Book of Birds takes Wainwright Prize book of the year
The Book of Birds by Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris has been named the Wainwright Prize book of the year.
The announcement was reported on 17 September 2026. The book is an illustrated guide to Britain's threatened bird species, with text by Macfarlane and artwork by Morris covering 49 species listed as declining or endangered The Guardian.
The Wainwright Prize celebrates the best nature and conservation writing published in the United Kingdom. It is named after nature writer Alfred Wainwright and was founded in 2013 by publisher Frances Lincoln and the Alfred Wainwright estate.
Macfarlane and Morris took the top honour after first winning the illustrative books category. That is the prize's section for books where images and text carry equal weight. Morris had a strong year across the lists. She was shortlisted twice for the 2026 prize, once alongside Macfarlane.
The money follows the categories. Category winners receive £500 each, while overall winners receive an additional £2,500 each.
Two adult categories were decided alongside the main award. Ancient: Reviving the Woods That Made Britain by Luke Barley won for nature writing. The Savage Landscape by Cal Flyn won for conservation writing, the section focused on work about protecting the natural world.
The children's awards produced a second overall winner. Otherlands: An Illustrated Journey Through Earth's Lost Worlds by Thomas Halliday, illustrated by Gavin Scott, first won the children's nonfiction category and was then named children's book of the year.
Two further children's categories completed the roll call. The Danger of Small Things by Caryl Lewis won children's fiction. The Great Bear by Annie Booker won the picture books category, for books told chiefly through illustrations.
What makes this stand out is the pairing at the centre. A writer and an artist sharing one prize is unusual. Here the words and pictures were judged together.
Last year's book of the year was Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton. The 2026 winners' ceremony is associated with Elmley Nature Reserve in Kent, a wetlands site managed for wildlife.
