Children’s Literature News January 2026
Children’s book news for January 2026: festivals, awards, school publishing, comics events, national reading policy, literacy campaigns and major competitions shaping children’s and YA books across the UK.
Recommended reading books for primary & secondary aged children in the UK
Robert Deas is a UK comic artist and writer whose work is published in children’s comics and graphic novels. He is the creator of Fawn for The Phoenix comic, where he has also worked on series including Trailblazers and Izzy Newton.
Alongside his strip work, Deas is the primary artist and series editor for The Skills Hub, a weekly drawing tutorial series, and he is the artist for The Valhalla Protocol.
Earlier in his career he produced graphic novel adaptations of literary classics for SelfMadeHero, including Manga Shakespeare: Macbeth and a Pride & Prejudice graphic novel edition published in 2011.
Deas’s graphic novel Troy Trailblazer and the Horde Queen won the Stan Lee Excelsior Award Junior in 2016, voted for by young readers from over 200 UK schools.
Children’s book news for January 2026: festivals, awards, school publishing, comics events, national reading policy, literacy campaigns and major competitions shaping children’s and YA books across the UK.
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Our latest reading national curriculum year group recommended reading lists:
Picture books for the under 5s | Books for Reception | Books for Year 1 | Books for Year 2 | Books for Year 3 | Books for Year 4 | Books for Year 5 | Books for Year 6 | Books for Year 7 | Books for Year 8 | Books for Year 9 | Books for Year 10 | Books for Year 11