Wednesday, July 22, 2026

Young Quills Award


This is the 2026 shortlist - the winners are announced in July

Readers Aged 5-8
The Boy Who Became Queen by Christina Balit (Otter-Barry Books)

Readers Aged 8-11
Becoming Grace by Hilary McKay (Barrington Stoke)
Dance of Resistance by Catherine Johnson (Barrrington Stoke)
My Family, the Enemy by Karen McCombie (Bloomsbury Education)
Shrapnel Boys by Jenny Pearson (Usborne Publishing)
The Line They Drew Through Us by Hiba Noor Khan (Andersen Press)
Wrong Tracks by Susan Brownrigg (UCLan Publishing)

Readers Aged 11-13
Kata and Tor by Kevin Crossley-Holland (Walker Books)
The Dawn of Adonis by Phil Earle (Andersen Press)
To War with Wallace by Barbara Henderson (Luath Press Ltd)
Under a Fire-Red Sky by Geraldine McCaughrean (Usborne Publishing)
Under the London Sky by Anna Woltz (Rock the Boat)

Readers Aged 14+
Black Star by Kwame Alexander (Andersen Press)
Lobster Blues by Jacqueline King (Zuntold)
Songs for Ghosts by Clara Kumagai (Zephyr)
The Boy I Love by William Hussey (Andersen Press)

There could be books on this 2026 shortlist you might add to your own 'to read' list or to your school library. I have Shrapnel Boys on my pile and I spied Becoming Grace last year so I am also keen to read this one. If you haven't yet discovered the wonderful publisher Barrington Stoke take a look here (this takes you to one part of their site there is lots more to explore) - I have read so many fabulous books from this UK publisher. My most recent find was The Elixir

The Young Quills Award is an annual book award set up by the Historical Association to celebrate good historical fiction writing for children and young people aged 5 to 14+. 

The shortlist for the Young Quills Award is drawn up based on the reviews provided by pupils in primary and secondary schools across the UK, who are sent copies of the longlisted titles to review against the award criteria:

  • Is it a ‘good read’?
  • Does it have good historical content and factual information?
  • Is history a proper component of the story, not just a convenient backdrop or setting?
  • Does the book inspire young readers to find out more about that historical period or people?

A judging panel made up of historians, authors and literacy experts then selects the winners for each of the four age categories. The Historical Association is a registered charity set up to advance the study, teaching and enjoyment of history at all levels. As the UK subject association for history it carries out research into the state of history education; represents members’ interests to government and policy-makers; and supports the teaching of history in schools through its programme of CPD and wide range of resources, including the Primary History and Teaching History journals.

Here are some previous winners and highly commended titles that I have read:














I am keen to see some of the past ages 5-9 winners:




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