America’s librarians announced their top children’s book picks virtually on Monday—awarding the 2021 Newbery and Caldecott medals, among several other honors.
The John Newbery Medal for the most distinguished children’s book in 2020 went to When You Trap A Tiger, by Tae Keller. The book’s central character is a girl, Lily, whose family moves in with her dying grandmother—and a tiger from Korean folklore shows up looking for something that was stolen.
All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys’ Soccer Team by Christina Soontornvat, BOX: Henry Brown Mails Himself to Freedom by Carole Boston Weatherford and illustrated by Michele Wood, Fighting Words by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley, We Dream of Space by Erin Entrada Kelly and A Wish in the Dark by Christina Soontornvat won Newbery honors.
The Randolph Caldecott Medal, which the American Library Association awards to the most distinguished American picture book for children, went to We Are Water Protectors illustrated by Michaela Goade and written by Carole Lindstrom. The book stresses the urgent need to take care of Earth’s water.