ALA’s 2021 Youth Media Awards

This morning, the American Library Association announced the Youth Media Awards. The most popular being the Caldecott and Newbery Awards. But, in actuality, there are over 20 award announcements this morning! I’ll be talking more about these creators and titles later this week. Today, I’m sharing the winners and honors! For more information or to view the awards announcements, visit the ALA website!

John Newbery Medal Winner:

When You Trap a Tiger by Tae Keller

Honors

• All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys’ Soccer Team by Christina Soontornvat
• BOX: Henry Brown Mails Himself to Freedom by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Michele Wood
• Fighting Words by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
• We Dream of Space by Erin Entrada Kelly, illustrated by Erin Entrada Kelly and Celia Krampien
• A Wish in the Dark by Christina Soontornvat

Randolph Caldecott Medal

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

Honors

• A Place Inside of Me: A Poem to Heal the Heart illustrated by Noa Denmon, by Zetta Elliott
• The Cat Man of Aleppo illustrated by Yuko Shimizu, by Irene Latham & Karim Shamsi-Basha
• Me & Mama illustrated and written by Cozbi A. Cabrera
• Outside In illustrated by Cindy Derby, by Deborah Underwood

Coretta Scott King (Author) Book Award

Before the Ever After by Jacqueline Woodson

King Author Honor Books

• All the Days Past, All the Days to Come by Mildred D. Taylor
• King and the Dragonflies by Kacen Callender
• Lifting as We Climb: Black Women’s Battle for the Ballot Box by Evette Dionne

Coretta Scott King (Illustrator) Book Award

R-E-S-P-E-C-T: Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul illustrated by Frank Morrison, by Carole Boston Weatherford

King Illustrator Honor Books

• Magnificent Homespun Brown: A Celebration illustrated by Kaylani Juanita, by Samara Cole Doyon;
• Exquisite: The Poetry and Life of Gwendolyn Brooks illustrated by Cozbi A. Cabrera, by Suzanne Slade
• Me & Mama illustrated by Cozbi A. Cabrera

Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Author Award

Legendborn by Tracy Deonn

Coretta Scott King – Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement

“Dorothy L. Guthrie is an award-winning retired librarian, district administrator, author and school board member. A respected children’s literature advocate, Guthrie promotes and affirms the rich perspectives of African Americans. Her work, “Integrating African American Literature in the Library and Classroom,” inspires educators with African American literature. Guthrie founded the first African American museum in her home, Gaston County, NC.”

Michael L. Printz Award

Everything Sad Is Untrue (a true story) by Daniel Nayeri

Printz Honor Books

• Apple (Skin to the Core) by Eric Gansworth
• Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang, color by Lark Pien
• Every Body Looking by Candice Iloh
• We Are Not Free by Traci Chee

Schneider Family Book Award

• I Talk Like a River by Jordan Scott, illustrated by Sydney Smith wins the award for young children (ages 0 to 10).
• Show Me a Sign by Ann Clare LeZotte is the winner for middle grades (ages 11-13).
• This Is My Brain in Love by I.W. Gregorio is the winner for teens (ages 13-18)

Honor books for Young Children

• All the Way to the Top: How One Girl’s Fight for Americans with
  Disabilities Changed Everything by Annette Bay Pimentel, illustrated by Nabi H. Ali
• Itzhak: A Boy who Loved the Violin by Tracy Newman, illustrated by Abigail Halpin

Honor books for Middle Grades

• Get a Grip, Vivy Cohen! by Sarah Kapit
• When Stars Are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed, illustrated by Victoria Jamieson, color by Iman Geddy

Alex Awards

• Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse
• The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune
• The Impossible First: From Fire to Ice – Crossing Antarctica Alone by Colin O’Brady
• Kent State: Four Dead in Ohio by Derf Backderf, published by Abrams Comicarts
• The Kids Are Gonna Ask by Gretchen Anthony
• The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones
• Plain Bad Heroines by emily m. danforth
• Riot Baby by Tochi Onyebuchi
• Solutions and Other Problems by Allie Brosh
• We Ride Upon Sticks: A Novel by Quan Barry

Children’s Literature Legacy Award

“The 2021 winner is Mildred D. Taylor, whose award-winning works include Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry the 1977 Newbery Medal winner and a Coretta Scott King (CSK) Author honor; The Land the 2002 CSK Author Award winner; The Road to Memphis the 1991 CSK Author Award winner; All the Days Past, All the Days to Come; and The Gold Cadillac among other titles.

Margaret A. Edwards Award

The 2021 winner is Kekla Magoon. Her books include: X: A Novel co-written by Ilyasah Shabazz, How It Went Down, The Rock and the River, and Fire in the Streets.

Mildred L. Batchelder Award

Telephone Tales

Originally published in Italian as Favole al Telefono the book was written by Gianni Rodari, illustrated by Valerio Vidali, translated by Antony
Shugaar.

Honor Book

Catherine’s War by Julia Billet, illustrated by Claire Fauvel and translated from French by Ivanka Hahnenberger.

Odyssey Award

Kent State by Deborah Wiles and narrated by Christopher Gebauer, Lauren Ezzo, Christina DeLaine, Johnny Heller, Roger Wayne, Korey Jackson, and David de Vries.

Honor Books

• Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo and narrated by Elizabeth Acevedo and Melania-Luisa Marte
• Fighting Words by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley and narrated by Bahni Turpin
• Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi and narrated by Jason Reynolds with an introduction
  by Ibram X. Kendi
• When Stars Are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed and narrated by Faysal Ahmed, Barkhad Abdi, and a full cast

Pura Belpré Illustrator Awards

¡Vamos! Let’s Go Eat illustrated by Raúl Gonzalez

Honor Books

Sharuko: El Arqueólogo Peruano/Peruvian Archaeologist Julio C. Tello illustrated by Elisa Chavarri, by Monica Brown

Pura Belpré AuthorAwards

Efrén Divided by Ernesto Cisneros

Honor Books

• The Total Eclipse of Nestor Lopez by Adrianna Cuevas
• Lupe Wong Won’t Dance by Donna Barba Higuera

Pura Belpré Young Adult Author Award

Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez

Honor books

• Never Look Back by Lilliam Rivera
• We Are Not from Here by Jenny Torres Sanchez

Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award

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

Honor Books

• How We Got to the Moon: The People, Technology, and Daring Feats of Science Behind Humanity’s Greatest Adventure by John Rocco
• Exquisite: The Poetry and Life of Gwendolyn Brooks by Suzanne Slade, illustrated by Cozbi A. Cabrera
• All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys’ Soccer Team by Christina Soontornvat

Excellence in Early Learning Digital Media Award

The Imagine Neighborhood produced by Committee for Children

Honor App

Sesame Street Family Play: Caring for Each Other produced by Sesame Workshop

Stonewall Book Award

We Are Little Feminists: Families by Archaa Shrivastav, designed by Lindsey Blakely

Honor Books

• Beetle & The Hollowbones illustrated and written by Aliza Layne
• Darius the Great Deserves Better by Adib Khorram
• Felix Ever After by Kacen Callender and published by Balzer
• You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson

Theodor Seuss Geisel Award

See the Cat: Three Stories About a Dog by David LaRochelle, illustrated by Mike Wohnoutka

Honor Books

• The Bear in My Family by Maya Tatsukawa
• Ty’s Travels: Zip, Zoom! by Kelly Starling Lyons, illustrated by Nina Mata
• What About Worms!? by Ryan T. Higgins
• Where’s Baby? by Anne Hunter

William C. Morris Award

If These Wings Could Fly by Kyrie McCauley

Finalists:

• Black Girl Unlimited: The Remarkable Story of a Teenage Wizard by Echo Brown
• The Black Kids by Christina Hammonds Reed
• It Sounded Better in My Head by Nina Kenwood
• Woven in Moonlight by Isabel Ibañez

YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults

The Rise and Fall of Charles Lindbergh by Candace Fleming

Honor Books

• All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys’ Soccer Team written by Christina Soontornvat
• The Cat I Never Named: A True Story of Love, War, and Survival by Amra Sabic-El-Rayess with Laura L. Sullivan
• How We Got to the Moon: The People, Technology, and Daring Feats of Science Behind Humanity’s Greatest Adventure by John Rocco
• You Call This Democracy?: How to Fix Our Democracy and Deliver
  Power to the People by Elizabeth Rusch

Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature

Picture Book – Paper Son: The Inspiring Story of Tyrus Wong, Immigrant and Artist by Julie Leung, illustrated by Chris Sasaki

Children’s Literature – When You Trap a Tiger by Tae Keller

Youth Literature – This Light Between Us by Andrew Fukuda

Honor Books

• Danbi Leads the School Parade by Anna Kim
• Prairie Lotus by Linda Sue Park
• Displacement by Kiku Hughes

Sydney Taylor Book Award

Picture Book – Welcoming Elijah: A Passover Tale with a Tail by Lesléa Newman, illustrated by Susan Gal

Middle Grades – Turtle Boy by M. Evan Wolkenstein

Young Adult – Dancing at the Pity Party by Tyler Feder

Silver Medalists

• I Am the Tree of Life: My Jewish Yoga Book by Mychal Copeland, illustrated by André Ceolin
• Miriam at the River by Jane Yolen, illustrated by Khoa Le
• No Vacancy by Tziporah Cohen
• Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack
• The Blackbird Girls by Anne Blankman
• They Went Left by Monica Hesse