Nominations Announced for the 2025 Carnegie Medals
carnegies.co.uk | #Carnegies2025 | @CarnegieMedals
Monday 4 November 2024: Nominations have been announced for the 2025 Carnegies, the UK’s longest-running and best-loved children’s book awards.
A grand total of 119 books have been nominated for the 2025 Medals. 64 books are in contention for the Carnegie Medal for Writing, which is awarded to a book written in English for children and young people that sparks an outstanding reading experience, and 55 books for the Carnegie Medal for Illustration, which celebrates an outstanding reading experience through illustration. This includes 3 titles that have received nominations in both Medal categories.
Carnegie Medal for Writing Nominated Titles 2025
Carnegie Medal for Illustration Nominated Titles 2025
The Carnegies are organised by CILIP, the UK’s library and information association, and are uniquely judged by librarians. CILIP invited nominations for the 2025 Carnegies from its members, as well as external bodies: BookTrust, CLPE, Commonword, English & Media Centre, IBBY, National Literacy Trust, RNIB, The Reading Agency, and the CILIP School Libraries Group. CILIP accepted nominations that met the criteria for the Medals and reflected the spirit of the Awards mission: To champion librarians to inspire and empower the next generation to create a better world through books and reading.
What happens next?
Each nominated book is read by every member of the 2025 judging panel – which this year includes 14 experienced librarians from CILIP’s Youth Libraries Group (YLG) − who volunteer their time as judges.
From these nominations, the judging panel will decide the long and shortlists and finally, the 2025 Medal winners, based on the official criteria for the Medals for Writing and Illustration. The long and shortlists identify a range of outstanding books for children and young people of all ages and interests, celebrating world-class writing and illustration from new and established authors and illustrators.
2025 will also see the continuation of the Shadowers’ Choice Awards voted for by children and young people who take part in the Awards shadowing scheme – a reading for pleasure initiative that engages thousands of children and young people in schools and libraries in the UK and overseas through ‘shadowing’ reading groups. Young people read and engage with the shortlists critically and creatively, through group participation and digitally: posting online reviews, artworks, videos, and taking part in creative activities and online events. Taking on the role of judges, the groups will vote for their favourite books to receive the Shadowers’ Choice Award at the winners’ ceremony in June 2025.
Registration for shadowing groups is now open and group leaders can opt in to receive a free publicity pack when the shortlists are announced in March.
The 2025 Carnegies promise to be an exciting journey through outstanding reading experiences. Stay tuned for further updates as we embark on another year of celebrating the power of storytelling to captivate young hearts and minds. It starts with a spark.
The Carnegies are sponsored by Scholastic as official book supplier and ALCS. If you are interested in sponsoring the 2025 Carnegies, please email Mackenzie Warner at mackenzie.warner@cilip.org.uk.
KEY DATES FOR THE CARNEGIES 2025:
Wednesday 12 February 2025: Longlists announced
Tuesday 11 March 2025: Shortlists announced (15:45 GMT)
Wednesday 12 March 2025: Shadowing begins
Thursday 19 June 2025: CarnegieMedal Winners announced
– ENDS –
For further information on the Carnegies 2025 please visit: www.carnegies.co.uk
The Carnegies logo can be downloaded here.
#Carnegies2025 | @CarnegieMedals
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NOTES TO EDITORS:
About The Carnegies
- The Carnegies celebrate outstanding achievement in children’s writing and illustration respectively and are unique in being judged solely by librarians.
- The Carnegie Medal for Writing is awarded annually to a children’s book author whose writing creates an outstanding reading experience. It was established in 1936 in memory of the Scottish-born philanthropist, Andrew Carnegie (1835-1919).
- The Carnegie Medal for Illustration (previously known as the Kate Greenaway Medal), established in 1955, is awarded annually to a children’s book illustrator whose artwork creates an outstanding reading experience.
- Each year thousands of reading groups in schools and libraries in the UK and overseas get involved in the Awards, with children and young people ‘shadowing’ the judging process. They read, discuss and review the books on the shortlists, get involved in reading related activities in groups, and vote for their favourite books to win the Carnegie Shadowers’ Choice Medals for Writing and Illustration.
- In 2024, the Carnegie Medal for Writing was awarded for the first time to a Black British author, and then Children’s Laureate – Joseph Coelho – for his novel in verse The Boy Lost in the Maze illustrated by Kate Milner (Otter-Barry Books). The 2024 Carnegie Medal for Illustration and Shadowers’ Choice Award for Illustration were both awarded to Aaron Becker in a double-win for his wordless picture book The Tree and the River (Walker Books). The Carnegie Shadowers’ Choice Medal for Writing went to Tia Fisher for her debut novel told in verse, Crossing the Line (Bonnier Books UK).
About CILIP, the library and information association
- The Carnegies are managed by CILIP, the library and information association. The Medals are awarded annually by CILIP and the Youth Libraries Group (YLG) with longlists announced in February, shortlists in March and the winners announced at a ceremony in June.
- CILIP is the leading voice for the information, knowledge management and library profession. Our goal is to put information and library skills and professional values at the heart of a democratic, equal and prosperous society.
- CILIP is a registered charity, no. 313014. The YLG is a special interest group of CILIP who work to preserve and influence the provision of quality literature and library services for children and young people, both in public libraries and school library services.
- YLG has 12 regional committees covering all of the UK, and each committee advertises and democratically recruits a judge to represent them on the panel of judges. Each judge serves a two-year term and each year the panel is a unique mix of new and experienced judges led by the Chair of Judges. Following the independent diversity review of the Awards, CILIP introduced a co-opting procedure so that if this recruitment process does not result in a sufficiently diverse and representative judging panel, up to two judges will be co-opted to join the panel.
- In 2025, the judging panel includes 14 volunteer judges from CILIP’s Youth Libraries Group and Chair of Judges Ros Harding. Find out more about this year’s judges here.
About Scholastic
- For 100 years, Scholastic Corporation has been encouraging the personal and intellectual growth of all children, beginning with literacy. Having earned a reputation as a trusted partner to educators and families, Scholastic is the world’s largest publisher and distributor of children’s books, a leading provider of literacy curriculum, professional services, and classroom magazines, and a producer of educational and entertaining children’s media. The Company creates and distributes bestselling books and e-books, print and technology-based learning programs for pre-K to grade 12, and other products and services that support children’s learning and literacy, both in school and at home. With 15 international operations and exports to 165 countries, Scholastic makes quality, affordable books available to all children around the world through school-based book clubs and book fairs, classroom libraries, school and public libraries, retail, and online.
- Learn more at www.scholastic.com.
About ALCS
- The Authors’ Licensing and Collecting Society (ALCS) is a not-for-profit organisation started by writers for the benefit of all types of writers. Owned by its members, ALCS collects money due for secondary uses of writers’ work. It is designed to support authors and their creativity; ensure they receive fair payment and see their rights are respected. It promotes and teaches the principles of copyright and campaigns for a fair deal. It represents over 120,000 members, and since 1977 has paid over £650million to writers.
- For more information visit www.alcs.co.uk.
