Kirkus has announced their picks for the best 100 picture books and the best middle-grade books of the year.
The books are grouped into categories for easier browsing in both lists. You can also see their entire picture book list and middle grade list alphabetically by author, which makes collection development simpler. Lots of great titles here!
The National Council of Teachers of English have announced the recipients of the 2021 Award for Excellence in Children’s Poetry. The books selected are for ages 3-13 and represent the best of the year for children’s poetry and verse novels, in two separate lists. The poetry books defined broadly, including picture books written in verse. Here are the recipients:
2021 NOTABLE BOOKS IN POETRY
Amphibian Acrobats by Leslie Bulion, illustrated by Robert Meganck
Black Is a Rainbow Color by Angela Joy, illustrated by Ekua Holmes
BOX: Henry Brown Mails Himself to Freedom. Carole Boston Weatherford. Illus. by Michele
Wood
By and By: Charles Albert Tindley, the Father of Gospel Music. Carole Boston Weatherford.
Illus. by Bryan Collier
Cast Away: Poems for Our Time. Naomi Shihab Nye.
Construction People. Lee Bennett Hopkins. Illus. by Ellen Shi.
Dictionary for a Better World: Poems, Quotes, and Anecdotes from A to Z. Irene Latham and
Charles Waters. Illus. by Mehrdokht Amini
Follow the Recipe: Poems about Imagination, Celebration, and Cake. Marilyn Singer. Illus. by
Marjorie Priceman
Green on Green. Dianne White. Illus. by Felicita Sala
I Wish. Toon Tellegen. Illus. by Ingrid Godon. Trans. by David Colmer
I’m Feeling Blue, Too! Marjorie Maddox. Illus. by Philip Huber
In the Woods. David Elliott. Illus. by Rob Dunlavey
Mexique: A Refugee Story from the Spanish Civil War. Marίa José Ferrada. Illus. by Ana Penyas
A New Green Day. Antoinette Portis
No Voice Too Small: Fourteen Young Americans Making History. Ed. by Lindsay H. Metcalf,
Keila V. Dawson, and Jeanette Bradley. Illus. by Jeanette Bradley
On a Snow-Melting Day: Seeking Signs of Spring. Buffy Silverman
On the Horizon. Lois Lowry. Illus. by Kenard Pak
A Place Inside of Me. Zetta Elliott. Illus. by Noa Denmon
Snow Birds. Kirsten Hall. Illus. by Jenni Desmond.
Summer Feet. Sheree Fitch. Illus. by Carolyn Fisher
This Poem Is a Nest. Irene Latham. Illus. by Johanna Wright
When You Breathe. Diana Farid. Illus. by Billy Renkl
Woke: A Young Poet’s Call to Justice. Mahogany L. Browne, Elizabeth Acevedo, and Olivia
Gatwood. Illus. by Theodore Taylor III
The World Below the Brine. Walt Whitman. Illus. by James Christopher Carroll
Write! Write! Write! Amy Ludwig VanDerwater. Illus. by Ryan O’Rourke
2021 NOTABLE VERSE NOVELS
All He Knew. Helen Frost
Becoming Muhammad Ali. James Patterson and Kwame Alexander. Illus by Dawud Anyabwile
Before the Ever After. Jacqueline Woodson
BenBee and the Teacher Griefer: The Kids under the Stairs. K. A. Holt
Closer to Nowhere. Ellen Hopkins
Flooded: Requiem for Johnstown. Ann E. Burg
Grasping Mysteries: Girls Who Loved Math. Jeannine Atkins
Land of the Cranes. Aida Salazar
Love Love. Sung J. Woo
The Places We Sleep. Caroline Brooks DuBois
When You Know What I Know. Sonja K. Solter
Wishes, Dares, and How to Stand Up to a Bully. Darlene Beck-Jacobson
The National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) has announced the winner, honor books and recommended books for the 2021 NCTE Orbis Pictus Award which recognizes excellence in the writing of nonfiction for children. Here are the winner and selected books:
WINNER
Above the Rim: How Elgin Baylor Changed Basketball by Jen Bryant, illustrated by Frank Morrison
HONOR BOOKS
All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys’ Soccer Team by Christina Soontornvat
Lifting as We Climb: Black Women’s Battle for the Ballot Box by Evette Dionne
If You Take Away the Otter by Susannah Buhrman-Deever, illustrated by Matthew Trueman
Honeybee: The Busy Life of Apis Mellifera by Candace Fleming, illustrated by Eric Rohmann
The Teachers March!: How Selma’s teachers Changed History by Sandra Neil Wallace and Rich Wallace, illustrated by Charly Palmer
RECOMMENDED BOOKS
All of a Sudden and Forever by Chris Baron, illustrated by Nicole Xu
Blood and Germs: The Civil War Battle Against Wounds and Disease by Gail Jarrow
Drawing on Walls by Matthew Burgess, illustrated by Josh Cochran
Dream Builder: The Story of Architect Philip Freelon by Kelly Starling Lyons, illustrated by Laura Freeman
How We Got to the Moon: The People, Technology, and Daring Feats of Science Behind Humanity’s Greatest Adventure by John Rocco
Jumbo: The Making of the Boeing 747 by Chris Gall
The Lion Queens of India by Jan Reynolds
We Had to Be Brave: Escaping the Nazis on the Kinderstransport by Deborah Hopkinson
The lists of the 2020 finalists for the Jane Addams Children’s Book Award have been announced. The awards highlight “excellent children’s books that can deepen understanding of peace and justice.” This marks the first time they have ever released the finalist titles that are under consideration for the award. The winning books will be announced on January 15, 2021. Here are the two lists of finalists:
2020 FINALISTS FOR YOUNGER CHILDREN
Black Is a Rainbow Color. Angela Joy, illustrated by Ekua Holmes.
The Day Saida Arrived. Susana Gomez Redondo, illustrated by Sonja Wimmer, translated by Lawrence Schimel.
Dream Builder: The Story of Architect Philip Freelon. Kelly Starling Lyons, illustrated by Laura Freeman.
Freedom Soup. Tami Charles, illustrated by Jacqueline Alcantara.
Kamala and Maya’s Big Idea. Meena Harris, illustrated by Ana Ramirez Gonzalez.
Lizzie Demands a Seat. Beth Anderson, illustrated by E.B. Lewis.
Mother Jones and Her Army of Mill Children. Jonah Winter, illustrated by Nancy Carpenter
Ocean Speaks: How Marie Tharp Revealed The Ocean’s Biggest Secret. Jess Keating, illustrated by Katie Hickey.
The Only Woman in the Photo: Francis Perkins & Her New Deal for America. Kathleen Krull, illustrated by Alexandra Bye.
Shirley Chisolm Is a Verb. Veronica Chambers, illustrated by Rachelle Baker.
The Teacher’s March: How Selma’s Teachers Changed History. Sandra Neil Wallace and Rich Wallace, illustrated by Charly Palmer.
We Are Water Protectors. Carole Lindstrom, illustrated by Michaela Goade.
2020 FINALISTS FOR OLDER CHILDREN
Blackbird Girls. Anne Blankman.
Brave. Black. First. Cheryl Willis Hudson, illustrations by Erin K. Robinson.
Brother’s Keeper. Julie Lee.
Finish the Fight. Veronica Chambers and the staff of the New York Times.
Fighting Words. Kimberly Brubaker Bradley.
King and the Dragonflies. Kacen Callender.
Land of the Cranes. Aida Salazar.
Rick. Alex Gino.
Show Me a Sign. Ann Clare LeZotte.
Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You. Jason Reynolds, Ibram X. Kendi.
The Talk: Conversations about Race, Love & Truth. Edited by Wade Hudson & Cheryl Willis Hudson.
This Book is Antiracist: 20 Lessons on How to Wake Up, Take Action, and Do the Work. Tiffany Jewell, illustrated by Aurelia Durand.
When Stars Are Scattered. Victoria Jamieson, Omar Mohamed.
A Wish in the Dark. Christina Soontornvat.
Woke: A Young Poet’s Call to Justice. Mahogany L. Browne with Elizabeth Acevedo and Olivia Gatwood, illustrated by Theodore Taylor III.
Parents Magazine has released their annual list of the best books of the year. Selected by the magazine editors and a panel of librarians and young readers, the list contains their top 30 titles of 2020. Here is the full list:
The Alphabet’s Alphabet by Chris Harris, illustrated by Dan Santat
The Box Turtle by Vanessa Roeder
Catch That Chicken! by Atinuke, illustrated by Angela Brooksbank
City Spies by James Ponti
Class Act by Jerry Craft
Exquisite: The Poetry and Life of Gwendolyn Brooks by Suzanne Slade, illustrated by Cozbi A. Cabrera
Friday Night Wrestlefest by J. F. Fox, illustrated by Micah Player
From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks
Hand in Hand by Alyssa Satin Capucilli, illustrated by Sheryl Murray
Hello Elephant! by Sam Boughton
History Smashers: The Mayflower by Kate Messner, illustrated by Dylan Meconis
Hooray for Little Fingers by Tristan Mory
How Big Is Zagnodd? by Sandra Boynton
Kamala and Maya’s Big Idea by Meena Harris, illustrated by Ana Ramirez Gonzalez
Lift by Minh Le, illustrated by Dan Santat
Mail Duck by Erica Sirotich
Old Rock (Is Not Boring) by Deb Pilutti
The One and Only Bob by Katherine Applegate, illustrated by Patricia Castelao
Our World by Sue Lowell Gallion, illustrated by Lisk Feng
The Paper Kingdom by Helena Ku Rhee, illustrated by Pascal Campion
Play with Your Plate! by Judith Rossell
Prairie Lotus by Linda Sue Park
See the Cat: Three Stories about a Dog by David LaRochelle, illustrated by Mike Wohnoutka
Shirley & Jamila Save Their Summer by Gillian Goerz
Vinny Gets a Job by Terry Brodner
Ways to Make Sunshine by Renee Watson
What about Worms!? by Ryan T. Higgins
What Is Baby Going to Do? by Laura Knowles, illustrated by Juliana Perdomo
Who Does What? by Stephanie Babin, illustrated by Ilaria Falorsi
You’re My Little Baby by Eric Carle
The AAAS/Subaru Prize for Excellence in Science Books is awarded for “outstanding science writing and illustration for children and young adults.” It encourages the writing and publishing of high-quality science books for all ages. Below are the longlists for middle grades and picture books. The young adult list tends to be adult nonfiction titles, you can find that here. All of these lists are great collection development tools for librarians. Here are the longlisted titles:
2021 Longlist for Children’s Science Picture Book Award
The Boy Who Dreamed of Infinity: A Tale of the Genius Ramanujan by Amy Alznauer. Illustrated by Daniel Miyares
Dinosaur Lady: The Daring Discoveries of Mary Anning, the First Paleontologist by Linda Skeers. Illustrated by Marta Alvarez Miguens
Honeybee: The Busy Life of Apis Mellifera by Candace Fleming. Illustrated by Eric Rohmann
If You Take Away the Otter by Susannah Buhrman-Deever. Illustrated by Matthew Trueman
Mario and the Hole in the Sky: How a Chemist Saved Our Planet by Elizabeth Rusch. Illustrated by Teresa Martínez
Our World Is Relative by Julia Sooy. Illustrated by Molly Walsh
Packs: Strength in Numbers by Hannah Salyer
Winged Wonders: Solving the Monarch Migration Mystery by Meeg Pincus. Illustrated by Yas Imamura
2021 Longlist for Middle Grades Science Book Award
The Book of Big Science Ideas: From Atoms to AI and from Gravity to Genes…How Science Shapes Our World by Freya Hardy. Illustrated by Sara Mulvanny
Can You Hear the Trees Talking?: Discovering the Hidden Life of the Forest by Peter Wohlleben
Condor Comeback by Sy Montgomery. Photographs by Tianne Strombeck
Eclipse Chaser: Science in the Moon’s Shadow by Ilima Loomis. Photographs by Amanda Cowan
Eels by Rachel Poliquin. Illustrated by Nicholas John Frith
Growing Up Gorilla: How a Zoo Baby Brought Her Family Together by Clare Hodgson Meeker
Save the Crash-test Dummies by Jennifer Swanson. Illustrated by TeMika Grooms
Under Pressure: The Science of Stress by Tanya Lloyd Kyi. Illustrated by Marie-Ève Tremblay
The opening round of voting for the Goodreads Choice Awards is now open and runs through November 8th. There is then a semifinal round and a final round before the winners are announced on December 8th. I enjoy these lists because they contain books that are popular but often don’t make the traditional “librarian” review sources. There are teen titles scattered in other categories like debut novel and graphic novels that you shouldn’t miss! Here are the nominees in the specifically youth categories:
YOUNG ADULT FICTION
Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo
Felix Ever After by Kacen Callender
A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson
The Gravity of Us by Phil Stamper
Grown by Tiffany D. Jackson
The Hand on the Wall by Maureen Johnson
The Henna Wars by Adiba Jaigirdar
The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Majesty by Katharine McGee
One of Us Is Next by Karen M. McManus
Only Mostly Devastated by Sophie Gonzales
Punching the Air by Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam
Tweet Cute by Emma Lord
Yes No Maybe So by Becky Albertalli and Aisha Saeed
You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson
YOUNG ADULT FANTASY
All the Stars and Teeth by Adalyn Grace
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins
Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas
Chain of Gold by Cassandra Clare
Children of Virtue and Vengeance by Tomi Adeyemi
Cinderella Is Dead by Kalynn Bayron
Fable by Adrienne Young
Girl, Serpent, Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust
The Kingdom of Back by Marie Lu
Legendborn by Tracy Deonn
Midnight Sun by Stephenie Meyer
The Queen of Nothing by Holly Black
A Song of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanne A. Brown
Starsight by Brandon Sanderson
These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong
MIDDLE GRADE & CHILDREN’S
Ali Cross by James Patterson
Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi
Before the Ever After by Jacqueline Woodson
Clean Getaway by Nic Stone
From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks
Ghost Squad by Claribel A. Ortega
Here in the Real World by Sara Pennypacker
Hollowpox: The Hunt to Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend
King and the Dragonflies by Kacen Callender
The List of Things That Will Not Change by Rebecca Stead
The One and Only Bob by Katherine Applegate
One True King by Soman Chainani
Race to the Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse
The Tower of Nero by Rick Riordan
We Dream of Space by Erin Entrada Kelly
PICTURE BOOKS
Antiracist Baby by Ibram X. Kendi, illustrated by Ashley Lukashevsky
Bedtime Bonnet by Nancy Amanda Redd, illustrated by Nneka Myers
Bird Hugs by Ged Adamson
The Cool Bean by Jory John, illustrated by Pete Oswald
Coronavirus: A Book for Children about Covid-19 by Elizabeth Jenner, Kate Wilson and Nia Roberts, illustrated by Axel Scheffler
Grandma’s Gardens by Hillary Rodham Clinton, Chelsea Clinton, illustrated by Lemniscates
I Am Every Good Thing by Derrick Barnes and Gordon C. James
Just Like Me by Vanessa Brantley-Newton
The Oldest Student by Rita Lorraine Hubbard, illustrated by Oge Mora
The Seed of Compassion by Dalai Lama XIV, illustrated by Bao Luu
The Serious Goose by Jimmy Kimmel
Sweet Child o’ Mine by Guns n’ Roses and Jennifer Zivoin
Think Outside the Box by Justine Avery, illustrated by Liuba Syrotiuk
This Book Is Gray by Lindsay Ward
The winners of the English-language children’s book awards from The Canadian Children’s Book Centre (CCBC) have been announced. The biggest award is for the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award which comes with a $50,000 prize. Here are the winners:
TD CANADIAN CHILDREN’S LITERATURE AWARD
Birdsong by Julie Flett
MARILYN BAILLIE PICTURE BOOK AWARD
Small in the City by Sydney Smith
NORMA FLECK AWARD FOR CANADIAN CHILDREN’S NON-FICTION
Killer Style: How Fashion Has Injured, Maimed, & Murdered through History by Serah-Marie McMahon and Alison Matthews David, illustrated by Gillian Wilson
GEOFFREY BILSON AWARD FOR HISTORICAL FICTION FOR YOUNG PEOPLE
Orange for the Sunsets by Tina Athaide
JOHN SPRAY MYSTERY AWARD
The Starlight Claim by Tim Wynne-Jones
AMY MATHERS TEEN BOOK AWARD
In the Key of Nira Ghani by Natasha Deen
The winners of the 2020 CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medals have been announced. The Carnegie Medal is given for the best writing in English for children and young people. The Greenaway Medal is awarded for the best illustration in a book for children and young people. Here are the winners:
2020 CILIP CARNEGIE MEDAL
Lark by Anthony McGowan
2020 CILIP KATE GREENAWAY MEDAL
Tales from the Inner City by Shaun Tan
2020 CILIP CARNEGIE SHADOWERS’ CHOICE AWARD
The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta
2020 CILIP KATE GREENAWAY SHADOWER’S CHOICE AWARD
The Undefeated illustrated by Kadir Nelson, written by Kwame Alexander
Waking Brain Cells 