Finlay, Pankhurst and Agrawal on Royal Society Young People’s Book Prize shortlist

Books by Madeleine Finlay, Kate Pankhurst and Roma Agrawal are among those to have been shortlisted for this year’s Royal Society Young People’s Book Prize for science books aimed at under 14s. 

Madeleine Finlay’s Beetles for Breakfast... and Other Weird and Wonderful Ways to Save The Planet, illustrated by Jisu Choi (Flying Eye Books), has been shortlisted alongside Fantastically Great Women Scientists and Their Stories by Kate Pankhurst (Bloomsbury Children’s Books) and How Was That Built? by Roma Agrawal, illustrated by Katie Hickey (Bloomsbury Children’s Books).

Also up for the prize are Fourteen Wolves by Catherine Barr, illustrated by Jenni Desmond (Bloomsbury Children’s Books), If the World Were 100 People by Jackie McCann, illustrated by Aaron Cushley (Red Shed), and Microbe Wars by Gill Arbuthnott, illustrated by Marianna Madriz (Templar).

The shortlist will now be sent out to more than 700 UK schools, science clubs and groups, where 15,000 young judges will decide the winner.

Professor Alan Wilson, fellow of the Royal Society and chair of this year’s Young People’s Book Prize adult judging panel, said: “The shortlist this year will take you all the way from the top of the tallest skyscraper to the underground den of a family of wolves. I am pleased to see the exciting range of books available and I hope the young judges enjoy the shortlist as much as we did."

The judges, who included Nathan Bryon, author of Clean Up! (Puffin), and children’s author and winner of the 2020 Young People’s Book Prize Izzi Howell, described the books as “gripping” and “fantastic” with “absolutely gorgeous” illustrations. The winning book will be unveiled at an online awards ceremony in March 2023.