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

Publisher’s Weekly has announced their picks for the top 50 children’s books of the year. Here they are:

PICTURE BOOKS

Bedtime for Sweet Creatures by Nikki Grimes, illustrated by Elizabeth Zunon

Being Frog by April Pulley Sayre

The Blue House by Phoebe Wahl

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

Every Color of Light by Hiroshi Osada, illustrated by Ryoji Arai

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

How to Solve a Problem: The Rise (and Fall) of a Rock-Climbing Champion by Ahsima Shiraishi, illustrated by Yao Xiao

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

If You Come to Earth by Sophie Blackall

In the Half Room by Carson Ellis

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

Julián at the Wedding by Jessica Love

A New Green Day by Antoinette Portis

The Old Truck by Jarrett and Jerome Pumphrey

Our Little Kitchen by Jillian Tamaki

Outside In by Deborah Underwood, illustrated by Cindy Derby

Out the Door by Christy Hale

We Are Water Protectors by Carole Lindstrom, illustrated by Michaela Goade

You Matter by Christian Robinson

MIDDLE GRADE

Becoming Muhammad Ali by James Patterson and Kwame ALexander

Chance by Uri Shulevitz

Class Act by Jerry Craft

Condor Comeback by Sy Montgomery, photos by Tianne Strombeck

Daring Darleen: Queen of the Screen by Anne Nesbet

Echo Mountain by Lauren Wolk

Fighting Words by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

How We Got to the Moon by John Rocco

King and the Dragonflies by Kacen Callender

The List of Things That Will Not Change by Rebecca Stead

Mañanaland by Pam Muñoz Ryan

Skunk and Badger by Amy Timberlake, illustrated by Jon Klassen

Snapdragon by Kat Leyh

Ways to Make Sunshine by Renee Watson

When Stars Are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed

When You Trap a Tiger by Tae Keller

YOUNG ADULT

All the Days Past, All the Days to Come by Mildred D. Taylor

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang

Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger

Everything Sad Is Untrue by Daniel Nayeri

The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

The Magic Fish by Trung Le Nguyen

Punching the Air by Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam

Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko

Red Hood by Elana K. Arnold

The Rise and Fall of Charles Lindbergh by Candace Fleming

Stamped: Racism, Antiracism and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi

The Way Back by Gavriel Savit

We Are Not Free by Traci Chee

You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson

The shortlists for the 2020 An Post Irish Book Awards have been announced. The awards cover a wide range of genres and ages. I’ll focus on the youth and teen awards here, and you can find the entire list on the Irish Times website. Here are the shortlisted titles in the youth and teen categories:

CHILDREN’S BOOK OF THE YEAR (JUNIOR)

The Dead Zoo by Peter Donnelly

The Great Irish Farm Book by Darragh McCullough, illustrated by Sally Caulwell

The Haunted Lake by PJ Lynch

What We’ll Build by Oliver Jeffers

While We Can’t Hug by Eoin McLaughlin, illustrated by Polly Dunbar

Will You Be My Friend? by Sam McBratney, illustrated by Anita Jeram

CHILDREN’S BOOK OF THE YEAR (SENIOR)

The Boldness of Betty by Anna Carey

Break the Mould by Sinéad Burke, illustrated by Natalie Byrne

Girls Play Too: Inspiring Stories of Irish Sportswomen by Jacqui Hurley, illustrated by Sinead Colleran, Rachel Corcoran, Jennifer Farley, Jennifer Murphy and Lauren O’Neill

Is There Anybody Out There? by Dara Ó Briain

Miracle on Ebenezer Street by Catherine Doyle

The Story of Croke Park by Mícheál Ó Muircheartaigh, illustrated by Graham Corcoran

TEEN/YOUNG ADULT BOOK OF THE YEAR

The Falling in Love Montage by Ciara Smyth

The Gone Book by Helena Close

Hope Against Hope by Sheena Wilkinson

On Midnight Beach by Marie-Louise Fitzpatrick

Queen of Coin and Whispers by Helen Corcoran

Savage Her Reply by Deirdre Sullivan, illustrated by Karen Vaughan