The winners of the 2021 Indie Book Awards have been announced. It’s an award that highlights books from independent publishers, university presses, self-published titles, and e-books that are written in English. There are numerous categories in the awards with several focused specifically on books for youth. Here are the winners and the finalists in those categories, many of which are only available via Amazon.

CHILDREN’S EDUCATIONAL PICTURE BOOK (6 Years & Up)

WINNERS

The Boy Who Flies – A Story of Today’s Totonac People by JoAnne DeKeuster

Something Wonderful by Matt Ritter, illustrated by Nayl Gonzalez

FINALISTS

The Big Bad Coronavirus and How We Can Beat It! by Lisa Carroll, illustrated by G. F. Newland

Breathe, Ollie! by Krista Betcher, illustrated by Kevin Cannon

Footsteps in Bay de Verde by Charis Cotter, illustrated by Jenny Dwyer

Light Is Color! The Comic (and Coloring and Activity) Guide to Visible and Invisible Things by Nicole and Kevin Kurtz

Mei Ling in China City: Divided by War, United by a Lifeline of Letters by Icy Smith, illustrated by Gayle Garner Roski

CHILDREN’S ILLUSTRATIVE PICTURE BOOK (6 Years & Up)

WINNER

I Know a Woman: A Song for Mothers by Sharon Gudereit, illustrated by Miranda Pringle

FINALISTS

The Best ME That I Can Be – RESPECT, by Rose Angebrandt, Illustrated by Henrique Rampazzo

The Forgotten Garden, by Basma Elkhatib, Illustrated by Omar Lafi, Translated by Ghenwa Yehia

Gratitude the Great, by Pamelyn Rocco, Illustrated by Taylor Barron

The Hyrax in the Mogogos, by Douglas Cochran, Illustrated by S. Alex Percival

Our Folktales: The All-time Favourite Folktales from Asia, by Ruth Wan-Lau

The Tip of the Tale, by Suzanne Alexander, Illustrated by Ashley Teets

CHILDREN’S PICTURE BOOK #OWNVOICES

WINNER

I Am a Triathlete, by Nia Obotette, Illustrated by Adriel Meka

FINALISTS

Adventures of a Pangopup, by Terri Tatchell, Illustrated by Ivan Sulima

Just Because…: A Story Book About Self-Acceptance, by C.M. Harris, Illustrated by Ashlynn Feather

Salma the Syrian Chef, by Danny Ramadan, Illustrated by Anna Bron

Sassy Sisters vs The Sock Monster, by Jacquese Groves, Illustrated by Karine Makartichan

Who’s Jerry?, by T. M. Jackson, Illustrated by Darwin Marfil 

CHILDREN’S PICTURE BOOK (0-5 Years)

WINNER

My Monsterpiece, by Amalia Hoffman

FINALISTS

52 – A Tale of Loneliness, by Johnny DePalma, Illustrated by Kyle Brown

The Big Adventures Of A Little Tree: Tree Finds Friendship, by Nadja Springer, Illustrated by Tilia Rand-Bell

A Common Thirst, by Gary Boelhower, Illustrated by Sarah Brokke

Llama Lu, by Julia Da Rocha, Illustrated by M. Judith Da Rocha

The Slumbering Pearl, by Tyler Oliver, Illustrated by Gita Treice 

CHILDREN’S PICTURE BOOK (Non-Fiction – All Ages)

WINNER

Something Wonderful, by Matt Ritter, Illustrated by Nayl Gonzalez

FINALISTS

MOMENT, by Robert Abad

Ni Hao, China!, by Sohan Chunduru, Illustrated by Katarina Stevanovic

Nutaui’s Cap, by Bob Bartel, Illustrated by Mary Ann Penashue, Translated by Sebastian Piwas, Stella Rich, and Mani Katinen Nuna

Under the Stars – Astrophysics For Everyone, by Lisa Harvey-Smith, Illustrated by Mel Matthews

The Wall & the Wind, Written and Illustrated by Veselina Tomova

CHILDREN’S/JUVENILE (Fiction)

WINNER – ALSO THE GRAND PRIZE WINNER OVERALL

Sapphire the Great and the Meaning of Life, by Beverley Brenna, Illustrated by Tara Anderson

FINALISTS

The Mystery of the Portuguese Waltzes, by Richard Simas, Illustrated by Caroline Clarke

The Rabbit Princess: Journeys, by R. Chen, Illustrated by Ed Chen, R. Chen

Should I Say Hi? A Story of Courage That Reads Forward and Backward, by Rose Collins, Illustrated by Nathaly Bonilla

Why the moon travels, by Oein DeBhairduin, Illustrated by Leanne McDonagh

Yara’s Spring, by Jamal Saeed & Sharon E. McKay

CHILDREN’S/JUVENILE (Non-Fiction)

WINNER

Presidents Play!, by Jonathan Pliska, Illustrated by John Hutton

FINALISTS

God Says; My Book of Emotions, by Doreen Homawoo, Illustrated by Jayden Munnelly, Jessica Homawoo

Let’s Learn about Chemistry, by Stephanie Ryan, Illustrated by Christine Cagara 

A White House Alphabet, by Arioth Harrison Smirne with Rocco Smirne, Illustrated by John Hutton 

Young Kap, by Kingsley Osei, Illustrated by Elaine Davis

A Young Person’s Field Guide to Finding Lost Shipwrecks, by Laurie Zaleski

YOUNG ADULT (Fiction – 12 Years to 16 Years)

WINNER

The Manticore’s Vow: And Other Stories, by Cassandra Rose Clarke

FINALISTS

Costly Freedom, by Terry Webb

The Dumpster Club, by David L. Craddock, Illustrated by Kristoffer Furacão

Even Goats Need Closure, by Jane Donovan and Holly Trechter 

Half on Tuesdays, by Amy E. Whitman

The Rabbit Princess: Journeys, by R. Chen, Illustrated by Ed Chen, R. Chen

The winners of the 2020 Governor General’s Literary Awards have been announced. The awards celebrate the best published books in Canada. There are two categories that celebrate books for youth. Here are the winners and finalists in each of those categories:

YOUNG PEOPLE’S LITERATURE – TEXT

WINNER

The King of Jam Sandwiches by Eric Walters

FINALISTS

The Barren Grounds by David A. Robertson

Harvey Holds His Own by Colleen Nelson

Nevers by Sara Cassidy

Pine Island Home by Polly Horvath

YOUNG PEOPLE’S LITERATURE – ILLUSTRATED BOOKS

WINNER

The Barnabus Project by The Fan Brothers

FINALISTS

I Talk Like a River by Jordan Scott, illustrated by Sydney Smith

Our Little Kitchen by Jillian Tamaki

Swift Fox All Along by Rebecca Lea Thomas, illustrated by Maya McKibbin

Weekend Dad by Naseem Hrab, illustrated by Frank Viva

The winners of the KPMG Children’s Books Ireland awards have been announced. The awards “identify, honour and promote excellence in books for young people by Irish authors and illustrators.” They are the most prestigious children’s book awards in Ireland. Here are the winners:

JUNIOR JURIES’ AWARD (most popular book from the youth juries)

The Falling in Love Montage by Ciara Smyth

HONOUR AWARD FOR FICTION

The Monsters of Rookhaven by Pádraig Kenny, illustrated by Edward Bettison (released in U.S. in September 2021)

HONOUR AWARD FOR ILLUSTRATION

The Haunted Lake by P.J. Lynch

JUDGES’ SPECIAL AWARD

Why the Moon Travels by Oein DeBhairduin, illustrated by Leanne McDonagh

EILIS DILLON AWARD

Why the Moon Travels by Oein DeBhairduin, illustrated by Leanne McDonagh

THE BOOK OF THE YEAR

Savage Her Reply by Deirdre Sullivan, illustrated by Karen Vaughan

The shortlists for the 2021 Indie Book Awards have been announced. The awards are curated by independent bookstores across the UK and Ireland. The awards celebrate paperback books in several categories. The winners will be announced on June 25th.

Here are the shortlisted titles in the juvenile categories:

CHILDREN’S FICTION

The Great Godden by Meg Rosoff

The Night Bus Hero by Onjali Q. Rauf

Tamarind & the Star of Ishta by Jasbinder Bilan

Vi Spy: Licence to Chill by Maz Evans

Voyage of the Sparrowhawk by Natasha Farrant (released in the U.S. in October 2021)

Windrush Child by Benjamin Zephaniah

PICTURE BOOK

The Bear, the Piano & Little Bear’s Concert by David Litchfield

Dog Gone by Rob Biddulph

 The Girl and the Dinosaur by Hollie Hughes & Sarah Massini

The Hospital Dog by Julia Donaldson & Sara Ogilvie

Julian at the Wedding by Jessica Love 

Rain Before Rainbows by Smriti Halls, illustrated by David Litchfield

The winners of the 2021 British Book Awards were announced on May 13th. Two of the Best Book awards are for children’s titles and several of the trade awards are for children’s publishers. Here are the winners in those categories:

CHILDREN’S FICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR

The Highland Falcon Thief by Junior MG Leonard and Sam Sedgman, illustrated by Elisa Paganelli

CHILDREN’S ILLUSTRATED AND NONFICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR

Black and British: A Short, Essential History by David Olusoga

BEST SMALL PRESS

Sweet Cherry

BEST CHILDREN’S PUBLISHER

Wonderbly

The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books has announced their 2020 Blue Ribbons, the best books of that year. Here is the list:

PICTURE BOOKS

Box: Henry Brown Mails Himself to Freedom by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Michele Wood

Ducks! by Deborah Underwood, illustrated by T. L. McBeth

Evelyn Del Rey Is Moving Away by Meg Medina, illustrated by Sonia Sanchez

Girl on a Motorcycle by Amy Novesky, illustrated by Julie Morstad

Home Base by Nikki Tate, illustrated by Katie Kath

I Am Every Good Thing by Derrick Barnes, illustrated by Gordon C. James

Outside In by Deborah Underwood, illustrated by Cindy Derby

The Paper Boat by Thao Lam

The Three Brothers by Marie-Louise Gay

Up on Bob by Mary Sullivan

FICTION

All He Knew by Helen Frost

Black Girl Unlimited by Echo Brown

Cat Ears on Elizabeth by Rachel Vail, illustrated by Paige Keiser

Donut Feed the Squirrels by Mika Song

The Girl Who Speaks Bear by Sophie Anderson

Leaving Lymon by Lesa Cline-Ransome

Long Way Down: The Graphic Novel by Jason Reynolds, illustrated by Danica Novgorodoff

The Magic Fish by Trung Le Nguyen

Miss Meteor by Tehlor Kay Mejia and Anna-Marie McLemore

Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko

They Went Left by Monica Hesse

Thieves of Weirdwood by William Shivering and Christian McKay Heidicker

Thorn by Intisar Khanani

Tigers Not Daughters by Samantha Mabry

The Way Back by Gavriel Savit

Ways to Make Sunshine by Renee Watson, illustrated by Nina Mata

We Are Not Free by Traci Chee

When Life Gives You Mangos by Kereen Getten

NONFICTION

Being Frog by April Pulley Sayre

The Black Friend: On Being a Better White Person by Frederick Joseph

The Cat Man of Aleppo by Irene Latham and Karim Shamsi-Basha, illustrated by Yuko Shimizu

Chance by Uri Shulevitz

Dancing at the Pity Party by Tyler Feder

Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang

Everything Sad Is Untrue by Daniel Nayeri

Honeybee: The Busy Life of Apis Mellifera by Candace Fleming, illustrated by Eric Rohmann

The Lights and Types of Ships at Night by Dave Eggers, illustrated by Annie Dills

The Racers: How an Outcast Driver, an American Heiress, and a Legendary Car Challenged Hitler’s Best by Neal Bascomb

The Rise and Fall of Charles Lindbergh by Candace Fleming

Snow Birds by Kirsten Hall