Best Books of the Year
Menu

The Wainwright Prize · award year

Wainwright Prize 2022

The 2022 Wainwright Prize went to The Biggest Footprint: Eight Billion Humans. One Clumsy Giant by Rob Sears (Children's Writing on Nature and Conservation), Goshawk Summer: A New Forest Season Unlike Any Other by James Aldred (Nature Writing) and Eating to Extinction: The World's Rarest Foods and Why We Need to Save Them by Dan Saladino (Writing on Conservation). 20 books made the shortlist and 37 the longlist across 3 categories.

Winners

Children's Writing on Nature and Conservation

  1. The Biggest Footprint: Eight Billion Humans. One Clumsy Giant by Rob Searssource (opens in a new tab)

Nature Writing

  1. Goshawk Summer: A New Forest Season Unlike Any Other by James Aldredsource (opens in a new tab)

Writing on Conservation

  1. Eating to Extinction: The World's Rarest Foods and Why We Need to Save Them by Dan Saladinosource (opens in a new tab)

Shortlist

Children's Writing on Nature and Conservation

  1. Around the World in 80 Trees by Ben Lerwillsource (opens in a new tab)
  2. By Rowan and Yew by Melissa Harrisonsource (opens in a new tab)
  3. Julia and the Shark by Kiran Millwood Hargravesource (opens in a new tab)
  4. October, October by Katya Balensource (opens in a new tab)
  5. One World: 24 Hours on Planet Earth by Nicola Daviessource (opens in a new tab)
  6. Wild Child: A Journey Through Nature by Dara McAnultysource (opens in a new tab)

Nature Writing

  1. On Gallows Down: Place, Protest and Belonging by Nicola Chestersource (opens in a new tab)
  2. Otherlands: A World in the Making by Thomas Hallidaysource (opens in a new tab)
  3. Shadowlands: A Journey Through Lost Britain by Matthew Greensource (opens in a new tab)
  4. The Instant by Amy Liptrotsource (opens in a new tab)
  5. Time on Rock: A Climber's Route into the Mountains by Anna Flemingsource (opens in a new tab)

Writing on Conservation

  1. Our Biggest Experiment: A History of the Climate Crisis by Alice Bellsource (opens in a new tab)
  2. Regenesis: Feeding the World Without Devouring the Planet by George Monbiotsource (opens in a new tab)
  3. Silent Earth: Averting the Insect Apocalypse by Dave Goulsonsource (opens in a new tab)
  4. The Insect Crisis: The Fall of the Tiny Empires that Run the World by Oliver Milmansource (opens in a new tab)
  5. The Treeline: The Last Forest and the Future of Life on Earth by Ben Rawlencesource (opens in a new tab)
  6. Wild Fell: Fighting for Nature on a Lake District Hill Farm by Lee Schofieldsource (opens in a new tab)

Longlist

Children's Writing on Nature and Conservation

  1. A Bug's World by Erica McAlistersource (opens in a new tab)
  2. Nests by Susan Ogilvysource (opens in a new tab)
  3. Spark by Mitch Johnsonsource (opens in a new tab)
  4. The Summer We Turned Green by William Sutcliffesource (opens in a new tab)
  5. Twitch by M. G. Leonardsource (opens in a new tab)

Nature Writing

  1. 12 Birds to Save Your Life: Nature's Lessons in Happiness by Charlie Corbettsource (opens in a new tab)
  2. Much Ado About Mothing: A Year Intoxicated by Britain's Rare and Remarkable Moths by James Lowensource (opens in a new tab)
  3. The Heeding by Rob Cowensource (opens in a new tab)
  4. The Sea Is Not Made of Water: Life Between the Tides by Adam Nicolsonsource (opens in a new tab)
  5. The Trespasser's Companion by Nick Hayessource (opens in a new tab)
  6. Wild Green Wonders: A Life in Nature by Patrick Barkhamsource (opens in a new tab)

Writing on Conservation

  1. Abundance: Nature in Recovery by Karen Lloydsource (opens in a new tab)
  2. Aurochs and Auks by John Burnsidesource (opens in a new tab)
  3. Climate Change is Racist by Jeremy Williamssource (opens in a new tab)
  4. Divide: The Relationship Crisis Between Town and Country by Anna Jonessource (opens in a new tab)
  5. Soundings: Journeys in the Company of Whales by Doreen Cunninghamsource (opens in a new tab)
  6. The Women Who Saved the English Countryside by Matthew Kellysource (opens in a new tab)

About the Wainwright Prize

Wainwright Prize, 2014-2025, every book category. Year is the prize year the body uses (shortlist in summer, winner announced in August/September). Categories as the body names them: Nature Writing (the only category 2014-2019, then called the Wainwright Golden Beer Book Prize for nature and UK travel writing); Writing on Global Conservation (2020-2021), Writing on Conservation (2022-2024) and Conservation Writing (2025) are the same strand under its successive names; Children's Writing on Nature and Conservation (2022-2024); from 2025 Illustrative Books, Children's Fiction, Children's Non-Fiction and Children's Picture Books. Levels: Winner, Shortlist (rest of the shortlist, including highly commended books), Longlist (longlisted, not shortlisted). The 2025 overall Book of the Year awards went to category winners and are not separate rows. Sources: wainwrightprize.com news posts and the 2025 shortlist page. Longlists are included only for 2021-2025, where the body's pages still list them; earlier longlists (2016-2020) were announced but those pages are gone, so those years have winner and shortlist only. 2014-2017 winner and shortlists come from Wikipedia's Wainwright Prize article (fallback), because the body's shortlist pages for those years return 404 and web.archive.org was unreachable from this machine. Authors only: illustrators credited with 'illustrated by' are left out; co-creators the body credits with 'and/&' are joined with ' and '. Expected counts are the books on the longlist page where one exists, otherwise the shortlist page.

Organization: The Wainwright Prize. Years are award years, which can differ from publication years. Official site (opens in a new tab)

The most recommended books of 2022

Shares the most books with