Scholastic Reveals The Lollies 2026 Shortlists

Scholastic Reveals The Lollies 2026 Shortlists in the 10th Anniversary Year of the UK’s Funny Children’s Book Awards

In the 10th anniversary of The Laugh Out Loud Book Awards (The Lollies), Scholastic is delighted to reveal the fabulously funny shortlists.

As ever, The Lollies shortlisting panel was led by founding Lollies judge and former Children’s Laureate Michael Rosen. This year, Michael was joined by: Alex Falase-Koya (bestselling author of the Marv series); Katie Abey (celebrated illustrator, author and former Lollies winner) and Jon Biddle (English Lead and teacher influencer).

Funny books consistently top the lists of books that children enjoy and choose for themselves. Lollies winners are voted for by children nationwide and will be announced at our laughter and star-packed Lollies Awards Ceremony at Southbank Centre in December.

The shortlists for each category are:

Best Laugh Out Loud Picture Books
• All You Need To Know About Dogs: By A. Cat by Fred Blunt (Happy Yak)
• My Rice is Best by Selina Brown and Maxwell A. Oginni (Puffin Books)
• One Goose, Two Moose by Kael Tudor and Nicola Slater (Scholastic)
• Sleep Tight, Disgusting Blob by Huw Aaron (Puffin Books)

Best Laugh Out Loud Book Ages 6-8
• Murray and Bun: Murray the Viking by Adam Stower (HarperCollins)
• Squirrel and Duck: Mission Improbable by Tom Percival (Bloomsbury)
• The Misadventures of Mina Mahmood: School Trip! by Farhana Islam and Simran Diamond Singh (Farshore)
• The Notwitches by Gary Panton and Dotty Sutton (Chicken House)

Best Laugh Out Loud Book Ages 9-12
• Café Chaos: My Family Is Not a Piece of Cake by Catherine Wilkins and Katie Abey (Nosy Crow)
• Cringe Club by Emily-Jane Clark and Wotto (Gallery Kids)
• Dead Yard: Seeds of Doom by P J Kilburn and Markia Jenai (Little Tiger)
• Shipwrecked by Jenny Pearson and Nick East (Usborne)

Best Laugh Out Loud Graphic Novel
• Looshkin: Honk If You See it! By Jamie Smart (Phoenix Comic Books)
• Nina Peanut is Amazing by Sarah Bowie (Scholastic)
• Pablo and Splash by Sheena Dempsey (Bloomsbury Children’s Books)
• Supa Nova by Chanté Timothy (Nosy Crow)

Rachel Partridge, Group Marketing & PR and Schools Commercial Director said:“We’re delighted to celebrate the 10th anniversary of The Lollies during the National Year of Reading. For a decade, The Lollies have championed the joy, creativity and connection that funny books bring to children’s lives, enticing kids who may not think of themselves as readers to ‘go all in’. We can’t wait for schools to get behind this year’s crop of laugh-out-loud books and encourage children to vote for their winners. At a time when reading has never been more important, we’re proud to shine a light on authors and illustrators whose stories inspire children to pick up books, share them with friends and read for the sheer joy of it.”