2026 marks the first year of the Edge Book Award for students in Years 9, 10 and 11. Created to celebrate exceptional recently-published Young Adult literature, the award shines a spotlight on books that engage, inspire and reflect the diverse experiences of today's young readers.
Our shortlist showcases four outstanding titles from talented UK authors and illustrators, featuring stories that spark discussion and encourage young people to read for pleasure.
Shortlist
Like a Brother by Nathanael Lessore
Gone for Good by Sarah Crossan
The Other Girl by Emily Barr
Thirst by Darren Simpson
Vote
Voting will be open between Monday 2 November - Monday 30 November 2026! Return to this page to cast your vote later this autumn term.
About the Books
Like a Brother
By Nathanael Lessore
From the multi-award-winning and much-loved author of STEADY FOR THIS and KING OF NOTHING comes a laugh-out-loud, big-hearted story about two boys from different worlds figuring out what it means to grow up – and grow together.
Owais lives a chill life. He’s well-liked, funny and everything’s a breeze – until his estranged cousin shows up.
Loud, unpredictable and one bad decision away from serious trouble, Abass crashes into Owais’ laidback world like a hurricane: picking fights, ruining parties, disappearing without explanation and clogging toilets in places he absolutely shouldn’t.
But as the boys get to know each other and their bond deepens, Owais starts to see there’s more to Abass than the chaos – and more to himself than just being the popular guy who coasts through life. Because sometimes, the person who turns your world upside down is also the person who helps you figure out where you’re really meant to be . .
Gone for Good
By Sarah Crossman
Girl in Pieces meets One of Us is Lying, told in Sarah Crossan’s inimitable and award-winning verse.Connie Ryder is taken from her home in the dead of night and sent to Silver Lake Academy – a remote, high-security facility for ‘troubled’ teens. At Silver Lake, the vulnerable and the violent are locked in together under a brutal regime that aims to improve their behaviour. But when Connie learns she’s been given the bed of a missing girl named Belle, she is drawn deep into a chilling web of secrets and lies…
A sensational, immersive and hugely propulsive ‘missing girl’ thriller, set against the backdrop of America’s controversial Troubled Teen industry.
The Other Girl
By Emily Barr
Two girls meet on a train journey.
One of them - privileged, chaotic - is heading to an exclusive Swiss rehab centre following months of partying and living wildly.
The other - who couldn't be more different - is down to her last penny, running away.
When they get off the train they are both pretending to be the other. Just for a short period, of course. Just until the rehab stint is over . . .
Thirst
By Darren Simpson
Nobody talks about the strange happenings in Maimsbury. No one speaks of the hooded figures glimpsed in the woods, nor the children’s game that went so horribly wrong. But most of all, nobody dares whisper their doubts about the river they have worshipped for centuries.
Like everyone in Maimsbury, Gorse is used to the sacrifices made every spring to the River Yeelde. The life of a farm animal – in return for a year of plenty – seems a fair trade. That is, until a tragedy leads Gorse to a blood-curdling discovery.
Because this year is a Brim Year, and after giving so much, the river needs more than an animal’s life to sate its thirst…
