Congratulations to Dr Sheila Kanani MBE and Liz Kay whose title Can You Get Rainbows in Space? (Puffin) was crowned the winner of this year’s Royal Society Young People’s Book Prize at a live-streamed event at the Glasgow Science Centre.

After an expert panel of adult judges whittled down the best children’s science books for 2024 to a shortlist of six, a record-breaking 19,000 young readers across the country hosted their own judging meetings to read, discuss and vote for their favourite title.

The winning book takes readers on an extraordinary journey over the rainbow, with fascinating facts and engaging illustrations exploring the science behind every colour – from why some monkeys have red bottoms, to how peacocks’ feathers are an optical illusion.

Hear what some of the young judges had to say about Can You Get Rainbows in Space?

‘This book is the best book – it’s the one I wanted to come back to the most. We all loved finding out about why some monkeys have red bottoms!’ – Tiani, aged 11

‘This book has colourful, enticing pages that make you want to read and learn more; the pages were filled with interesting facts that teach you a lot about things you do not know.’ – Maia, aged 10

‘It showed you quite a lot of facts about each colour and I found it really interesting. This book left you thinking about other questions and wondering if you really could get rainbows in space.’ – Darcie, aged 11

Applications to judge next year’s Young People’s Book Prize will open in September. Read our interview with science lead Dawn McCann from Hillside Primary School to find out more about running a young judges panel and the benefits of getting involved.

Also shortlisted for the Young People’s Book Prize 2024:

All Bodies are Wonderful by Beth Cox, illustrated by Samantha Meredith (b small)

Engineers Making a Difference by Dr Shini Somara, illustrated by Manuel Šumberac and Adam Allsuch Boardman (What on Earth Books)

Mission: Arctic by Katharina Weiss-Tuider, illustrated by Christian Schneider, translated by Shelley Tanaka (Greystone Kids)

The Expanding World of Data by Tom Jackson, illustrated by Ekaterina Gorelova and Ana Seixas (OUP)

Where Are You Really From? by Adam Rutherford, with contributions from Emma Norry, illustrated by Adam Ming (Wren & Rook)