The winners of The Week Junior Book Awards 2026 have been revealed!
The trophies were handed out at a sparkling ceremony at BFI Southbank in London on Monday 28th September, hosted by our very own Bex Lindsay!
There were 14 awards up for grabs, celebrating everything from picture books and poetry to graphic novels, audiobooks and brilliant books about science and nature.
This year’s judges included Joe Wicks, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Rhys Stephenson and Dr Emily MacDonagh, alongside experts from the world of books, and readers of The Week Junior got to vote for two of the awards themselves.
Two trophies for Gloam!
The big winner on the night was Gloam by Jack Mackay, which scooped not one but TWO awards: Breakthrough Book of the Year, and Audiobook of the Year for the brilliant version read by Indira Varma.
Children’s Book Cover of the Year
Fun Kids was proud to support the Children’s Book Cover of the Year again, and this was the award where YOU picked the winner!
The trophy went to Deep Dark: A Cassia Thorne Mystery by Zohra Nabi, with its stunning cover illustrated by Paola Escobar. A huge thank you to everyone who voted!
All the winners
Here’s the full list of this year’s winners…
- Picture Book of the Year: Don’t Trust Fish! by Neil Sharpson, illustrated by Dan Santat
- Younger Fiction: The Misadventures of Mina Mahmood: School Trip by Farhana Islam, illustrated by Simran Diamond Singh
- Older Fiction: The Boy with Big Decisions by Helen Rutter
- Breakthrough: Gloam by Jack Mackay, illustrated by Ben Joel Price
- Graphic Novel: Boss of the Underworld: Shirley vs the Green Menace by Tor Freeman
- Poetry Book of the Year: This Is Not a Small Voice edited by Traci N. Todd, illustrated by Jade Orlando
- Audiobook of the Year: Gloam by Jack Mackay, read by Indira Varma
- Factual: 10 Children Who Changed the World by Paterson Joseph, illustrated by Rumbidzai Savanhu
- STEM: The Wizard’s Guide to Magical Experiments by A.J. Wood, illustrated by Jo Rioux
- Animals and Nature: A Tree is a Time Machine by Rob Sears and Tom Sears
- Hobbies and Interests: World Kitchen: Celebrations by Abigail Wheatley, illustrated by Chaaya Prabhat
- Wellbeing: How to Be Disabled and Proud by Cathy Reay
- Children’s Choice: Bunny vs Monkey: Intergalactic Monkey Business by Jamie Smart
- Children’s Book Cover of the Year: Deep Dark: A Cassia Thorne Mystery by Zohra Nabi, cover illustrated by Paola Escobar
Anna Bassi, Editorial Director of The Week Junior, said the winning books “represent the very best in children’s literature”.
Congratulations to all the winners! How many have you read? Find out more about all the shortlisted books on The Week Junior Book Awards website.
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