It was an incredible moment to see award-winning author Patrice Lawrence MBE announced as the Waterstones Children’s Laureate 2026–2028, receiving her bespoke silver medal from outgoing Laureate Frank Cotrell-Boyce.
The Laureateship is awarded every two years to a renowned writer or illustrator in recognition of exceptional talent. Managed by Book Trust and sponsored by Waterstones, it’s a hugely prestigious role promoting the vital importance of children’s literature, and one Patrice will take on during the National Year of Reading, 2026.
Patrice is an award-winning author whose work spans picture books to YA. Her debut YA novel Orangeboy (2016) won the Bookseller YA Book Prize and the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize for Older Children’s Fiction. She was awarded an MBE for Services to Literature in 2021 and elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 2023.
Patrice has been an amazing supporter of the Barrington Stoke mission to break down the barriers to reading, joining the list with Toad Attack, a comedy caper for middle-grade readers that is a brilliant example of disability representation, with deafness featured naturally rather than as a limitation.
She followed that with the outstanding Needle, the powerful and heart-rending exploration of a teenager-in-care’s journey through grief, rage and getting caught in the criminal justice system, informed by Patrice’s more than 20 years of work for charities supporting equality and social justice. The book was shortlisted for the Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing and won the 2023 Little Rebels Award, and Patrice says of it: “My dyslexia-friendly novella Needle ... raises questions about how we, as adults, listen to and nurture vulnerable children. My aim for my tenure as Laureate is to ask these questions.”
Patrice’s tenure will focus on the power of books to create connection, belonging and voice – particularly for vulnerable children and communities. She has spoken about championing shared and sociable reading experiences as a tool for bringing people together in an increasingly divided world.
“I believe that we, as humans, are changed by stories,” she said at the ceremony. “People who feel this connection – who feel heard and believe in each other’s humanity – are the foundation of stronger, safer and more inclusive communities.”
At Barrington Stoke, the power of the story is at the heart of everything we publish. We’re incredibly proud to work with Patrice and look forward to witnessing the impact of her Laureateship.
Discover Patrice Lawrence's dyslexia-friendly books:
After a toad lands on his head as he leaves his house one morning, Leo is determined to find out where it has come from and why. Together with his friend Rosa, he needs to come up with some answers before the angry residents of Upper Dab take matters into their own hands and the toads become toast! A brilliantly quirky comedy caper with a diverse and inclusive cast of characters.
Particularly suitable for readers aged 9+ with a reading age of 8.
Winner of the 2023 Little Rebels Award and shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal.
Charlene is a demon knitter. It’s the only thing she enjoys and the only thing she believes she’s really good at.
So when her foster mum’s son destroys her latest creation, Charlene loses it and stabs him in the hand with her knitting needle. It damages a nerve and she gets sucked into the criminal justice system for assault.
Charlene's not sorry and she’s never apologised to anyone in her life. But people keep telling her that if she says sorry, they’ll go easier on her. Can she bring herself to say it and not mean it when her freedom’s at stake?
Particularly suitable for children aged 13+ with a reading age of 8.
Header image credit: David Bebber