasks with their usual professionalism and a clear passion for and deep knowledge of children’s literature, especially the impact of these wonderful books on their young readers. We are very proud of their choices.”
Shortlist Details
3-6+
Gina Kaminkski Saves a Wolf. Written by Craig Barr-Green and illustrated by Francis Martin (Little Tiger Press)
There’s A Tiger on The Train. Written by Mariesa Dulak and illustrated by Rebecca Cobb (Faber)
Mr Mornington’s Favourite Things. Written and illustrated by Karen George (Welbeck)
Geoffrey Gets the Jitters. Written and illustrated by Nadia Shireen (Puffin)
Listening to the Quiet. Written by Cassie Silva and illustrated by Frances Ives (Lantana)
Salat in Secret. Written by Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow and illustrated by Hatem Aly (Andersen Press)
7-10+
The Final Year. Written by Matt Goodfellow and illustrated by Joe Todd-Stanton (Otter-Barry Books)
Stitch. Written by Pádraig Kenny (Walker Books)
Code Name Kingfisher. Written by Liz Kessler (Simon & Schuster)
Safiyah’s War. Written by Hiba Noor Khan (Andersen Press)
And I Climbed And I Climbed. Written by Stephen Lightbown and illustrated by Shih-Yu Lin (Troika Books)
The Wrong Shoes. Written and illustrated by Tom Percival (Simon & Schuster)
11- 14+
The Things We Leave Behind. Written by Clare Furniss (Simon & Schuster)
The Boy Next Door. Written by Jenny Ireland (Penguin)
If My Words Had Wings. Written by Danielle Jawando (Simon & Schuster)
King of Nothing Written by Nathaneal Lessore (Hot Key Books)
Glasgow Boys. Written by Margaret McDonald (Faber)
Keedie. Written by Elle McNicoll (Knights Of)
Shortlist Information Books 3-14+
Brilliant Black British History. Written by Atinuke and illustrated by Kingsley Nebechi (Bloomsbury)
Big Bad Wolf Investigates Fairy Tales. Written by Catherine Cawthorne and illustrated by Sara Ogilvie (Bloomsbury)
Wild languages of Mother Nature. Written by Gabby Dawnay and illustrated by Margaux Samson- Abadie (Wide Eyed Editions)
Slug Life. Written and illustrated by Moesha Kellaway (Rocket Bird Books)
Homebody. Written and illustrated by Theo Parish (Macmillan)
Stones and Bones. Written by Rob Wilshaw and illustrated by Sophie Williams (Cicada)