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UKLA Book Awards 2023

The Winners of the UKLA 2023 Awards, proudly sponsored by LoveReading4Kids, have been announced. Find the category winners for for ages 3-6, 7-10 and 11-14 plus the Information Books category - plus all the shortlisted and longlisted books.

Jump to:
3 - 6
7 - 10
11 - 14
Information Books 3 - 14+

UKLA Book Awards 2023: 3 - 6

Winner: Flooded

This is a book which works on lots of different levels, with older children able to access the underlying political messages about awareness of the disadvantaged in society, while all ages will appreciate the humour and the need for communities to work together. It will also provide an excellent opportunity to talk about climate change.

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Shortlisted Books

Saving Mr Hoot

Helen Stephens

Paperback

In Stock

£6.29 £6.99

Who Are You?

Smriti Halls

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

The Comet

Joe Todd-Stanton

Hardback

In Stock

£11.69 £12.99

Small's Big Dream

Manjeet Mann

Paperback

In Stock

£6.29 £6.99

Longlisted Books

UKLA Book Awards 2023: 7 - 10

Winner: The Light in Everything

The Light in Everything, is a "gut-wrenchingly emotional and relatable" story, the judges said, which gives a really authentic portrayal of a modern blended family and the difficulties faced by the children, as well as dealing very sensitively and appropriately with the difficult issue of domestic violence. Her powerful writing was also acknowledged by the judges and "the sophisticated but not condescending language" used by Balen was particularly commended by the judges.

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Shortlisted Books

All to Play For

Eve Ainsworth

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

The Lion Above the Door

Onjali Q. Raúf

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

Little Light

Coral Rumble

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

The Chime Seekers

Ross Montgomery

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

Longlisted Books

The Secret of Splint Hall

Katie Cotton

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

No Man's Land

Joanna Nadin

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

Dragon Skin

Karen Foxlee

Paperback

In Stock

£8.09 £8.99

My Brother Ben

Peter Carnavas

Paperback

In Stock

£6.29 £6.99

Danny Chung Does Not Do Maths

Maisie Chan

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

Stuntboy, In The Meantime

Jason Reynolds

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

Like A Charm

Elle McNicoll

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

One Time

Sharon Creech

Paperback

In Stock

£6.29 £6.99

Major and Mynah

Karen Owen

Paperback

In Stock

£6.29 £6.99

Wished

Lissa Evans

Hardback

In Stock

£11.69 £12.99

Alte Zachen: Old Things

Ziggy Hanaor

Hardback

In Stock

£15.29 £16.99

Children of the Quicksands

Efua Traore

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

The Colour of Hope

Ross MacKenzie

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

When the Sky Falls

Phil Earle

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

UKLA Book Awards 2023: 11 - 14

Winner: The Crossing

The judges commended The Crossing as an "important and powerful" verse novel and clever handling of the dual narrator perspective to reveal with "real emotional heart and soul" the topical and relevant tragedies of the refugee crisis. The verse novel format is really engaging and accessible, but also provides a thought-provoking read.

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Shortlisted Books

Tremendous Things

Susin Nielsen

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

In the Wild Light

Jeff Zentner

Paperback

In Stock

£8.09 £8.99

The Blue Book of Nebo

Manon Steffan Ros

Paperback

In Stock

£8.09 £8.99

Truth Be Told

Sue Divin

Paperback

In Stock

£8.09 £8.99

Julia and the Shark

Kiran Millwood Hargrave

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

Longlisted Books

Kemosha of the Caribbean

Alex Wheatle

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

Adam-2

Alastair Chisholm

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

Mark My Words

Muhammad Khan

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

The Ivory Key

Akshaya Raman

Paperback

In Stock

£8.09 £8.99

Splinters of Sunshine

Patrice Lawrence

Paperback

In Stock

£8.99 £9.99

All That's Left in the World

Erik J. Brown

Paperback

In Stock

£8.99 £9.99

The Cats We Meet Along the Way

Nadia Mikail

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

Grow

Luke Palmer

Paperback

In Stock

£8.09 £8.99

The Song that Sings Us

Nicola Davies

Hardback

In Stock

£13.49 £14.99

When I Was the Greatest

Jason Reynolds

Paperback

In Stock

£8.09 £8.99

Hide and Seek

Robin Scott-Elliot

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

The Climbers

Keith Gray

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

UKLA Book Awards 2023: Information Books 3 - 14+

Winner: Musical Truth

Musical Truth engages readers with Black History. Interesting, informative and powerful, the judges described the book as a "masterpiece".

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Shortlisted Books

Here and Queer

Rowan Ellis

Paperback

In Stock

£8.99 £9.99

I Am the Subway

Kim Hyo-eun

Hardback

In Stock

£11.69 £12.99

Amazon River

Sangma Francis

Paperback

In Stock

£9.89 £10.99

The Greatest Show on Earth

Mini Grey

Paperback

In Stock

£8.99 £9.99

Longlisted Books

From Shore to Ocean Floor

Gill Arbuthnott

Hardback

In Stock

£15.29 £16.99

Nina a story of Nina Simone

Traci N. Todd

Hardback

In Stock

£11.69 £12.99

The Story of Afro Hair

K. N. Chimbiri

Hardback

In Stock

£8.99 £9.99

You Are 25% Banana

Susie Brooks

Paperback

In Stock

£7.19 £7.99

A Different Sort of Normal

Abigail Balfe

Paperback

In Stock

£8.09 £8.99

How to Make a Book

Becky Davies

Hardback

In Stock

£11.69 £12.99

Everything Under the Sun

Molly Oldfield

Hardback

In Stock

£22.50 £25.00

I am an Artist

Kertu Sillaste

Paperback

Temporarily Out Of Stock

£7.19 £7.99

How Fast was a Velociraptor?

Alison Limentani

Hardback

In Stock

£10.79 £11.99

How Was That Built?

Roma Agrawal

Hardback

In Stock

£13.49 £14.99

Rescuing Titanic

Flora Delargy

Hardback

In Stock

£13.49 £14.99

The only national children’s book awards to be judged by teachers continues to attract record levels of submissions. The summer reading challenge for the initial selection panels (composed of experienced past teacher judges, ex-teachers, librarians and consultants) was to read the combined total of 494 submissions, across the four categories of these awards. Publishers can submit up to three titles in each category and for the first time we have publishers who have had all three of their submitted titles longlisted.

Awards Chair, Christine Lockwood, said “This is always an exciting but difficult job.  The longlisting team were challenged to select from a very rich and varied list of submissions this year and they have come up with four sparkling longlists.  It was a joy to meet the majority of our committed, knowledgeable, and enthusiastic longlisters in person, rather than via digital platforms.  I would like to thank them for their hard work over the summer.  The longlists will now pass to our teams of teacher judges and their group leaders in the West Country, and I can't wait to share these books with them over the next year." 

"This is another wonderful longlist, a gorgeous selection of books that deserve to be celebrated. The only awards to be judged entirely by teachers, the UKLA Awards are a special thing, ensuring that the teacher judges can share the books with their classes and really find out first-hand what engages, delights, educates and inspires. The awards are equally valuable for parents looking to support the school environment and further encourage reading for pleasure. We are excited to see which books shine through this year, but they are all stars!" Deborah Maclaren Managing Director of Lovereading

LoveReading4Kids is proud to be award sponsors. LoveReading4Kids is the biggest and best recommendation site for children's books: reading, reviewing and recommending so that the children in your life find their next favourite book.