The American Library Association has announced the winners of its coveted Youth Media Awards for 2021 in 20 categories.
The awards typically are the centerpiece of the ALA Midwinter Meeting & Exhibits event, which this year was held virtually due to the coronavirus pandemic. The award once again generated thousands of submissions.
Among the featured awards:
The Coretta Scott King Book Awards
These awards commemorate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his wife Coretta Scott King. They are given annually to outstanding African American authors and illustrators of books for children and young adults that display a love of both African American culture and universal human values. ALA’s Ethnic and Multicultural Information Exchange Round Table (EMIERT) sponsors the award.
This year’s Author winner is Jaqueline Woodson with her book Before the Ever After, and three King Author Honor Books were selected. As for Illustrator, the winner is R-E-S-P-E-C-T: Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, illustrated by Frank Morrison and written by Carole Boston Weatherford. Next, the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Author Award was granted to Legendborn, written by Tracy Deonn. Lastly, under this umbrella also falls The Coretta Scott King – Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement, which honors an African American author, illustrator or author/illustrator for a body of his or her published books for children and/or young adults, and who has made a significant and lasting literary contribution. The honor is given only every other year. Dorothy L. Guthrie, author, district administrator, the founder of the African-American Museum of History and Culture in Gaston, NC, and an award-winning retired librarian, won this great acclaim.
The John Newbery Medal
Named after 18th-century British bookseller John Newbery, this award goes to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children and is bestowed by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association. This year we have Tae Keller taking the crown for her charming When You Trap A Tiger. Five Newbery Honor Books were also named. The 2020 medal was awarded to Jerry Craft for his self-illustrated children’s book, New Kid.
Randolph Caldecott Medal
Nineteenth-century English illustrator Randolph Caldecott inspired this colorful and lively award. The aforementioned Association for Library Service to Children gives accolades to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children. We Are Water Protectors, illustrated by Michaela Goade, won this year. Carole Lindstrom wrote this lovely book that features such gorgeous and vivid artwork. Last year, The Undefeated, illustrated by Kadir Nelson and written by Kwame Alexander, was the winner.
Michael L. Printz Award
Sponsored by Booklist, this award is granted to a book that exemplifies literary excellence in young adult literature. It’s named after a Kansas school librarian who was a longtime active member of the YALSA with “a commitment to finding the right book for the right student.” Dig, by A.S. King, took the prize in 2020, and Everything Sad Is Untrue (a true story), penned by Daniel Nayeri, won this time around.
Other Awards
Schneider Family Book Award, for books that embody an artistic expression of the disability experience: I Talk Like a River, written by Jordan Scott, illustrated by Sydney Smith, wins the award for young children (ages 0 to 10). Show Me a Sign, written by Ann Clare LeZotte, is the winner for middle grades (ages 11-13). This Is My Brain in Love, written by I.W. Gregorio, is the winner for teens (ages 13-18).
Alex Awards, for the 10 best adult books that appeal to teen audiences: 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, 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, honoring an author or illustrator whose books, published in the United States, have made, over a period of years, a substantial and lasting contribution to literature for children through books that demonstrate integrity and respect for all children’s lives and experiences: The 2021 winner is Mildred D. Taylor.
Margaret A. Edwards Award, for lifetime achievement in writing for young adults: The winner is Kekla Magoon.
Mildred L. Batchelder Award, for an outstanding children’s book originally published in a language other than English in a country other than the United States, and subsequently translated into English for publication in the United States: Telephone Tales is the winner.
Odyssey Award, for best audiobook produced for children and/or young adults, available in English in the United States: Kent State, produced by Paul R. Gagne for Scholastic Audio, is the winner. The book is written by Deborah Wiles and narrated by Christopher Gebauer, Lauren Ezzo, Christina DeLaine, Johnny Heller, Roger Wayne, Korey Jackson, and David de Vries.
Pura Belpré Awards, honoring a Latinx writer and illustrator whose children’s books best portray, affirm and celebrate the Latino cultural experience: ¡Vamos! Let’s Go Eat, illustrated and written by Raúl Gonzalez, is the Illustrator Award winner. Efrén Divided, written by Ernesto Cisneros, is the Children’s Author Award winner. Furia, written by Yamile Saied Méndez, is the Young Adult Author Award winner.
Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award, for most distinguished informational book for children: Honeybee: The Busy Life of Apis Mellifera, written by Candace Fleming and illustrated by Eric Rohmann, is the winner.
The Excellence in Early Learning Digital Media Award, given to a digital media producer that has created distinguished digital media for an early learning audience: The winner is The Imagine Neighborhood, produced by Committee for Children.
Stonewall Book Award – Mike Morgan & Larry Romans Children’s & Young Adult Literature Award, given annually to English-language children’s and young adult books of exceptional merit relating to the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender experience: We Are Little Feminists: Families, written by Archaa Shrivastav, is the recipient.
Theodor Seuss Geisel Award, for the most distinguished beginning reader book is: See the Cat: Three Stories About a Dog, written by David LaRochelle, illustrated by Mike Wohnoutka.
William C. Morris Award, for a debut book published by a first-time author writing for teens: If These Wings Could Fly, written by Kyrie McCauley.
YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction, for Young Adults: The Rise and Fall of Charles Lindbergh, written by Candace Fleming.
Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature, for a book that promotes Asian/Pacific American culture and heritage, awarded based on literary and artistic merit. The award offers three youth categories. The Picture Book winner is Paper Son: The Inspiring Story of Tyrus Wong, Immigrant and Artist, written by Julie Leung, illustrated by Chris Sasaki. The Children’s Literature winner is When You Trap a Tiger, written by Tae Keller. The Youth Literature winner is This Light Between Us, written by Andrew Fukuda.
The Sydney Taylor Book Award, presented annually to outstanding books for children and teens that authentically portray the Jewish experience. This year’s Gold Medalists include: in the Picture Book category, Welcoming Elijah: A Passover Tale with a Tail, by Lesléa Newman, illustrated by Susan Gal. In the Middle Grades category, Turtle Boy, by M. Evan Wolkenstein. In the Young Adult category, Dancing at the Pity Party, written and illustrated by Tyler Feder.
To see the Honors winners for each award, click here.
The importance of this event is reflected by, and magnified because of, the speakers who lend their voice and expertise to the proceedings. Ibram X. Kendi and Keisha N. Blain presented the opening session on Saturday. The duo was the editing team behind Four Hundred Souls: A Community History of African America, 1619–2019, a 400-year history of African Americans from the perspective of 80 writers. Both are acclaimed authors in their own rights. Actor, writer, and director Ethan Hawke, Reggae icon and eight-time Grammy winner Ziggy Marley, and U.S. poet laureate Joy Harjo, among others, officiated as well. Last but most certainly not least, First Lady Jill Biden will join ALA President Julius C. Jefferson Jr. in hosting the closing session of Midwinter Virtual.
If you weren’t able to livestream the YMA Award announcements, everything you missed is available on demand. We highly recommend a viewing.
