North Carolina Children's Book Award

Start Nominating books for the 2021 Awards!

It's time to start nominating picture books and junior books for the 2020-2021 North Carolina Children's Book Awards! Nominations are generated by the children of North Carolina. Teachers and librarians may help children enter their nominations or do it for them, but no teacher or librarian should enter their own favorites. That's what makes this award so special - the books are nominated by kids and then voted on by kids to get to the top two books of the year! Click on the following link or go to the "Nominate" page on the bar above.

Kids may nominate more than one favorite.

NOMINATE A BOOK

2019 Winners Accept Awards

Congratulations to our 2019 award winners!

Ame Dyckman, author of Read the Book, Lemmings! was on hand at the North Carolina School Library Media Association's annual conference at the beginning of October to accept her award for 2019's favorite Picture Book. The illustrator, Zachariah OHora, was not able to attend but was present in spirit (and on a stick puppet! - as was Alan Gratz!)

North Carolina author, Alan Gratz was the winner of our Junior Book Award for Refugee. He was unable to accept his award in person but submitted this acceptance video.

We will begin collecting nominations for the 2021 award on November 1! The nominations link will be open through the end of March 2020.

2020 Activity Booklet published

The Activity Booklet for the 2020 North Carolina Children's Book Award is ready! It's full of great ideas on how to share the 20 excellent books nominated for the 2020 awards with children across the state. Voting starts in February 2020 to determine which titles will be chosen as the favorite picture book and junior book for the year.

If you create more great ways to share the books on this year's lists, please let us know and we'll add them to the website!

2020 NCCBA Activity Booklet

2019-20 Picture Book and Junior Book Nominees

We are very pleased to announce the nominees for the 2019-2020 North Carolina Children's Book Awards.

Picture Books	Junior Books
*Because* Willems, Mo. Illustrated by Amber Ren. New York: Hyperion Books for Children, 2019. *Can I Be Your Dog?* Cummings, Troy. New York: Random House Books for Young Readers, 2018. The Crayon Man: The True Story of the Invention of Crayola Crayons Biebow, Natascha. Illustrated by Steven Salerno. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2019. *Misunderstood Shark: Starring Shark!* Dyckman, Ame. Illustrated by Scott Magoon. New York: Orchard Books, an imprint of Scholastic Inc., 2018. *Mixed: A Colorful Story* Chung, Arree. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 2018. *Potato Pants!* Keller, Laurie. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 2018. *The Rooster Who Would Not Be Quiet* Deedy, Carmen Agra. Illustrated by Eugene Yelchin. New York: Scholastic Press, 2017. *The Very Impatient Caterpillar* Burach, Ross. New York: Scholastic Press, 2019. *We Don't Eat Our Classmates* Higgins, Ryan T.. Los Angeles: Disney-Hyperion, 2018. *The Word Collector* Reynolds, Peter H.. New York: Orchard Books, and imprint of Scholastic Inc., 2018.	*Ban This Book* Gratz, Alan. New York: Starscape, 2017. *Be Prepared* Brosgol, Vera. New York: First Second, 2018. *Breakout* Messner, Kate. New York: Bloomsbury Children's Books, 2018. *A Boy Called Bat* Arnold, Elana K.. New York: Walden Pond Press, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2017. *Float* Martin, Laura. New York: Harper, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2018. *Front Desk* Yang, Kelly. New York: Arthur A. Levine Books, 2018. *Full of Beans* Holm, Jennifer L.. New York: Random House Books for Young Readers, 2016. *Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History* Harrison, Vashti. New York: Little, Brown and Company, 2017. *Miscalculations of Lightning Girl* McAnulty, Stacy. New York: Random House, 2018. *Saving Fiona: The Story of the World's Most Famous Baby Hippo* Maynard, Thane. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2018.

Picture Books

Junior Books

Because
Willems, Mo. Illustrated by Amber Ren. New York: Hyperion Books for Children, 2019.

Can I Be Your Dog?
Cummings, Troy. New York: Random House Books for Young Readers, 2018.

The Crayon Man: The True Story of the Invention of Crayola Crayons
Biebow, Natascha. Illustrated by Steven Salerno. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2019.

Misunderstood Shark: Starring Shark!
Dyckman, Ame. Illustrated by Scott Magoon. New York: Orchard Books, an imprint of Scholastic Inc., 2018.

Mixed: A Colorful Story
Chung, Arree. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 2018.

Potato Pants!
Keller, Laurie. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 2018.

The Rooster Who Would Not Be Quiet
Deedy, Carmen Agra. Illustrated by Eugene Yelchin. New York: Scholastic Press, 2017.

The Very Impatient Caterpillar
Burach, Ross. New York: Scholastic Press, 2019.

We Don't Eat Our Classmates
Higgins, Ryan T.. Los Angeles: Disney-Hyperion, 2018.

The Word Collector
Reynolds, Peter H.. New York: Orchard Books, and imprint of Scholastic Inc., 2018.

Ban This Book
Gratz, Alan. New York: Starscape, 2017.

Be Prepared
Brosgol, Vera. New York: First Second, 2018.

Breakout
Messner, Kate. New York: Bloomsbury Children's Books, 2018.

A Boy Called Bat
Arnold, Elana K.. New York: Walden Pond Press, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2017.

Float
Martin, Laura. New York: Harper, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2018.

Front Desk
Yang, Kelly. New York: Arthur A. Levine Books, 2018.

Full of Beans
Holm, Jennifer L.. New York: Random House Books for Young Readers, 2016.

Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History
Harrison, Vashti. New York: Little, Brown and Company, 2017.

Miscalculations of Lightning Girl
McAnulty, Stacy. New York: Random House, 2018.

Saving Fiona: The Story of the World's Most Famous Baby Hippo
Maynard, Thane. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2018.

2019 Picture Book and Junior Book Winners

The children of North Carolina have spoken! The North Carolina Children's Book Award Committee is proud to announce the winning titles for 2019!

Read the Book, Lemmings!, written by Ame Dyckman and illustrated by Zachariah OHora, is the winner of the picture book category with 18,797 votes.

Refugee, written by Alan Gratz, is the winner of the junior book category with 1,448 votes.

Children across North Carolina have submitted their votes in their schools and in their public libraries. Thank you to everyone who participated this year! If you have not been involved in this wonderful program that gives children a voice, we would love to have you join us next year. To see the voting summary for this year's awards, please go to the 2019 Results and Materials page.