Longlists for the 2025 Carnegie Medals
The Carnegies, the Carnegie Medal and the Kate Greenaway Medal as were, have announced their longlists for 2025. From 119 nominations, the judges, all children’s and youth librarians from CILIP’s Youth Libraries Group, have selected 35 to longlist, 19 titles for the Carnegie Medal for Writing, and 16 for the Carnegie Medal for Illustration.
They are:
The 2025 Carnegie Medal for Writing longlist:
On Silver Tides by Sylvia Bishop (Andersen Press)
You Could Be So Pretty by Holly Bourne (Usborne)
I Am Wolf by Alastair Chisholm (Nosy Crow)
Treacle Town by Brian Conaghan (Andersen Press)
Sisters of the Moon by Marie-Louise Fitzpatrick (Faber & Faber)
The Things We Leave Behind by Clare Furniss (Simon & Schuster)
The Final Year by Matt Goodfellow, illustrated by Joe Todd-Stanton (Otter-Barry Books)
Island of Whispers by Frances Hardinge, illustrated by Emily Gravett (Macmillan Children’s)
If My Words Had Wings by Danielle Jawando (Simon & Schuster)
King of Nothing by Nathanael Lessore (Bonnier Books UK)
Little Bang by Kelly McCaughrain (Walker)
Glasgow Boys by Margaret McDonald (Faber & Faber)
Trigger by C.G. Moore (Little Island Books)
All That It Ever Meant by Blessing Musariri (Head of Zeus)
Play by Luke Palmer (Firefly Press)
Fallout by Lesley Parr (Bloomsbury Publishing)
The Wrong Shoes by Tom Percival (Simon & Schuster)
Louder Than Hunger by John Schu (Walker)
Us in the Before and After by Jenny Valentine (Simon & Schuster)
The 2025 Carnegie Medal for Illustration longlist:
The Last Zookeeper by Aaron Becker (Walker)
The Invisible Story by Wen Hsu Chen, written by Jaime Gamboa, translated by Daniel Hahn (Lantana)
Grey by Lauren Child, written by Laura Dockrill (Walker)
Flower Block by Hoang Giang, written by Lanisha Butterfield (Puffin)
I Love Books by Mariajo Ilustrajo (Quarto)
The Dictionary Story by Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston (Walker)
Clever Crow by Olivia Lomenech Gill, written by Chris Butterworth (Walker)
Dive, Dive into the Night Sea by Thea Lu (Walker)
Letters in Charcoal by Juan Palomino, written by Irene Vasco, translated by Lawrence Schimel (Lantana)
Homebody by Theo Parish (Macmillan Children’s Books)
The Bridges by Tom Percival (Simon & Schuster)
Wolf and Bear by Kate Rolfe (Macmillan Children’s Books)
Flying High by Yu Rong, written by Cao Wenxuan, translated by Simone Monnelly (UCLan Publishing)
Do You Remember? by Sydney Smith (Walker)
Grandad’s Star by Rhian Stone, written by Frances Tosdevin (Rocket Bird Books)
The Wild by Yuval Zommer (Oxford University Press)
Ros Harding, Chair of Judges for The Carnegies 2025, said, ‘A huge congratulations goes out to all our longlisted authors and illustrators. These fantastic lists highlight the exciting landscape of publishing for children and young people. It has been an incredible honour to chair a dedicated, passionate and respectful panel of judges through the debates over the nominated titles. They have arrived at two longlists that celebrate a diversity of ideas, themes, viewpoints, language and illustrative styles. There is a strong focus on identity in all its many forms. These are books that will both challenge and comfort children and young people, as they navigate the world around them.’
The shortlists for the 2025 Carnegies will be announced at a panel event at London Book Fair on Tuesday 11th March. The winners’ ceremony will be hosted live at the Cambridge Theatre and streamed on Thursday 19 June. The winners will each receive a specially commissioned golden medal and a £5,000 Colin Mears Award cash prize. The winners of the Shadowers’ Choice Medals – voted for and awarded by the children and young people – will also be presented at the ceremony. They will also receive a golden medal and £500 worth of books to donate to a library of their choice.
The 2025 Carnegie Awards are supported by three key sponsors: Scholastic, the official book supplier; ALCS; and Sora, the new official digital partner. Named one of TIME’s Best Inventions, the Sora student reading app will provide free access to all available shortlisted digital books for shadowing groups, enhancing inclusivity and fostering a love of reading among young people. First News are the official media partner.
