Children/Young Adult Book Awards: 2010-2019

The bold story of Katherine Johnson, an African-American mathematician who worked for NASA during the space race and was depicted in the film Hidden Figures. You've likely heard of the historic Apollo 13 moon landing. But do you know about the mathematical genius who made sure that Apollo 13 returned safely home? As a child, Katherine Johnson loved to count. She counted the steps on the road, the number of dishes and spoons she washed in the kitchen sink, everything! Boundless, curious, and excited by calculations, young Katherine longed to know as much as she could about math, about the universe. From Katherine's early beginnings as a gifted student to her heroic accomplishments as a prominent mathematician at NASA, Counting on Katherine is the story of a groundbreaking American woman who not only calculated the course of moon landings but, in turn, saved lives and made enormous contributions to history.

Jojo is prepping for an exciting night; it s time for the bat count! Bats have always been a welcome presence during the summers in the family barn. But over the years, the numbers have dwindled as many bats in the area caught white-nose syndrome. Jojo and her family count the bats and send the numbers to scientists who study bats, to see if the bat population can recover. On a summer evening, the family quietly makes their way to the lawn to watch the sky and count the visitors to their farm.

This work of narrative nonfiction includes a 4-page For Creative Minds section in the back of the book and a 30-page cross-curricular Teaching Activity Guide online. Bat Count is vetted by experts and designed to encourage parental engagement. Its extensive back matter helps teachers with time-saving lesson ideas, provides extensions for science, math, and social studies units, and uses inquiry-based learning to help build critical thinking skills in young readers. The Spanish translation supports ELL and dual-language programs. The enhanced ebook reads aloud in both English and Spanish with word highlighting and audio speed control to promote oral language skills, fluency, pronunciation, text engagement, and reading comprehension.

Katherine Olivia Sessions never thought she’d live in a place without trees. After all, Kate grew up among the towering pines and redwoods of Northern California. But after becoming the first woman to graduate from the University of California with a degree in science, she took a job as a teacher far south in the dry desert town of San Diego. Where there were almost no trees.

Kate decided that San Diego needed trees more than anything else. So this trailblazing young woman singlehandedly started a massive movement that transformed the town into the green, garden-filled oasis it is today. Now, more than 100 years after Kate first arrived in San Diego, her gorgeous gardens and parks can be found all over the city.

What child hasn't longed to bring a wild creature into the family home and keep it as a pet? This book helps children understand why that's not a good idea. The story tells of a treefrog living happily in the plants on a family's porch. Told from the frog's perspective, it portrays his discomfort when he is mistakenly brought inside in the fall. In the happy ending, the frog is returned to the outdoors where he can hibernate, and the child in the family is looking forward to listening for the frog's song in the spring. Charming illustrations contrast the frog's natural habitat with his indoor plight, creating empathy with the frog. A science page at the end explains the life cycle of amphibians and contains some little-know facts about treefrogs.

In this exuberant and lyrical follow-up to the award-winning Over and Under the Snow, discover the wonders that lie hidden between stalks, under the shade of leaves . . . and down in the dirt. Explore the hidden world and many lives of a garden through the course of a year! Up in the garden, the world is full of green--leaves and sprouts, growing vegetables, ripening fruit. But down in the dirt exists a busy world--earthworms dig, snakes hunt, skunks burrow--populated by all the animals that make a garden their home.

When Maple is tiny, her parents plant a maple tree in her honor. She and her tree grow up together, and even though a tree doesn't always make an ideal playmate, it doesn't mind when Maple is in the mood to be loud--which is often. Then Maple becomes a big sister, and finds that babies have their loud days, too. Fortunately, Maple and her beloved tree know just what the baby needs.Lori Nichols' enchanting debut features an irresistible, free-spirited, little girl who greets the changing seasons and a new sibling with arms wide open.

Die cut pages bring surprise after surprise in this magical new book from the "Queen of the concept book"—an intricate and satisfying homage to green, the color of all creation.

How many kinds of green are there? There's the lush green of a forest on a late spring day, the fresh, juicy green of a just-cut lime, the incandescent green of a firefly, and the vivid aquamarine of a tropical sea. In her newest book, Caldecott and Geisel Honor Book author Laura Vaccaro Seeger fashions an homage to a single color and, in doing so, creates a book that will delight and, quite possibly astonish you.

Pioneering world traveler, writer, photographer, and peace advocate Eliza Scidmore dreamed of beautifying the nation's capital, where she lived. Her dream became a reality in 1912 when, because of her years of persistence, cherry trees were planted across Washington, DC. This picture book for young readers tells the inspiring story.

Emmy loves trees. She loves oak trees with acorns. She loves pine trees with cones, and willow trees with swishy branches. But best of all, Emmy loves the mimosa tree that grows in her grandmother's pasture. Emmy swings on its branches, plays with its fuzzy pink blossoms, and rattles its seedpods like maracas.

But when Emmy decides she wants a mimosa tree of her own for her birthday, she is dismayed to find that many grown-ups do not share her enthusiasm. Garden stores only sell ornamental trees like plum or pear or tulip trees. Emmy is crushed--until she discovers that the answer to her problem is growing right before her eyes!

This joyful story of a spirited young girl's steadfast affection for a wild mimosa tree will appeal to all who cherish a special dream, and will help readers appreciate the natural world around them. Illustrator Tatjana Mai-Wyss's whimsical watercolor and collage illustrations capture Emmy's exuberant personality and the story's hopeful ending.

An ordinary train ride becomes and extraordinary trip to the great ancient forests

A subway trip is transformed when a young boy happens upon a book about redwood forests. As he reads the information unfolds, and with each new bit of knowledge, he travels - all the way to California to climb into the Redwood canopy. Crammed with interesting and accurate information about these great natural wonders, Jason Chin's first book is innovative nonfiction set within a strong and beautiful picture storybook.