Award Winning Children's and YA Literature
There are many prizes awarded for children's and young adult literature. Below are links to the official sites for many of the major awards, which include comprehensive lists of prize winners and honorees along with a short description of each award and its selection criteria.
To find out if Staley Library owns any of these titles, do a search by "Title" search in our Online Catalog.
National Awards
- Newbery Medal (authors)
- Caldecott Medal (illustrators)
- Golden Kite Award (4 awards: fiction, nonfiction, picture book text, & picture book illustration)
- ALSC Notable Lists (from the Associaton for Library Service to Children, lists of notable books, videos, recordings, and computer software)
- Coretta Scott King Book Awards (African-American authors and illustrators)
- Pura Belpré Award (Latino/Latina authors and illustrators)
- American Indian Youth Literature Award (books by or about American Indians, three awards levels: picture book, middle school, and young adult)
- Asian American Librarians Association Awards (picture books, and middle grade and teen level awards for works depicting Asian/Pacific Americans and their heritage)
- Sydney Taylor Book Awards
(books that "authentically portray the Jewish experience," three award
levels: younger readers, older readers, & teen readers)
- Schneider Family Book Awards
(author or illustrator of books that "emphasizes the artistic
expression of the disability experience," awards given in young child,
middle school, and teen categories)
- Dolly Gray Award for Children's Literature in Developmental Disabilities
(author and illustrator (if appropriate) of a children's picture book
and/or a juvenile/young adult chapter book that includes appropriate
portrayals of individuals with developmental disabilities)
- Theodor Seuss Geisel Award (authors and illustrators of books for beginning readers)
- Michael L. Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature (authors of books for young adults)
- William C. Morris YA Debut Award (debut book by first-time author writing for teens)
- National Book Award (young people's literature category)
- Alex Awards (adult books that appeal to young adult readers)
- Mildred L. Batchelder Award (books originally published in another language than English, later translated into English and published in the U.S.)
- Sibert Informational Book Medal (authors & illustrators of informational books for children/young adults published in English)
- NCSS (National Council for the Social Studies) Notable Tradebooks for Young People (primarily for children aged K- grade 8, includes fiction and nonfiction that "emphasizes human relations, represent a diversity of groups and are sensitive to a broad range of cultural experiences, present an original theme or a fresh slant on a traditional topic, are easily readable and of high literary quality.")
- Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal (authors or illustrators, lifetime achievement)
- Margaret A. Edwards Award (authors of books for young adults, lifetime achievement)
- Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Children's Video (outstanding video productions for children)
- YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults (nonfiction books for young adults)
- Odyssey Award (producer of best audiobook in English for children and/or young adults)
- Amelia Bloomer List ("appealing feminist books for young readers," ages birth through 18)
- Rainbow Books ("quality books with significant and authentic GLBTQ content," ages birth through 18)
- Stonewall Children's and Young Adult Awards (books that illuminate the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender experience)
- Great Graphic Novels for Teens (graphic novels for a teen audience)
- Fabulous Films for Young Adults (selected to appeal to young adults with varied tastes and interests)
Illinois Awards