Awards season is here! Children’s Book Awards, that is. The American Library Association just announced the winners of the Caldecott and Newbery Awards, along with many others you may never have heard of. I am here to change that. (I’m putting links to the books I mention so you can easily get in the holds queue!)
First off, the ones you have likely heard of. The Caldecott Award this year went to Wolf in the Snow, by Matthew Cordell. The Newbery Award was awarded to Hello, Universe, written by Erin Entrada Kelly. Both awards listed honor books as well. You can find out more about the awards and the honor books here for CALDECOTT and here for NEWBERY.
Here are some other awards you may not know of. The Alex Awards are given to ten books written for adults that have special appeal to young adults, ages 12 through 18. I always find good reads on this list. Check it out.
The Coretta Scott King Book Awards are given annually to outstanding African American authors and illustrators of books for children and young adults that demonstrate an appreciation of African American culture and universal human values. This year’s author award goes to Renée Watson, for her book Piecing Me Together, which was also a Newbery honor book. 
The 2018 Coretta Scott King Book Awards Illustrator Winner is Ekua Holmes, illustrator of Out of Wonder: Poems Celebrating Poets, written by Kwame Alexander with Chris Colderley and Marjory Wentworth, published by Candlewick Press.
The Michael L. Printz Award is an award for a book that exemplifies literary excellence in young adult literature. It is named for a Topeka, Kansas school librarian who was a long-time active member of the Young Adult Library Services Association. This year’s winner is We Are Okay by Nina LaCour; there are also several honor books, including two of my favourite YA books this year, The
Hate U Give by Angie Thomas and Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor.
The Odyssey Award is one of my favourites. This annual award is given to the producer of the best audiobook produced for children and/or young adults, available in English in the United States. This year’s winner is The Hate U Give, narrated by Bahni Turpin. I have to agree—this is an outstanding audiobook. There are several honors, including one of my other favourite audioboooks of the year, Phillip Pullman’s La Belle Sauvage.
Head over to the ALA Youth Media Awards website to see all the awards that were announced, and to find some excellent reading for all ages!
-Angela Reynolds, Community Engagement Coordinator @annavalley