Below is Fanfare, a list of the books that the Horn Book editors and reviewers have selected as the best of 2023. The annotated list will be published in the December issue of Notes from the Horn Book (sign up!) and in the January/February 2024 issue of the Horn Book Magazine (subscribe!). Help us “blow the horn” on social media (@HornBook | @Facebook.com/TheHornBook | @thehornbook). Happy reading! 

Picture Books

Nesting Dolls
written and illustrated by Vanessa Brantley-Newton; Crown

The Hospital Book
written and illustrated by Lisa Brown; Porter/Holiday

We Are Here
written by Tami Charles, illustrated by Bryan Collier; Orchard/Scholastic

Afikomen
written by Tziporah Cohen, illustrated by Yaara Eshet; Groundwood

Night in the City
written and illustrated by Julie Downing; Porter/Holiday

Friends Beyond Measure
written and illustrated by Lalena Fisher; Harper/HarperCollins

Mine!
written by Candace Fleming, illustrated by Eric Rohmann; Schwartz/Random

Spanish Is the Language of My Family
written by Michael Genhart, illustrated by John Parra; Porter/Holiday

I’m From
written by Gary R. Gray, Jr., illustrated by Oge Mora; Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins

A Walk in the Woods
written by Nikki Grimes, illustrated by Jerry Pinkney and Brian Pinkney; Porter/Holiday

Big
written and illustrated by Vashti Harrison; Little, Brown

Cape
written by Kevin Johnson, illustrated by Kitt Thomas; Roaring Brook

Bear with Me
written and illustrated by Kerascoët; Random House Studio/Random

Once upon a Book
written by Grace Lin and Kate Messner, illustrated by Grace Lin; Little, Brown

My Powerful Hair
written by Carole Lindstrom, illustrated by Steph Littlebird; Abrams

When the Stars Came Home
written by Brittany Luby, illustrated by Natasha Donovan; Little, Brown

Maybe a Whale
written by Kirsten Pendreigh, illustrated by Crystal Smith; Groundwood

My Baba’s Garden
written by Jordan Scott, illustrated by Sydney Smith; Porter/Holiday

Do You Remember?
written and illustrated by Sydney Smith; Porter/Holiday

When You Can Swim
written and illustrated by Jack Wong; Orchard/Scholastic

Fiction

The Blood Years
written by Elana K. Arnold; Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins

Henry, like Always
written by Jenn Bailey, illustrated by Mika Song; Chronicle

Warrior Girl Unearthed
written by Angeline Boulley; Holt

For Lamb
written by Lesa Cline-Ransome; Holiday

Let’s Go!
written and illustrated by Michael Emberley; Holiday

Only Only Marisol Rainey
written and illustrated by Erin Entrada Kelly; Greenwillow

Elena Rides
written and illustrated by Juana Medina; Candlewick

World Made of Glass
written by Ami Polonsky; Little, Brown

Link + Hud: Heroes by a Hair
written and illustrated by Jarrett Pumphrey and Jerome Pumphrey; Norton

Wishing Season
written by Anica Mrose Rissi; Quill Tree/HarperCollins

Big Tree
written and illustrated by Brian Selznick; Scholastic

An Impossible Thing to Say
written by Arya Shahi; Allida/HarperCollins

Courage to Dream: Tales of Hope in the Holocaust
written by Neal Shusterman, illustrated by Andrés Vera Martínez; Graphix/Scholastic

The Notorious Scarlett and Browne
written by Jonathan Stroud; Knopf

Parachute Kids
written and illustrated by Betty C. Tang; Graphix/Scholastic

Stateless
written by Elizabeth Wein; Little, Brown

Folklore

Ancient Night
written by David Álvarez with David Bowles, illustrated by David Álvarez; Em Querido/Levine Querido

The Skull: A Tyrolean Folktale
written and illustrated by Jon Klassen; Candlewick

Poetry

Remember
written by Joy Harjo, illustrated by Michaela Goade; Random House Studio/Random

Nonfiction

An American Story
written by Kwame Alexander, illustrated by Dare Coulter; Little, Brown

83 Days in Mariupol: A War Diary
written and illustrated by Don Brown; Clarion/HarperAlley/HarperCollins

Run and Hide: How Jewish Youth Escaped the Holocaust
written and illustrated by Don Brown; Clarion/HarperAlley/HarperCollins

Yoshi, Sea Turtle Genius: A True Story About an Amazing Swimmer
written by Lynne Cox, illustrated by Richard Jones; Schwartz/Random

Coretta’s Journey: The Life and Times of Coretta Scott King
written by Alice Faye Duncan, illustrated by R. Gregory Christie; Calkins/Astra

Sunshine
written and illustrated by Jarrett J. Krosoczka; Graphix/Scholastic

Chinese Menu: The History, Myths, and Legends Behind Your Favorite Foods
written and illustrated by Grace Lin; Little, Brown

Tomfoolery!: Randolph Caldecott and the Rambunctious Coming-of-Age of Children’s Books
written by Michelle Markel, illustrated by Barbara McClintock; Chronicle

Mexikid: A Graphic Memoir
written and illustrated by Pedro Martín; Dial

They Hold the Line: Wildfires, Wildlands, and the Firefighters Who Brave Them
written by Dan Paley, illustrated by Molly Mendoza; Chronicle

There Was a Party for Langston
written by Jason Reynolds, illustrated by Jerome Pumphrey and Jarrett Pumphrey; Dlouhy/Atheneum

The Last Plastic Straw: A Plastic Problem and Finding Ways to Fix It
written by Dee Romito, illustrated by Ziyue Chen; Holiday

Impossible Escape: A True Story of Survival and Heroism in Nazi Germany
written by Steve Sheinkin; Roaring Brook

Great Carrier Reef
written by Jessica Stremer, illustrated by Gordy Wright; Holiday

Game of Freedom: Mestre Bimba and the Art of Capoeira
written and illustrated by Duncan Tonatiuh; Abrams