Day: August 7, 2025

2025 Wainwright Prize Shortlists

| Tasha

The 2025 shortlists for the Wainwright Prizes have been announced. The UK awards encompass both adult and juvenile titles that celebrate nature, conservation and environmental writing. In 2025, the awards expanded, particularly in children’s publishing. Here are the shortlists for the juvenile categories:

THE CHILDREN’S WAINWRIGHT PRIZE FOR FICTION

Ettie and the Midnight Pool by Julie Green, illustrated by Pam Smy

Ghostlines by Katya Balen

Land of the Last Wildcat by Lui Sit, illustrated by David Dean

Turtle Moon by Hannah Gold, illustrated by Levi Pinfold

Wildful by Kengo Kurimoto (available in US)

Wildlands by Brogen Murphy

THE CHILDREN’S WAINWRIGHT PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION

Cloudspotting for Beginners by Gavin Pretor-Pinney and William Grill (available in US)

Hamza’s Wild World by Hamza Yassin

Look What I Found by the River by Moira Butterfield and Jesus Verona

Mega: The Most Enormous Animals Ever by Jules Howard, illustrated by Gavin Scott (available in US)

Secrets of Bees by Ben Hoare, illustrated by Nina Chakrabarti

Wildlife in the Balance by Dr. Sharon Wismer and Terri Po (available in US)

THE CHILDREN’S WAINWRIGHT PRIZE FOR PICTURE BOOKS

Bothered by Bugs by Emily Gravett (releasing in US in March 2026)

Flower Block by Lanisha Butterfield, illustrated by Hoang Giang

Frog: A Story of Life on Earth by Isabel Thomas, illustrated by Daniel Egneus (releasing in US in January 2026)

Herd by Stephen Hogtun

Leave the Trees Please by Benjamin Zephaniah, illustrated by Melissa Castrillon (releasing in US in February 2026)

The Wild by Yuval Zommer (available in US)

The World to Come by Robert MacFarlane and Johnny Flynn, illustrated by Emily Sutton

A Place for Us by James E. Ransome – Book Review

| Tasha

A Place for Us by James E. Ransome (9780593324882)

This wordless picture book shares a day in the life of a mother and son who are unhoused. The boy goes to school and is picked up afterwards by his mother. They live in an unnamed city and he shares his news of his day as they walk to get dinner. After dinner, they spend the rest of their evening together in the library doing homework and reading. Once the library is closed, they head to a park where the boy sleeps on the bench, his head in his mother’s lap as she keeps watch through the night. The boy brushes his teeth in a drinking fountain, changes clothes and then is off to another day at school. 

This book is immensely moving and powerful. There is such dignity to their day together, such effort in keeping her son safe and such a strong connection between the two of them. All of that is shared in images alone, speaking from the page through their interaction, their body language and their time together. It is haunting, beautiful and a call to action. Ransome is one of our greatest picture book creators and this one is one of his best. 

Powerful and full of heart, this picture book doesn’t let you look away from those in need of housing. Appropriate for ages 5-9.

Reviewed from e-galley provided by Nancy Paulsen Books.