2018 Children’s & Teen Choice Book Award Winners Announced at BookExpo

On Wednesday, May 30, booksellers, publishers, and other book industry professionals attended the Silent Art Auction at BookExpo 2018, where they watched the presentation of the 11th annual Children’s and Teen Choice Book Awards and bid on works of art from more than 130 children’s book illustrators.

Sean Qualls and Selina Alko announce the winners

The event was sponsored by the American Booksellers Association and the Children’s Book Council (CBC); the proceeds will benefit American Booksellers for Free Expression (ABFE) and Every Child a Reader.

As part of the opening ceremony before the auction, children’s book creators Selina Alko and Sean Qualls, who served as honorary chairs, announced the Children’s & Teen Choice Book Awards, as determined by the votes of children and teens across the U.S. This contest is part of Children’s Book Week, which celebrated its 99th year in 2018 and ran from April 30 to May 6; voting ended May 6.

Shaina Birkhead, programming and senior partnerships director at the Children’s Book Council (CBC) and Every Child a Reader, thanked all of the publishers, authors, and illustrators who contributed to the contest, as well as professor and children’s literature advocate Susannah Richards for coordinating art collection for the auction.

In addition, Birkhead recognized the event’s other sponsors, including Simon & Schuster Children’s Books, publisher of children’s illustrator Ashley Bryan, whose legacy was being celebrated that night. She also credited Sesame Workshop, First Book, Screen-Free Week, Scholastic Reading Club, the International Literacy Association, and the Library of Congress for their support of the awards.

“We also want to thank the thousands of indie booksellers, librarians, and teachers who made Children’s Book Week and the book awards voting possible this year, especially in classrooms around the country, where they hosted discussions and reading groups and voted on our books,” added Birkhead.

The 2018 Children’s & Teen Choice Book Awards winners are:

K–2nd Grade Book of the Year: Poor Louie, written and illustrated by Tony Fucile (Candlewick Press)

3rd–4th Grade Book of the Year: 50 Wacky Things Animals Do by Tricia Martineau Wagner, illustrated by Carles Ballesteros (Quarto/Walter Foster Jr.)

5th–6th Grade Book of the Year: The Losers Club by Andrew Clements (Random House Books for Young Readers)

Teen Book of the Year: The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas (HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray)