The NZ Booklovers Awards have announced their 2026 shortlist. This New Zealand book award offers awards for Best Adult Novel and Best Lifestyle Book, plus three categories for younger readers. Here are the shortlisted titles for younger readers:
YOUNG ADULTS
Bear by Kiri Lightfoot (published in US in June 2026)
The LA Times has announced the finalists for their annual book prizes. The prizes span genres, including audiobooks, nonfiction categories, graphic novels, fiction, fiction genres, and YA literature. Here are the finalists for the Young Adult Literature category:
This picture book biography of Aaron Copland starts in 1900 when Aaron is born to his Russian immigrant parents. He grew up in an apartment above his family’s store in Brooklyn, listening to the horses clomp on the streets. He also listens to music, jazz and piano. Aaron decides to become a musician and heads to Paris where he is taught to take his ideas and turn them into symphonies. Aaron’s music evolves as he tries to capture what is happening in America during the 1930s. He tries to make music that sounds like America. Soon people can hear his music in movie theaters and at the ballet. His music reflects America with its wide melodies and space to dream.
Mang beautifully puts words to what Copland was attempting to create with his music. His focus on access to music and keeping it relevant to the general public can be heard in his symphonies. This picture book is just as relatable, sharing that children can create their own music that reflects them too. The art is celebratory and approachable, often using flowers to show when the music is flowing and being shared.
A celebration of America’s composer. Appropriate for ages 5-8.
Harry Houdini was born Erik Weisz in Hungary, son of a rabbi with a large library of books. The family emigrated to America where they hit hard times after Harry’s father lost his job. Harry had to quit school and start to work. Eventually, the family was so poor they had to sell his father’s books. It was in another book that Harry eventually found magic. He worked hard and studied more books, hoping to make enough money to care for his family. He met his wife, who worked as his assistant, soon adding his famous escape artist routines to his act. As his acts grew more dangerous, his fortunes grew. He built his own personal library that grew so big that he hired his own librarian. Eventually, he was even able to replace his father’s lost books and add them to his collection.
It is a very unique lens to view Houdini’s life through: his love of reading and books. Breaking the idea that Houdini was born in America and found magic easy, adds to his connection with books and shows how even the most famous and gifted magician needs resources and knowledge to continue improving. The text is playful in appropriate spots, serious in others and always leads back to books. The illustrations done in cutouts, layer compellingly and create depth on the page that is used cleverly to show light, height and plenty of books.
A testament to the magic of books. Appropriate for ages 5-8.
The Horror Writers Association has announced the nominees for the 2025 Bram Stoker Awards which recognize achievement in horror writing. The award has a variety of categories including screenplay, graphic novel, nonfiction and age categories for fiction. Here are the nominees for the youth categories:
SUPERIOR ACHIEVEMENT IN A MIDDLE GRADE NOVEL NOMINEES
Bob knows that he is the biggest, strongest and smartest bear in the world, and he made sure that everyone in the forest knew that too. Bob loved to talk about himself and brag endlessly about his brawn and his brains. Then Bill came to the neighborhood. Bill loved to ask others about themselves. He asked lots of questions and got lots of answers. Bob spent his time making fun of Bill and explaining that he was still the top bear. Everyone loved chatting with Bill and one another, so when blustery Bob showed up to ask who the “biggest, strongest and smartest Bear in the whole wide world” no one noticed. But Bill did, and Bill started asking Bob questions about himself. And it turns out that even braggy blowhards like Bob like to be asked about themselves and need a few friends too.
Told in an engaging way with speech bubbles and simple lines, this picture book shows that curiosity about others works far better than bragging or selling yourself to them. The contrast between Bob the Bear and Bill the Badger could not be more clearly drawn. I enjoyed that rather than a comeuppance in the end, Bob changed his ways and started finding out about others too. The illustrations are bright and merry, the speech bubbles colored to make them all the more clear for young readers.
Bullying Bear meets bright Badger in this book. Appropriate for ages 3-5.
Forty is a paper fortune teller dropped on the ground when the school bell rang. She’s not sure what to do until she meets Chip, a partially eaten potato chip who plans to escape to Canada in order to not be completely eaten by the kids. When the two discover a bolt on the ground that has fallen off of the playground slide, they decide they must venture across the huge playground to fix it before someone gets hurt. But their journey is full of dangers, happily Forty’s fortunes seem to come true! Perhaps they can manage to get the bolt replaced before the bell rings for recess or the fortunes run out.
This picture book offers a graphic novel feel that makes it marvelously modern while focusing on timeless schoolyard elements of playground equipment, basketballs, potato chips, gum and fortune tellers. The text is superb silliness, leaning hard into the fortunes being whacky and then coming to life. Readers will delight in realizing they have no idea what is coming next. The illustrations create a friendly vibe, using interesting perspectives that add to the wild situations the story has created.
A mad and magical playground adventure. Appropriate for ages 4-6.
Mychal is well known for his inspiring take on libraries that he shares widely and with great joy. His first book embraces a child’s experience at their library, explaining openly that the library is a place they will always belong. No matter what their family or home looks like. He looks beyond books to the other services that children can experience at the library like board games, cooking and story time. The book finishes with getting your own library card and hoping you will come back to the library soon.
Written in simple and welcoming prose, this picture book shines with Mychal’s signature approach to welcoming diverse patrons and children to our libraries. It is perfect to share with young field trips visiting the library for the first time as well as with new families visiting. Even children who have been coming to the library for years will see themselves welcomed afresh to their library. The illustrations are simple and welcoming too, filled with bright colors and diverse faces.
Told in questions and answers, this picture book celebrates the changing of the seasons. Spring is at its most elusive here, as it appears like it’s arrived due to the flowers, the buds on the trees, and the birds returning. But the wind can turn icy and the clouds return. The animals stay cozy in their homes. Late snow falls on the flowers. Then, change comes again with bright sunshine that melts the snow and the animals leave their dens. Now it is spring.
Henkes, a Wisconsin book creator, captures the essence of a northern spring in his latest book. As always, his book is wonderfully approachable for even the youngest of children, showing how changeable weather and seasons can be while longing for the warmth of a new season to arrive. Readers will love the various small animals that experience spring’s arrival as well as one small child who is longing for the sun to come.
A warm and lovely look at spring’s changeability. Appropriate for ages 1-4.
Nane Sarma lived in Iran. Every spring, her friend Uncle Nowruz would arrive to announce the arrival of spring. Yet she always managed to miss his visit. This year she invited her grandchildren to help her welcome Uncle Nowruz. They cleaned the house, purchased items for the Haft-Seen table, and bought new clothes. Nane cooked the traditional meal, set the beautiful table and gathered with her grandchildren. But she was so exhausted by all the work, she fell fast asleep and the children couldn’t wake her! When Uncle Nowruz arrived and welcomed spring, Nane kept right on sleeping.
Nowruz marks the Persian New Year and celebrates spring’s arrival. This picture book celebrating the Persian traditions related to Nowruz has the feel of a folktale thanks to its structure and pacing. The entire book is a celebration of spring’s arrival combined with a merry story about Nane falling asleep after making all the preparations. It is an excellent glimpse of Persian culture. The illustrations are filled with bright colors of pinks, reds, golds and blues. It creates a jolly feel as the family welcomes spring back.
Don’t sleep on this one. Appropriate for ages 3-5.
Waking Brain Cells 