We are proud to share our 2023
We are proud to share our 2023 ALA Award winners, honorees, and finalists from Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group, announced at the 2023 Youth Media Awards!
Randolph Caldecott Honor Book
Coretta Scott King John Steptoe New Talent Award Winner for Illustrator
Robert F. Sibert Informational Honor Book
CHOOSING BRAVE: HOW MAMIE TILL MOBLEY AND EMMETT TILL SPARKED THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT by Angela Joy; illustrated by Janelle Washington
A groundbreaking picture book biography of the mother of Emmett Till, and how she channeled grief over her son’s death into a call to action for the civil rights movement.
Coretta Scott King John Steptoe New Talent Award Winner for Author
WE DESERVE MONUMENTS by Jas Hammonds
Family secrets, a swoon worthy romance, and a slow burn mystery collide in We Deserve Monuments, a YA debut from Jas Hammonds that explores how racial violence can ripple down through generations.
Stonewall Book Awards Mike Morgan & Larry Romans Children’s & Young Adult Literature Award Winner
LOVE, VIOLET by Charlotte Sullivan Wild; illustrated by Charlene Chua
Love, Violet by Charlotte Sullivan Wild and Charlene Chua is a touching picture book about friendship and the courage it takes to share your feelings.
Stonewall Book Awards Mike Morgan & Larry Romans Children’s & Young Adult Literature Award Honor Book
IN THE KEY OF US by Mariama J. Lockington
A coming-of-age story surrounding the losses that threaten to break us and the friendships that make us whole again.
Pura Belpré Award Winner for Children’s Text
FRIZZY by Claribel A. Ortega; illustrated by Rose Bousamra
Frizzy is about Marlene, a young Dominican girl whose greatest enemy is the hair salon! Through her struggles and triumphs, this heartwarming and gorgeous middle grade graphic novel shows the radical power of accepting yourself as you are, frizzy curls and all.
Pura Belpré Honor Book for Children’s Text and Children’s Illustration
THE COQUÍES STILL SING: A STORY OF HOME, HOPE, AND REBUILDING by Karina González; illustrated by Krystal Quiles
The Coquíes Still Sing is a powerful story about home, community, and hope, inspired by the rebuilding of Puerto Rico following Hurricane Maria in 2017. A Spanish edition, translated by Amparo Ortiz, is also available!
Michael L. Printz Honor Books for Excellence in Young Adult Literature
ICEBREAKER
by A L Graziadei
A L Graziadei’s Icebreaker is an irresistible YA debut about two hockey players fighting to be the best and the romance that catches them by surprise along the way.
SCOUT’S HONOR by Lily Anderson
Prudence Perry is a third-generation Ladybird Scout who must battle literal (and figurative) monsters and the weight of her legacy in Scout’s Honor by Lily Anderson, a YA paranormal perfect for fans of Stranger Things and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
YALSA Finalist for Excellence in Nonfiction
A FACE FOR PICASSO: COMING OF AGE WITH CROUON SYNDROME by Ariel Henley
Ariel explores beauty and identity in her young-adult memoir about resilience, sisterhood, and the strength it takes to put your life, and yourself, back together time and time again. At only eight months old, identical twin sisters Ariel and Zan were diagnosed with Crouzon syndrome a rare condition where the bones in the head fuse prematurely. Ariel gives an account of her story.
Asian/Pacific American Literature Award Winner for Young Adult Fiction Literature
HIMAWARI HOUSE by Harmony Becker
A young adult graphic novel about three foreign exchange students and the pleasures, and difficulties, of adjusting to living in Japan.
