The Laugh Out Loud Book Awards 2024 – Meet the judges

Michael Rosen

Michael Rosen, one of the best-known figures in the children’s book world, is renowned for his work as a poet, performer, broadcaster and scriptwriter. He lectures and teaches in universities on children’s literature, reading and writing. Michael is a familiar voice to BBC listeners and is currently presenting Word of Mouth, the magazine programme that looks at the English language and the way we use it. He visits schools with his one-man show to enthuse children with his passion for books and poetry. Michael has been a Lollies judge since the awards were created in 2016.

Shini Muthukrishnan

Shini Muthukrishnan began her social media journey just two years ago, wanting to be part of the ever-growing South Asian representation in the media. Since then, Shini has grown an incredible community across TikTok and Instagram of over 500k followers and has connected with them on the foundation of becoming comfortable with, and ultimately, celebrating her heritage and culture, whilst staying true to herself. Shini has since been become the 43rd Presenter for Blue Peter, the flagship show of the Children’s BBC. She started the role in January 2024 and has since gone on multiple adventures including the likes of aerobatic flight experiences and performing in Aladdin the Musical at the Palace Theatre. Shini has expressed her love for reading on her social media and Blue Peter frequently, and this is her first year as a Lollies judge.

Scott Evans

Scott Evans is a primary school teacher, author of 100 Ideas for Primary Teachers: Reading for Pleasure and a children’s books consultant, content creator and influencer. Through his website and YouTube channel, both called The Reader Teacher, he reads, reviews and recommends a range of children’s literature. He also hosts #PrimarySchoolBookClub on X/Twitter. Scott is a regular content contributor to organisations such as Booktrust and the BBC, where he has featured as both a guest and a writer. He recently undertook the role of educational consultant for the BBC Teach World Book Day Live Lesson in 2024.

In addition, he collaborates closely with numerous leading and independent children’s books publishers to create teaching resources to enhance the educational value of their releases within school settings. Before entering the teaching profession, Scott worked as a librarian in his local public library and his expertise extends beyond the classroom through his involvement in judging panels such as the Blue Peter Book Awards; The Week Junior Book Awards; the Laugh Out Loud Book Awards (Lollies); the Read for Empathy Collection; the Wales Book of the Year Award and the Waterstones Children’s Laureate 2024-26.

Reba Khatun

Reba Khatun is a school librarian by day and children’s author by night. She won the Fab Prize in 2018 and was shortlisted for Penguin’s WriteNow in 2021. She has a short story published in The Faber Book of Bedtime Stories (2022) and has written a reading scheme book for Oxford University Press’ new Readerful series titled ‘Zaynab’s Tiger Day’ (2024). Reba reviews books for the Books For Topic team.

Susannah Inglis

Susannah Inglis is our very own Product Manager for Scholastic Book Clubs and Fairs. She’s in charge of choosing the very best books that children will love so is the perfect addition to our Lollies judging panel. She spends a lot of her time being used as a cat bed by her two cats, so uses that opportunity to curl up with a book, especially books that make her cry and whodunnits (although claims to always be able to work it out before it is revealed).