A+ Oral Reading - Children’s Literature Awards

The Alex Awards are given to ten books written for adults that have special appeal to young adults, ages 12 through 18. The winning titles are selected from the previous year's publishing.

First presented in 1967, the Boston Globe-Horn Book Awards for excellence in literature for children and young adults are among the most prestigious honors in the field. Each year a committee selects winners in three categories: Picture Books, Fiction and Poetry, and Nonfiction.

This award, established in 1936 in honor of Andrew Carnegie, is given for recognition of an outstanding book for children and young adult readers, written in English and first published in the United Kingdom during the previous year.

This award is given for the best poetry book of the year. It honors the late Claudia Lewis, distinguished children's book expert.

Honoring African American authors and illustrators of outstanding books for children and young adults, the Coretta Scott King Awards are administered by the Coretta Scott King Task Force of the American Library Association's Social Responsibilities Round Table. The Awards commemorate the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and honor his widow, Coretta Scott King, for her courage and determination in continuing the work for peace and brotherhood.

The Golden Kite is awarded each year to the most outstanding books written and/or illustrated by members of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. The Golden Kite has become one of the major national awards in the children's book field.

Hans Christian Andersen Medals are presented every even numbered year, by the International Board on Books for Young People, to an author and an illustrator whose complete works have make a lasting contribution to children's literature.

Given annually since 1943, this award for fiction honors a book or books of outstanding literary merit in which children or young people deal in a positive and realistic way with difficulties in their world and grow emotionally and morally.

The Medal is awarded to an author who has made a lasting contribution to literature written for children. Awarded by the Association for Library Service to Children (American Library Association), it is given every three years.

The William C. Morris YA Debut Award, first awarded in 2009, honors a debut book published by a first-time author writing for teens and celebrating impressive new voices in young adult literature.

The Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Children's Literature honors books for younger readers (from young adults to picture books for beginning readers), in the tradition of The Hobbit or The Chronicles of Narnia.

A tradition since 1950, The National Book Awards have become the nation's preeminent literary prize. A consortium of book publishing groups sponsored the first annual National Book Awards. Their goal was to enhance the public's awareness of exceptional books written by fellow Americans, and to increase the popularity of reading in general. The Awards are given to recognize achievements in four genres: Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry and Young People's Literature.

The National Council of Teachers of English established its Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children in 1977 to honor a living American poet for his or her aggregate work for children ages 3 - 13. The NCTE Poetry Selection Committee gave the award annually until 1982, at which time it was decided that the award would be given every three years.

These are the only literature awards bestowed on Native American Indian writers by Native American Indian people. The Awards are given in three categories: Lifetime Achievement Awards, First Book Awards for Poetry and First Book Awards for Prose.

The Newbery Medal is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC). The John Newbery Medal honors the author of the "most distinguished contribution to American literature for children." The ALSC is a division of the American Library Association (ALA). The Newbery Medal is named for John Newberry, an eighteenth century British bookseller.

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.

The Pura Belpre Award, established in 1996, is presented to a Latino/Latina writer and illustrator whose work best portrays, affirms and celebrates the Latino cultural experience in an outstanding work of literature for children and youth. It is co-sponsored by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) and the National Association to Promote Library Services to Spanish Speaking (REFORMA). The Award is named after Pura Belpre, a Latina librarian for the New York Public Library. The Pura Belpre Awards are given biennially.

The Sibert Awards are presented to the author of the most distinguished nonfiction, informational book for children published the previous year. The annual award is sponsored by Bound to Stay Bound Books, Inc., in honor of its longtime president, Robert F. Sibert. It is administered by the Association for Library Service to Children.

The Young Reader's Choice Award is presented by the Pacific Northwest Library Association. The late Harry Hartman, a Seattle bookseller, established the award in 1940. The goal of this children's choice literature award is to promote reading for enjoyment. Nominations are made by teachers, librarians, students and others. This is the oldest children's choice literature award in the U.S. and Canada.

Please note: The literature Out of the Dust authored by Karen Hesse, Scholastic Press, is poetry.