This morning, the longlists and judging panels were announced for the 2025 Wainwright Prizes, and we were super excited to see which titles made the lists!
The new-look Wainwright Prizes, which honour exceptional nature and conservation writing, today announced its six longlists and their independent judging panels. The Prizes spotlight writing and writers that celebrate the natural world and inspire readers of all ages to protect it.
2025 marks a bold new chapter for the Prize, growing to six distinct categories to reflect the evolving landscape of nature writing and environmental storytelling, especially for younger audiences. The expanded awards now recognise illustrative books reimaging the children’s prize to encompass fiction, non-fiction, and picture book categories, and highlighting a growing urgency to engage and inspire readers of all ages with the natural world.
A total of 69 books have been longlisted across the Prize’s six categories: Nature Writing, Conservation Writing, Illustrative Books, and three Children's Prizes—for Fiction, Non-Fiction, and Picture Books. The longlists were drawn from a wide range of submissions that reflect the breadth, depth, and vibrancy of contemporary nature writing.
Among the longlisted authors and illustrators are celebrated names including Michael Morpurgo, Katya Balen, Robert Macfarlane, Hamza Yassin, John Lewis-Stempel, Seán Ronayne, Alys Fowler, Guy Shrubsole, Melissa Harrison, Richard Mabey, Eilish Fisher, Emily Gravett, Tom Heap, Isabel Thomas, Yuval Zommer and the late Benjamin Zephaniah.
Alastair Giles, Prize Director, says, “As we enter The Wainwright Prize’s second decade, the necessity to showcase and celebrate the very best of Nature and Conservation Writing has only strengthened. Although the plight of nature has never been more troubling, we have also witnessed a wave of enthusiasm from readers over the past few years. We hope The Wainwright Prize can continue to motivate people to reconnect withthe environment, both physically and intellectually. With this year's expansion to six categories, we’re especially proud to reflect the evolving landscape of environmental storytelling and to champion work that inspires younger generations to care for and protect the natural world. We can’t wait to find out which books from our 2025 longlists will be shortlisted later this summer before we choose our eventual winners.”
The Longlists for the 2025 Wainwright Prize
The Wainwright Prize for Nature Writing:
Our Oaken Bones by Merlin Hanbury-Tenison
The Accidental Garden by Richard Mabey
The Company of Owls by Polly Atkin
The Possibility of Tenderness by Jason Allen-Paisant
The Wainwright Prize for Conservation Writing:
A Training School for Elephants by Sophy Roberts
Climate Injustice by Friederike Otto & translated by Sarah Pybus
Is a River Alive? by Robert Macfarlane
Nature Needs You by Hannah Bourne-Taylor
Nature's Genius by David Farrier
One Garden Against the World by Kate Bradbury
The Lie of the Land by Guy Shrubsole
To Have or To Hold by Sophie Pavelle
What the Wild Sea Can Be by Helen Scales
The Wainwright Prize for Illustrative Books
An Insect A Day by Dominic Couzens & Gail Ashton
Feed the Planet by George Steinmetz with Joel K. Bourne Jr. & Michael Pollan
Ferdinand Bauer's Remarkable Birds by Jonathan Elphick
Forests, Woods & Groves by Philippa Beale
Homecoming by Melissa Harrison & illustrated by Amanda Dilworth
Overleaf by Richard Ogilvy & illustrated by Susan Ogilvy
Swoop Sing Perch Paddle by Carry Akroyd & John McEwen
Trees in Winter by Richard Shimell
The Children’s Wainwright Prize for Fiction:
Arabella Pepper: The Wild Detective by E.R Murray & illustrated by Monika Pollak
Ettie and the Midnight Pool by Julia Green & illustrated by Pam Smy
Fia and the Last Snow Deer by Eilish Fisher & illustrated by Dermot Flynn
Fishfolk by Steven Quincey-Jones & illustrated by Hannah Doyle
Land of the Last Wildcat by Lui Sit & illustrated by David Dean
Save Our Forest! by Nora Dåsnes
The Curse of the Silvan Oaks by Georgia Channon
The Haunting of Fortune Farm by Sophie Kirtley
Turtle Moon by Hannah Gold & illustrated by Levi Pinfold
The Children’s Wainwright Prize for Non-Fiction:
Amazing Jellyfish by Michael Stavarič, translated by Oliver Latsch & illustrated by Michèle Ganser
Cloudspotting for Beginners by Gavin Pretor-Pinney & illustrated by William Grill
Finding Home by Mike Unwin & illustrated by Jenni Desmond
Hamza's Wild World by Hamza Yassin & illustrated by Louise Forshaw
How to Grow a Garden by Frances Tophill & illustrated by Charlotte Ager
How to Know a Crow by Candace Savage & illustrated by Rachel Hudson
MEGA by Jules Howard & illustrated by Gavin Scott
National Trust: Look What I Found by the River by Moira Butterfield & illustrated by Jesús Verona
University of Cambridge: Think Big: Secrets of Bees by Ben Hoare & illustrated by Nina Chakrabarti
Wildlife in the Balance by Dr Sharon Wismer & illustrated by Terri Po
The Children’s Wainwright Prize for Picture Books:
Bothered By Bugs by Emily Gravett
Flow with the Snow by Robert Tregoning & illustrated by Oliver Averill
Flower Block by Lanisha Butterfield & illustrated by Hoang Giang
Frog by Isabel Thomas & illustrated by Daniel Egnéus
King Winter's Birthday by Jonathan Freedland & illustrated by Emily Sutton
Leave the Trees, Please by Benjamin Zephaniah & illustrated by Melissa Castrillon
The Colour of the Sky by Layn Marlow
The World to Come by Robert Macfarlane & Johnny Flynn, illustrated by Emily Sutton
Wild Eyes by Bex Sheridan
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