Picture books Shortlist – The Laugh Out Loud Book Awards 2025

Spyceratops

Spyceratops has all the skills: sneaking, peeking, blending in, daredevil manoeuvres. She has all the kit: groovy gadgets, loyal sidekick, awesome spymobile. And luckily the perfect opportunity has arisen for Spyceratops to share her spy skills with YOU, the reader. GRANDAD is acting very suspiciously. Can he be trusted? NO. Spyceratops is on the case, determined to uncover Grandad’s secret plotting and show off her extraordinary spy skills…

Alex Willmore

_{Alex Willmore is a multi-award-winning picture book maker, creator of Spyceratops and I Did See a Mammoth, winner of the Lollies 2024 Book Awards.}

The Goat and the Stoat and the Boat

A raucous, rhyming tale that will have children (and adults) in fits of laughter! Stoat is playing in his favourite boat when suddenly Goat comes bounding in! Chaos ensues as an angry Stoat tries to chase Goat out of his boat. But before long, Goat and Stoat’s lively antics make the boat wibble and wobble! Uh-oh! Can Stoat float in the water? And will Goat’s colourful coat be ruined?

From the duo behind the bestselling The Cat and the Rat and the Hat comes this hilarious, read-aloud picture book, bursting with comic capers and animal antics.

Em Lynas

_{Em Lynas is a children’s author with a love of silly poetry, magic, dragons and folklore. She lives by the seaside with her husband, Geoff.}

Matt Hunt

_{Matt works in mixed media, utilising paint, pens, crayons, and digital. He loves to create new and interesting characters and write stories for them.}

The Princess with the Blazing Bottom

Sir Wayne and his dragon are BACK and this time they’re out to rescue a princess held captive by a Big Bad Beast. But WHO exactly will save her? Sir Wayne: who can climb every wall – no moat is too deep, no tower too tall. Or Dragon: so muscly and lean – he can fly and fart flames, he’s a fighting machine! If ONLY there was a way to get the best of both…

Beach

There’s Nothing Faster Than a Cheetah

Buckle up for There’s Nothing Faster Than a Cheetah. A laugh-out-loud funny picture book with vehicles and animals!

Three, two, one… the race has begun and the animals are off! Rhinos on roller-skates, foxes in fire engines, lions in lorries, penguins on pogo sticks… There’s nothing faster than a cheetah. Or is there…?

Perfect for sharing together, this wonderfully wacky picture book is sure to get young readers giggling. With a bouncy, read-aloud story from Tom Nicoll, and hilarious illustrations from the award-winning Ross Collins.

Tom Nicoll

_{Tom is an award-winning writer of funny books for children and he is on record as declaring that he actually thinks cats are cuter than puppies.}

Ross Collins

_{Ross has illustrated over 140 books for children. When he’s not creating children’s books he enjoys working on character development for animation studios.}