Stephen Lightbown's 'And I Climbed And I Climbed' shortlisted in UKLA Book Awards 2025

We’re thrilled that Stephen Lightbown’s poetry collection And I Climbed, And I Climbed has been shortlisted in the much-coveted UKLA Book Awards 2025!

The UKLA (UK Literary Association) Book Awards are the only children's book awards judged by teachers. They span three age group categories: 3-6+, 7-10+ and 11-14+, with a fourth category for information books for ages 3-14+.

Stephen’s book, illustrated by Shih-Yu Lin, is shortlisted in the 7-10+ category. This “important and beautifully affecting book” (BookTrust) draws on Stephen’s personal experiences of disability to chart the story of Cosmo, a young boy who falls from the tree he loves to climb. The book has already been shortlisted for the CLiPPA Award 2024 as well as being a National Poetry Day 2024 Recommendation.

The Award winners will be announced at a ceremony in Liverpool in June. We can’t wait!

Discover more about Stephen’s book and Cosmo’s journey, download a free CLPE Teaching Sequence, watch Stephen read some of the poems and read his blog about why he wrote the book at www.troikabooks.com/and-i-climbed-and-i-climbed