YA Book Awards

• The Newbery Medal is awarded annually to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children. It was named for eighteenth-century British bookseller John Newbery.

• 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 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.

• The Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal is awarded annually to the author(s) and illustrator(s) of the most distinguished informational book published in the United States in English during the preceding year. The award is named in honor of Robert F. Sibert, the long-time President of Bound to Stay Bound Books, Inc. of Jacksonville, Illinois.

• The Margaret A. Edwards Award, honors an author, as well as a specific body of his or her work, for significant and lasting contribution to young adult literature. 

• The Pura Belpré Award is presented annually 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 named after the first Latina librarian at the New York Public Library.

• The Coretta Scott King Book Awards annually recognize outstanding books for young adults and children by African American authors and illustrators that reflect the African American experience.   The award was designed to commemorate the life and works of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mrs. Coretta Scott King.

• The YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction honors the best nonfiction book published for young adults (ages 12-18) during a November 1 – October 31 publishing year. 

• The William C. Morris YA Debut Award honors a debut book published by a first-time author writing for teens and celebrating impressive new voices in young adult literature. The award's namesake is William C. Morris, an influential innovator in the publishing world and an advocate for marketing books for children and young adults. 

• The Odyssey Award is given to the producer of the best audiobook produced for children and/or young adults, available in English in the United States.