Alex Award

[for the ten best adult books that appeal to teen audiences]

• Beautiful People: My Thirteen Truths About Disability by Melissa Blake (Hachette Go)
• Daughters of Shandong by Eve J. Chung (Berkley)
• Dead Cat Tail Assassins by P. Djèlí Clark (Tordotcom)
• The Witch of Colchis by Rosie Hewlett (Sourcebooks Landmark)
• I Was a Teenage Slasher by Stephen Graham Jones (Saga)
• The Witchstone by Henry H. Neff (Blackstone)
• How to Solve Your Own Murder: A Novel by Kristen Perrin (Dutton)
• I Feel Awful, Thanks by Lara Pickle (Oni-Lion Forge)
• Woman, Life, Freedom created by Marjane Satrapi, translated by Una Dimitrijević (Seven Stories)
• Big Jim and the White Boy: An American Classic Reimagined by David F. Walker, illustrated by Marcus Kwame Anderson (Ten Speed Graphic)

The ALSC Children's Literature Lecture

[an annual event featuring an author, critic, librarian, historian, or teacher of children’s literature, of any country, who shall prepare a paper considered to be a significant contribution to the field of children’s literature]

Cynthia Leitich Smith

Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature

[for promoting Asian/Pacific American culture and heritage; awarded based on literary and artistic merit; administered by the Asian Pacific American Librarians Association (APALA)]

Picture Book winner: Aloha Everything written by Kaylin Melia George, illustrated by Mae Waite (Red Comet)

Honor book: The Rock in My Throat written by Kao Kalia Yang, illustrated by Jiemei Lin (Carolrhoda)

Children's Literature winner: Continental Drifter written and illustrated by Kathy MacLeod (First Second)

Honor books:

• Clairboyance by Kristiana Kahakauwila (Harper/HarperCollins)
• Mabuhay! written and illustrated by Zachary Sterling (Graphix/Scholastic)

Young Adult Literature winner: Everything We Never Had written by Randy Ribay (Kokila/Penguin)

Honor books:

• Dragonfruit by Makiia Lucier (Clarion/HarperCollins)
• Lunar New Year Love Story written by Gene Luen Yang, illustrated by LeUyen Pham (First Second)

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 publiation in the United States]

Winner: John the Skeleton, by Triinu Laan, illustrated by Marja-Liisa Plats, translated from Estonian by Adam Cullen (Yonder/Restless)

Honor books:

• A Sleepless Night by Micaela Chirif, illustrated by Joaquín Camp, translated from Spanish by Jordan Landsman (Transit)
• Johnny, the Sea, and Me by Melba Escobar, illustrated by Elizabeth Builes, translated from Spanish by Sara Lissa Paulson (Enchanted Lion)
• Home written and illustrated by Isabelle Simler, translated from French by Vineet Lal (Eerdmans)
• Mr. Lepron's Mystery Soup written by Giovanna Zoboli, illustrated by Mariachiara Di Giorgio, translated from Italian by Denise Muir (Candlewick Studio/Candlewick)

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]

Carole Boston Weatherford

Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Award

[given by the Coretta Scott King Task Force to young authors or illustrators who demonstrate outstanding promise]

Steptoe Author Award winner: Craig Kofi Farmer for Kwame Crashes the Underworld (Roaring Brook)

Steptoe Illustrator Award winner: Jamiel Law for Jimmy's Rhythm & Blues: The Extraordinary Life of James Baldwin (Harper/HarperCollins), written by Michelle Meadows

Coretta Scott King — Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement

[given by the Coretta Scott King Task Force for lifetime achievement]

Carolyn L. Garnes

Margaret A. Edwards Award

[for lifetime achievement in writing for young adults]

Tiffany D. Jackson

Excellence in Early Learning Digital Media Award

[for distinguished digital media for an early learning audience]

Winner: Carl the Collector produced by Fuzzytown Productions and Spiffy Pictures

Honorees:

• Lyla in the Loop produced by Mighty Space Picnic and Pipeline Studios
• The Plate Show produced by The WNET Group and PRX

William C. Morris Award

[for a debut book published by a first-time author writing for teens]

Winner: Not like Other Girls by Meredith Adamo (Bloomsbury YA)

Finalists:

• Aisle Nine by Ian X. Cho (Harper/HarperCollins)
• The Wilderness of Girls by Madeline Claire Franklin (Zando)
• Shut Up, This Is Serious by Carolina Ixta (Quill Tree/HarperCollins)
• Dead Things Are Closer than They Appear by Robin Wasley (Simon)

Odyssey Award

[for best audiobook produced for children and/or young adults, available in English in the United States]

Winner for children: A Plate of Hope: The Inspiring Story of Chef José Andrés and World Central Kitchen written by Erin Frankel, illustrated by Paola Escobar, narrated by Luis Carlos de La Lombana (Dreamscape Audio)

Winner for young adults: How the Boogeyman Became a Poet written by Tony Keith Jr., narrated by Tony Keith Jr. (HarperAudio)

Honor audiobooks:

• Dispatches from Parts Unknown written by Bryan Bliss, narrated by Joy Nash (HarperAudio)
• You Are Brave: A Book About Trying New Things written by Margaret O’Hair and Sofia Sanchez, illustrated by Sofia Cardoso, narrated by Sofia Sanchez (Scholastic Audio)
• Girls like Her written by Melanie Sumrow, narrated by Melanie Sumrow and January LaVoy (HarperAudio)
• Black Girl You Are Atlas written by Renée Watson, illustrated by Ekua Holmes, narrated by Renée Watson (Listening Library)

Schneider Family Book Award

[for books that embody an artistic expression of the disability experience]

Young Children (ages 0 to 8) winner: A Little like Magic written and illustrated by Sarah Kurpiel (Rocky Pond/Penguin)

Honor books:

• You're So Amazing! by James and Lucy Catchpole, illustrated by Karen George (Little, Brown)
• Monster Hands by Karen Kane and Jonaz McMillan, illustrated by Dion MBD (Paulsen/Penguin)

Middle Grades (ages 9-13) winner: Popcorn written and illustrated by Rob Harrell (Dial)

Honor books:

• Louder Than Hunger by John Schu (Candlewick)
• Shark Teeth by Sherri Winston (Bloomsbury)

Teen (ages 14-18) winner: Chronically Dolores by Maya Van Wagenen (Dutton)

Honor books:

• Light Enough to Float by Lauren Seal (Rocky Pond/Penguin)
• On the Bright Side by Anna Sortino (Putnam)

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]

Children's Literature Winner:

• Lunar Boy written and illustrated by Jes and Cin Wibowo (HarperAlley/HarperCollins)

Honor books:

• The Flicker by H.E. Edgmon (Feiwel)
• What I Must Tell the World: How Lorraine Hansberry Found Her Voice by Jay Leslie, illustrated by Loveis Wise (Hillman Grad/Zando)
• Marley's Pride written by Joëlle Retener, illustrated by DeAnn Wiley (Barefoot)
• Murray Out of Water by Taylor Tracy (Quill Tree/HarperCollins)

Young Adult Literature Winner:

• Canto Contigo by Jonny Garza Villa (Wednesday/St. Martin's)

Honor books:

• Time and Time Again by Chatham Greenfield (Bloomsbury YA)
• Most Ardently: A Pride and Prejudice Remix by Gabe Cole Novoa (Feiwel)
• Road Home by Rex Ogle (Norton)
• Navigating with You written by Jeremy Whitley, illustrated by Cassio Ribeiro (Maverick/Mad Cave Studios)

Sydney Taylor Book Awards

[to outstanding books for children and teens that authentically portray the Jewish experience; presented by the Association of Jewish Libraries (AJL)]

Picture Book winner: An Etrog from Across the Sea written by Deborah Bodin Cohen and Kerry Olitzky, illustrated by Stacey Dressen McQueen (Kar-Ben)

Honor books:

• The Tree of Life: How a Holocaust Sapling Inspired the World by Elisa Boxer, illustrated by Alianna Rozentsveig (Rocky Pond/Penguin)
• Amazing Abe: How Abraham Cahan's Newspaper Gave a Voice to Jewish Immigrants written by Norman H. Finkelstein, illustrated by Vesper Stamper (Holiday)
• Rising written by Sidura Ludwig, illustrated by Sophia Vincent Guy (Candlewick)
• Joyful Song: A Naming Story written by Lesléa Newman, illustrated by Susan Gal (Levine/Levine Querido)

Middle Grade winner: The Girl Who Sang: A Holocaust Memoir of Hope and Survival written by Estelle Nadel and Sammy Savos with Bethany Strout, illustrated by Sammy Savos (Roaring Brook)

Honor books:

• Across So Many Seas by Ruth Behar (Paulsen/Penguin)
• Finn and Ezra's Bar Mitzvah Time Loop by Joshua S. Levy (Tegen/HarperCollins)
• Just Shy of Ordinary by A.J. Sass (Little, Brown)

Young Adult winner: Night Owls by A.R. Vishny (Harper/HarperCollins)

Honor book:

• Trajectory by Cambria Gordon (Scholastic)
• The Forbidden Book by Sacha Lamb (Levine/Levine Querido)

For the complete list, including Notables, visit AJL's website.

YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults

Winner: Rising from the Ashes: Los Angeles, 1992. Edward Jae Song Lee, Latasha Harlins, Rodney King, and a City on Fire by Paula Yoo (Norton)

Finalists:

• Shackled: A Tale of Wronged Kids, Rogue Judges, and a Town that Looked Away by Candy J. Cooper (Calkins/Astra)
• Homebody by Theo Parish (HarperAlley/HarperCollins)
• A Greater Goal: The Epic Battle for Equal Pay in Women's Soccer—and Beyond by Elizabeth Rusch (Greenwillow/HarperCollins)
• The Unboxing of a Black Girl by Angela Shanté (Page Street)

See the Horn Book's reviews of major 2025 ALA Youth Media Award winners.

For more, click on the tag ALA LibLearnX 2025.