Patrice Lawrence

Patrice Lawrence is the current Waterstones Children's Laureate, appointed for the 2026–2028 tenure. Her debut YA novel, Orangeboy, won the YA Book Prize and the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize for Older Readers, and was shortlisted for the Costa Children’s Book Award. Her other novels include Indigo Donut, the Jhalak Prize winner Eight Pieces of Silva and the Carnegie Medal shortlisted Needle. In 2021, Patrice was awarded an MBE for Services to Literature.