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Awards
John Newbery Medal
-Criteria: awarded to the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children.
-Interest Level: Children
-Format: Fiction
-Awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association
-Established 1922
Randolph Caldecott Medal
-Criteria: awarded to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children.
-Interest level: Children
-Format: Picture books
The Caldecott is given annually by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association.
-First awarded in 1938
Coretta Scott King Book Awards
-Criteria: Awards given annually to outstanding African American authors and illustrators of books for children and young adults that demonstrate an appreciation of African American culture and universal human values. Awards are also given for an author and illustrator showing new talent. The Coretta Scott King-Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement is given annually to an African-American author or illustrator who has made a significant and lasting literary contribution, and in recognition of the body of his or her published books for children and/or young adults.
-Interest level: Children and young adults
-Format: Books
Awarded by the Ethnic and Multicultural Information Exchange Round Table (EMIERT), a Roundtable of ALA
-Awarded annually
Established in 1969, first award given in 1970
Pura Belpré Award
-Criteria: The Pura Belpré Award is presented to a Latino/Latina writer and illustrator whose work best portrays, affirms, and celebrates the Latino cultural experience in an outstanding work of literature for children and youth.
-Interest level: Children and young adults
-Format: Books
-This award is co-sponsored by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), and REFORMA, the National Association to Promote Library and Information Services to Latinos and the Spanish-Speaking.
-First awarded in 1996
Asian/Pacific American Awards for Literature
-Criteria: Awards for individual works about Asian/Pacific Americans and their heritage, based on literary and artistic merit. The five award categories are Adult Fiction, Adult Nonfiction, Children’s Literature, Young Adult Literature, and Picture Books
-Interest level: Children, young adults, and adults
-Format: Books
-Works must be written by an Asian/Pacific Islander American who has resident status in the US or Canada and published in the US, its territories, or Canada.
-Award given annually by the Asian Pacific American Librarians Association
-Award first given in 2003
American Indian Youth Literature Award
-Criteria: identifies and honors the very best writing and illustrations by and about Native Americans and Indigenous peoples of North America.
-Interest level: Children and young adults
-Format: Books
-In odd-numbered years, nominations are encouraged in fiction or nonfiction and may include graphic novels; for picture books, the award is for both author and illustrator.
-Awarded biennially in even-numbered years by the American Indian Library Association
-Award first given in 2006
Mildred L. Batchelder Award
-Criteria: The Batchelder Award is awarded to a United States publisher for a children’s book considered to be the most outstanding of those books originating in a country other than the United States and in a language other than English and subsequently translated into English for publication in the United States during the preceding year.
-Interest level: Children
-Format: Books
-ALSC gives the award to encourage US publishers to seek out superior children's books abroad and to promote communication among the peoples of the world.
-This award has been given annually since 1979.
-Award first given in 1966
Michael L. Printz Award
-Criteria: annually honors the best book written for teens, based entirely on its literary merit
-Interest Level: Young adult
-Format: Young adult fiction
-Awarded by Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) and sponsored by Booklist
-Established 2000
Schneider Family Book Award
-Criteria: Books published in English which portray the disability experience of a protagonist or secondary character and are intended for children and adolescent audiences (does not include books with death as the main theme).
-Interest Level: birth to grade school (0-10); middle school (11-13); teen (13-18)
-Format: Any (fiction, nonfiction, graphic novel, picture book, etc.)
-Awarded annually by the American Library Association
-Established in 2004
Odyssey Award for Excellence in Audiobook Production
-Criteria: This annual award is given to the producer of the best audiobook produced for children and/or young adults, available in English in the United States.
-Interest Level: children and young adults
-Format: Audiobook in all literary genres
-Awarded by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) and the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), divisions of ALA, and is sponsored by Booklist magazine.
-Established 2008
Alex Awards
-Criteria: The Alex Awards are given to ten books written for adults that have special appeal to young adults, ages 12 through 18.
-Interest level: Young adults
-Format: Books
-The winning titles are selected from books published in the previous year by the Young Adult Library Services Association.
-Awarded annually
-Award first given annually in 1998. It became an official ALA award in 2002.
Margaret A. Edwards Award
-Criteria: honors an author, as well as a specific body of his or her work, for significant and lasting contribution to young adult literature. It recognizes an author's work in helping adolescents become aware of themselves and addressing questions about their role and importance in relationships, society, and in the world.
-Interest Level: Young Adult
-Format: Book
-The annual award is administered by the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) and sponsored by School Library Journal magazine
-Established in 1988
Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal
-Criteria: Informational books originally published in English in the US by US citizens or residents. Published in the preceding year of the award.
-Interest Level: birth to age 14
-Format: Informational books
-Awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children
-Established in 2001
Theodor Seuss Geisel Award
-Criteria: The Geisel Award is given annually to the author(s) and illustrator(s) of the most distinguished American book for beginning readers published in English in the United States during the preceding year.
-Interest level: Beginning readers
-Format: Books
-Awarded by the Association for Library Services to Children
-Awarded annually
-First awarded in 2006
William C. Morris YA Debut Award
-Criteria: honors a book published by a first-time author writing for teens and celebrating impressive new voices in young adult literature
-Interest Level: Young adult
-Format: Young adult fiction
-Awarded by the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA)
-Established in 2009
Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults
-Criteria: All print forms of nonfiction intended for young adults (12-18) as designated by publishers which are published in the prior Nov. 1 - Oct. 31 year. Requires excellence in writing, research, presentation, and readability.
-Interest Level: Young Adult
-Format: Nonfiction print books
-Awarded annually by the Young Adult Library Services Association
-Established in 2010
Stonewall Book Awards
-Criteria: English language books with exceptional merit relating to LGBTQIA+ experiences published in the prior year.
-Interest Level: children and young adult
-Format: Any (fiction, nonfiction, graphic novel, picture book, etc.)
-Awarded annually by ALA’s Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Round Table
-Established in 2010
Sydney Taylor Book Award
-Criteria: Books published in the current year which have positive/authentic Jewish religion or cultural content.
-Interest Level: Young readers (picture books), Older Readers (juvenile novels/nonfiction), Teen (grades 7-12)
-Format: Any (fiction, nonfiction, graphic novel, picture book, etc.)
-Awarded annually by the Association of Jewish Libraries
-Established in 1968
Excellence in Early Learning Digital Media Award
-Criteria: recognizes the most distinguished digital media created for an early learning audience by a producer based in the United States.
-Interest Level: early learning audience (defined as children ages 2-8 along with their caregivers, professionals, and media mentors serving them (such as librarians and other educators).
-Format: Digital media, defined as “Any real-time, dynamic, and interactive media content or product that is available via electronic device across multiple platforms.”
-Awarded annually
-Established in 2019
Booklists
Notable Children’s Books
-Criteria: According to the Notables Criteria, "notable" is defined as: Worthy of note or notice, important, distinguished, outstanding. As applied to children's books, notable should be thought to include books of especially commendable quality, books that exhibit venturesome creativity, and books of fiction, information, poetry and pictures for all age levels (birth through age 14) that reflect and encourage children's interests in exemplary ways. The current year's Newbery, Caldecott, Belpré, Sibert, Geisel, and Batchelder Award and Honor books automatically are added to the Notable Children's Books list.
-Interest Level: Birth through age 14
-Format: fiction, information, poetry and pictures
-Awarded by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC)
-Established 1940
Young Adult Library Services Association Book Finder
YALSA has launched the Teen Book Finder Database, which is a one-stop shop for finding selected lists and award winners. Users can search this free resource by award, list name, year, author, genre and more, as well as print customizable lists.
Best Fiction for Young Adults
-Criteria: fiction titles published for young adults in the past 14 months that are recommended reading for ages 12 to 18. The purpose of the annual list is to provide librarians and library workers with a resource to use for collection development and reader’s advisory purposes.
-Interest level: Young adults and librarians
-Format: Books
-Compiled annually by the Young Adult Library Services Association's Best Fiction for Young Adults Blogging Team
-Began in 1997 although lists were created as early as the 1930’s
Teens’ Top Ten
-Criteria: Any book of teen interest published during the prior year. National teen voting to determine winners.
-Interest Level: Young Adult
-Format: Any (fiction, nonfiction, graphic novel, etc.)
-Awarded annually by the Young Adult Library Services Association
-Established in 2003