Coretta Scott King Book Awards
Honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Mrs. Coretta Scott King by recognizing outstanding books by African American authors and illustrators. The award encourages the artistic expression of the African American experience via literature and the graphic arts, including biographical, historical, and social history treatments.
About
Designed to commemorate the life and works of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and to honor Mrs. Coretta Scott King for her courage and determination to continue the work for peace, 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. Further, the Award encourages the artistic expression of the black experience via literature and the graphic arts in biographical, social, and historical treatments by African American authors and illustrators.
Administered by:
Categories:
Details
Frequency: Annual
The Awards are given in author and illustrator categories; honor recipients may also be named. Both the Author and Illustrator Winner recipients receive a plaque and $1,000.
Sponsors:
Award Information
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
Freewater
2023 - Winner(s) |
2023 - Winner(s) |
|
Standing in the Need of Prayer
2023 - Winner(s) |
2023 - Winner(s) |
|
Swim Team
2023 - Honor(s) |
2023 - Honor(s) |
|
Me and the Boss
2023 - Honor(s) |
2023 - Honor(s) |
|
Star child
2023 - Honor(s) |
2023 - Honor(s) |
|
The Talk
2023 - Honor(s) |
2023 - Honor(s) |
|
Victory. Stand!
2023 - Honor(s) |
2023 - Honor(s) |
|
Victory. Stand!
2023 - Honor(s) |
2023 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
Exquisite: The Life of Gwendolyn Brooks
2021 - Honor(s) |
2021 - Honor(s) |
|
Magnificent Homespun Brown
2021 - Honor(s) |
2021 - Honor(s) |
|
Me and Mama
2021 - Honor(s) |
2021 - Honor(s) |
|
Before the Ever After
2021 - Winner(s) |
2021 - Winner(s) |
|
R-E-S-P-E-C-T: Aretha Franklin, The Queen of Soul
2021 - Winner(s) |
2021 - Winner(s) |
|
King and the Dragonflies
2021 - Honor(s) |
2021 - Honor(s) |
|
All the Days Past, All the Days to Come
2021 - Honor(s) |
2021 - Honor(s) |
|
Lifting as We Climb: Black Women’s Battle for the Ballot Box
2021 - Honor(s) |
2021 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| The Stars and the Blackness Between Them
2020 - Honor(s) |
2020 - Honor(s) | |
| Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky
2020 - Honor(s) |
2020 - Honor(s) | |
|
The Undefeated
2020 - Winner(s) |
2020 - Winner(s) |
| The Bell Rang
2020 - Honor(s) |
2020 - Honor(s) | |
| Infinite Hope: A Black Artist’s Journey from World War II to Peace
2020 - Honor(s) |
2020 - Honor(s) | |
| Sulwe
2020 - Honor(s) |
2020 - Honor(s) | |
|
New Kid
2020 - Winner(s) |
2020 - Winner(s) |
| Look Both Ways
2020 - Honor(s) |
2020 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
Hidden Figures
2019 - Honor(s) |
2019 - Honor(s) |
|
Let the Children March
2019 - Honor(s) |
2019 - Honor(s) |
|
Memphis, Martin, and the Mountaintop
2019 - Honor(s) |
2019 - Honor(s) |
|
A Few Red Drops: The Chicago Race Riot of 1919
2019 - Winner(s) |
2019 - Winner(s) |
|
The Stuff of Stars
2019 - Winner(s) |
2019 - Winner(s) |
|
Finding Langston
2019 - Honor(s) |
2019 - Honor(s) |
|
The Parker Inheritance
2019 - Honor(s) |
2019 - Honor(s) |
|
The Season of Styx Malone
2019 - Honor(s) |
2019 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
Piecing Me Together
2018 - Winner(s) In “Piecing Me Together,” published by Bloomsbury,Jade is a likable protagonist who is easy to root for. There are many stories that shape who we... |
2018 - Winner(s) |
|
Out of Wonder: Poems Celebrating Poets
2018 - Winner(s) In “Out of Wonder: Poems Celebrating Poets,” written by Kwame Alexander with Chris Colderley and Marjory Wentworth and published by Candlewick Press, Ekua Holmes’s mixed-... |
2018 - Winner(s) |
|
Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut
2018 - Honor(s) |
2018 - Honor(s) |
|
Long Way Down
2018 - Honor(s) |
2018 - Honor(s) |
|
The Hate U Give
2018 - Honor(s) |
2018 - Honor(s) |
|
Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut
2018 - Honor(s) |
2018 - Honor(s) |
|
Before She Was Harriet: The Story of Harriet Tubman
2018 - Honor(s) |
2018 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
As Brave as You
2017 - Honor(s) |
2017 - Honor(s) |
|
Freedom Over Me: Eleven Slaves, Their Lives and Dreams Brought to Life by Ashley Bryan
2017 - Honor(s) |
2017 - Honor(s) |
|
Radiant Child: The Story of Young Artist Jean-Michel Basquiat
2017 - Winner(s) In “Radiant Child: The Story of Young Artist Jean-Michel Basquiat,” collage style paintings with rich texture, bold colors and thick lines take readers on an... |
2017 - Winner(s) |
|
Freedom Over Me: Eleven Slaves, Their Lives and Dreams Brought to Life by Ashley Bryan
2017 - Honor(s) |
2017 - Honor(s) |
|
In Plain Sight
2017 - Honor(s) |
2017 - Honor(s) |
|
Freedom in Congo Square
2017 - Honor(s) |
2017 - Honor(s) |
|
March: Book Three
2017 - Winner(s) “March: Book Three,” is a first-hand account of the Civil Rights Movement through Lewis’ eyes. Using vivid language and dynamic visual storytelling, it details events... |
2017 - Winner(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
Gone Crazy in Alabama
2016 - Winner(s) “Gone Crazy in Alabama” is the final book in Williams-Garcia’s trilogy about the Gaither sisters. She blends cultural and family history in a vivid, readable... |
2016 - Winner(s) |
|
Trombone Shorty
2016 - Winner(s) In “Trombone Shorty” Collier creates vibrant, bold color collages and realistic images that portray the musical growth of a young boy in the jazz tradition... |
2016 - Winner(s) |
| All American Boys
2016 - Honor(s) |
2016 - Honor(s) | |
| The Boy in the Black Suit
2016 - Honor(s) |
2016 - Honor(s) | |
| X: A Novel
2016 - Honor(s) |
2016 - Honor(s) | |
| The Book Itch: Freedom, Truth & Harlem’s Greatest Bookstore
2016 - Honor(s) |
2016 - Honor(s) | |
| Last Stop on Market Street
2016 - Honor(s) |
2016 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
How I Discovered Poetry
2015 - Honor(s) |
2015 - Honor(s) |
|
How It Went Down
2015 - Honor(s) |
2015 - Honor(s) |
|
JOSEPHINE: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker
2015 - Honor(s) |
2015 - Honor(s) |
|
Little Melba and Her Big Trombone
2015 - Honor(s) |
2015 - Honor(s) |
|
The Crossover
2015 - Honor(s) |
2015 - Honor(s) |
|
Brown Girl Dreaming
2015 - Winner(s) “Brown Girl Dreaming" is an absorbing free verse memoir of a young girl growing up black and female in the 1960s and ‘70s full of... |
2015 - Winner(s) |
|
Firebird
2015 - Winner(s) The illustrations of Myers depict the brilliant colorful world of the ballerina with its dancers on en pointe. “The vibrant lines and colors mirror the movement of Copeland’s... |
2015 - Winner(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
P.S. Be Eleven
2014 - Winner(s) In this spirited stand-alone sequel to “One Crazy Summer,” the Gaither sisters return to Brooklyn after a summer spent with their mother in Oakland, California... |
2014 - Winner(s) |
|
Darius & Twig
2014 - Honor(s) |
2014 - Honor(s) |
|
March: Book One
2014 - Honor(s) |
2014 - Honor(s) |
|
Knock Knock: My Dad's Dream for Me
2014 - Winner(s) In “Knock Knock: My Dad's Dream for Me,” Bryan Collier brings to life Daniel Beaty’s powerful narrative of a son’s longing for his absent father... |
2014 - Winner(s) |
|
Words with Wings
2014 - Honor(s) |
2014 - Honor(s) |
|
Nelson Mandela
2014 - Honor(s) |
2014 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
I, Too, Am America
2013 - Winner(s) |
2013 - Winner(s) |
|
Ellen’s Broom
2013 - Honor(s) |
2013 - Honor(s) |
|
H. O. R. S. E.
2013 - Honor(s) |
2013 - Honor(s) |
|
I Have a Dream
2013 - Honor(s) |
2013 - Honor(s) |
|
Hand in Hand: Ten Black Men Who Changed America
2013 - Winner(s) |
2013 - Winner(s) |
|
Each Kindness
2013 - Honor(s) |
2013 - Honor(s) |
|
No Crystal Stair
2013 - Honor(s) |
2013 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans
2012 - Honor(s) |
2012 - Honor(s) |
|
Underground: Finding the Light to Freedom
2012 - Winner(s) |
2012 - Winner(s) |
|
Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans
2012 - Winner(s) |
2012 - Winner(s) |
|
The Great Migration: Journey to the North
2012 - Honor(s) |
2012 - Honor(s) |
|
Never Forgotten
2012 - Honor(s) |
2012 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
Dave the Potter: Artist, Poet, Slave
2011 - Winner(s) |
2011 - Winner(s) |
|
Jimi Sounds Like a Rainbow: A Story of the Young Jimi Hendrix
2011 - Honor(s) |
2011 - Honor(s) |
|
One Crazy Summer
2011 - Winner(s) |
2011 - Winner(s) |
|
Lockdown
2011 - Honor(s) |
2011 - Honor(s) |
|
Ninth Ward
2011 - Honor(s) |
2011 - Honor(s) |
|
Yummy: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty
2011 - Honor(s) |
2011 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
My People
2010 - Winner(s) Smith’s vibrant sepia photographs celebrate the beauty and diversity of African Americans. The close-ups of illuminated faces filled with jubilant, loving expressions emerge from black... |
2010 - Winner(s) |
|
Bad News for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves, Deputy U.S. Marshall
2010 - Winner(s) Born into slavery in 1838, Bass had a hard life and a strong sense of right and wrong. Bass was one of the most feared... |
2010 - Winner(s) |
|
Mare's War
2010 - Honor(s) |
2010 - Honor(s) |
|
The Negro Speaks of Rivers
2010 - Honor(s) |
2010 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
The Blacker the Berry
2009 - Winner(s) |
2009 - Winner(s) |
|
The Moon Over Star
2009 - Honor(s) |
2009 - Honor(s) |
|
We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball
2009 - Honor(s) |
2009 - Honor(s) |
|
We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball
2009 - Winner(s) |
2009 - Winner(s) |
|
Becoming Billie Holiday
2009 - Honor(s) |
2009 - Honor(s) |
|
The Blacker the Berry
2009 - Honor(s) |
2009 - Honor(s) |
|
Keeping the Night Watch
2009 - Honor(s) |
2009 - Honor(s) |
|
Before John Was a Jazz Giant
2009 - Honor(s) |
2009 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| November Blues
2008 - Honor(s) |
2008 - Honor(s) | |
| Twelve Rounds to Glory: The Story of Muhammad Ali
2008 - Honor(s) |
2008 - Honor(s) | |
| The Secret Olivia Told Me
2008 - Winner(s) |
2008 - Winner(s) | |
| Jazz On A Saturday Night
2008 - Honor(s) |
2008 - Honor(s) | |
| Elijah of Buxton
2008 - Winner(s) |
2008 - Winner(s) | |
| Let it Shine
2008 - Winner(s) |
2008 - Winner(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| The Road to Paris
2007 - Honor(s) |
2007 - Honor(s) | |
| Copper Sun
2007 - Winner(s) |
2007 - Winner(s) | |
| Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom
2007 - Winner(s) |
2007 - Winner(s) | |
| Jazz
2007 - Honor(s) |
2007 - Honor(s) | |
| Poetry for Young People: Langston Hughes
2007 - Honor(s) |
2007 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Dark Sons
2006 - Honor(s) |
2006 - Honor(s) | |
| A Wreath for Emmett Till
2006 - Honor(s) |
2006 - Honor(s) | |
| Rosa
2006 - Winner(s) |
2006 - Winner(s) | |
| Brothers in Hope: The Story of the Lost Boys of Sudan
2006 - Honor(s) |
2006 - Honor(s) | |
| Day of Tears: A Novel in Dialogue
2006 - Winner(s) |
2006 - Winner(s) | |
| Maritcha: A Nineteenth-Century American Girl
2006 - Honor(s) |
2006 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Remember: The Journey to School Integration
2005 - Winner(s) |
2005 - Winner(s) | |
| The Legend of Buddy Bush
2005 - Honor(s) |
2005 - Honor(s) | |
| Fortune’s Bones: The Manumission Requiem
2005 - Honor(s) |
2005 - Honor(s) | |
| Ellington Was Not a Street
2005 - Winner(s) |
2005 - Winner(s) | |
| God Bless the Child
2005 - Honor(s) |
2005 - Honor(s) | |
| The People Could Fly: The Picture Book
2005 - Honor(s) |
2005 - Honor(s) | |
| Who Am I without Him?: Short Stories about Girls and the Boys in Their Lives
2005 - Honor(s) |
2005 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| The First Part Last
2004 - Winner(s) |
2004 - Winner(s) | |
| Days of Jubilee: The End of Slavery in the United States
2004 - Winner(s) |
2004 - Winner(s) | |
| Locomotion
2004 - Honor(s) |
2004 - Honor(s) | |
| The Battle of Jericho
2004 - Honor(s) |
2004 - Honor(s) | |
| Beautiful Blackbird
2004 - Winner(s) |
2004 - Winner(s) | |
| Almost to Freedom
2004 - Honor(s) |
2004 - Honor(s) | |
| Thunder Rose
2004 - Honor(s) |
2004 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Visiting Langston
2003 - Honor(s) |
2003 - Honor(s) | |
| Bronx Masquerade
2003 - Winner(s) |
2003 - Winner(s) | |
| Talkin’ About Bessie: The Story of Aviator Elizabeth Coleman
2003 - Winner(s) |
2003 - Winner(s) | |
| The Red Rose Box
2003 - Honor(s) |
2003 - Honor(s) | |
| Talkin’ About Bessie: The Story of Aviator Elizabeth Coleman
2003 - Honor(s) |
2003 - Honor(s) | |
| Rap a Tap Tap: Here’s Bojangles—Think of That
2003 - Winner(s) |
2003 - Winner(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| The Land
2002 - Winner(s) |
2002 - Winner(s) | |
| Goin’ Someplace Special
2002 - Winner(s) |
2002 - Winner(s) | |
| Carver: A Life in Poems
2002 - Honor(s) |
2002 - Honor(s) | |
| Money-Hungry
2002 - Honor(s) |
2002 - Honor(s) | |
| Martin’s Big Words
2002 - Honor(s) |
2002 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Let It Shine! Stories of Black Women Freedom Fighters
2001 - Honor(s) |
2001 - Honor(s) | |
| Freedom River
2001 - Honor(s) |
2001 - Honor(s) | |
| Only Passing Through: The Story of Sojourner Truth
2001 - Honor(s) |
2001 - Honor(s) | |
| Virgie Goes to School with Us Boys
2001 - Honor(s) |
2001 - Honor(s) | |
| Miracle’s Boys
2001 - Winner(s) |
2001 - Winner(s) | |
| Uptown
2001 - Winner(s) |
2001 - Winner(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Bud, Not Buddy
2000 - Winner(s) |
2000 - Winner(s) | |
| In the Time of the Drums
2000 - Winner(s) |
2000 - Winner(s) | |
| Francie
2000 - Honor(s) |
2000 - Honor(s) | |
| Black Hands, White Sails: The Story of African-American Whalers
2000 - Honor(s) |
2000 - Honor(s) | |
| Monster
2000 - Honor(s) |
2000 - Honor(s) | |
| My Rows and Piles of Coins
2000 - Honor(s) |
2000 - Honor(s) | |
| Black Cat
2000 - Honor(s) |
2000 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Heaven
1999 - Winner(s) |
1999 - Winner(s) | |
| I See the Rhythm
1999 - Winner(s) |
1999 - Winner(s) | |
| Jazmin’s Notebook
1999 - Winner(s) |
1999 - Winner(s) | |
| Breaking Ground, Breaking Silence: The Story of New York’s African Burial Ground
1999 - Honor(s) |
1999 - Honor(s) | |
| The Other Side: Shorter Poems
1999 - Honor(s) |
1999 - Honor(s) | |
| I Have Heard of a Land
1999 - Honor(s) |
1999 - Honor(s) | |
| The Bat Boy and His Violin
1999 - Honor(s) |
1999 - Honor(s) | |
| Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra
1999 - Honor(s) |
1999 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| I Thought My Soul Would Rise and Fly: The Diary of Patsy, a Freed Girl
1998 - Honor(s) |
1998 - Honor(s) | |
| Ashley Bryan’s ABC of African American Poetry
1998 - Honor(s) |
1998 - Honor(s) | |
| Harlem
1998 - Honor(s) |
1998 - Honor(s) | |
| The Hunterman and the Crocodile
1998 - Honor(s) |
1998 - Honor(s) | |
| Forged by Fire
1998 - Winner(s) |
1998 - Winner(s) | |
| In Daddy’s Arms I am Tall: African Americans Celebrating Fathers
1998 - Winner(s) |
1998 - Winner(s) | |
| Bayard Rustin: Behind the Scenes of the Civil Rights Movement
1998 - Honor(s) |
1998 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Slam
1997 - Winner(s) |
1997 - Winner(s) | |
| Minty: A Story of Young Harriet Tubman
1997 - Winner(s) |
1997 - Winner(s) | |
| Rebels Against Slavery: American Slave Revolts
1997 - Honor(s) |
1997 - Honor(s) | |
| The Palm of My Heart: Poetry by African American Children
1997 - Honor(s) |
1997 - Honor(s) | |
| Running the Road to ABC
1997 - Honor(s) |
1997 - Honor(s) | |
| Neeny Coming, Neeny Going
1997 - Honor(s) |
1997 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Her Stories
1996 - Winner(s) |
1996 - Winner(s) | |
| The Middle Passage: White Ships Black Cargo
1996 - Winner(s) |
1996 - Winner(s) | |
| The Watsons Go to Birmingham-1963
1996 - Honor(s) |
1996 - Honor(s) | |
| Like Sisters on the Homefront
1996 - Honor(s) |
1996 - Honor(s) | |
| From the Notebooks of Melanin Sun
1996 - Honor(s) |
1996 - Honor(s) | |
| Her Stories
1996 - Honor(s) |
1996 - Honor(s) | |
| The Faithful Friend
1996 - Honor(s) |
1996 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Black Diamond: Story of the Negro Baseball League
1995 - Honor(s) |
1995 - Honor(s) | |
| The Singing Man
1995 - Honor(s) |
1995 - Honor(s) | |
| Meet Danitra Brown
1995 - Honor(s) |
1995 - Honor(s) | |
| Christmas in the Big House, Christmas in the Quarters
1995 - Winner(s) |
1995 - Winner(s) | |
| The Creation
1995 - Winner(s) |
1995 - Winner(s) | |
| The Captive
1995 - Honor(s) |
1995 - Honor(s) | |
| I Hadn’t Meant to Tell You This
1995 - Honor(s) |
1995 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Toning the Sweep
1994 - Winner(s) |
1994 - Winner(s) | |
| Soul Looks Back in Wonder
1994 - Winner(s) |
1994 - Winner(s) | |
| Brown Honey in Broom Wheat Tea
1994 - Honor(s) |
1994 - Honor(s) | |
| Malcolm X: By Any Means Necessary
1994 - Honor(s) |
1994 - Honor(s) | |
| Brown Honey in Broom Wheat Tea
1994 - Honor(s) |
1994 - Honor(s) | |
| Uncle Jed’s Barbershop
1994 - Honor(s) |
1994 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Mississippi Challenge
1993 - Honor(s) |
1993 - Honor(s) | |
| Somewhere in the Darkness
1993 - Honor(s) |
1993 - Honor(s) | |
| Sojourner Truth: Ain’t I a Woman?
1993 - Honor(s) |
1993 - Honor(s) | |
| Little Eight John
1993 - Honor(s) |
1993 - Honor(s) | |
| Sukey and the Mermaid
1993 - Honor(s) |
1993 - Honor(s) | |
| Working Cotton
1993 - Honor(s) |
1993 - Honor(s) | |
| The Origin of Life on Earth: An African Creation Myth
1993 - Winner(s) |
1993 - Winner(s) | |
| The Dark-Thirty: Southern Tales of the Supernatural
1993 - Winner(s) |
1993 - Winner(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Night on Neighborhood Street
1992 - Honor(s) |
1992 - Honor(s) | |
| Now is Your Time: The African American Struggle for Freedom
1992 - Winner(s) |
1992 - Winner(s) | |
| Tar Beach
1992 - Winner(s) |
1992 - Winner(s) | |
| Night on Neighborhood Street
1992 - Winner(s) |
1992 - Winner(s) | |
| All Night, All Day: A Child’s First Book of African American Spirituals
1992 - Honor(s) |
1992 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| The Road to Memphis
1991 - Winner(s) |
1991 - Winner(s) | |
| Black Dance in America
1991 - Honor(s) |
1991 - Honor(s) | |
| When I Am Old with You
1991 - Honor(s) |
1991 - Honor(s) | |
| Aida
1991 - Winner(s) |
1991 - Winner(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| A Long Hard Journey: The Story of the Pullman Porter
1990 - Winner(s) |
1990 - Winner(s) | |
| Nathaniel Talking
1990 - Winner(s) |
1990 - Winner(s) | |
| Nathaniel Talking
1990 - Honor(s) |
1990 - Honor(s) | |
| The Bells of Christmas
1990 - Honor(s) |
1990 - Honor(s) | |
| Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Freedom Movement
1990 - Honor(s) |
1990 - Honor(s) | |
| The Talking Eggs
1990 - Honor(s) |
1990 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Fallen Angels
1989 - Winner(s) |
1989 - Winner(s) | |
| Mirandy and Brother Wind
1989 - Winner(s) |
1989 - Winner(s) | |
| A Thief in the Village and Other Stories
1989 - Honor(s) |
1989 - Honor(s) | |
| Anthony Burns: The Defeat and Triumph of a Fugitive Slave
1989 - Honor(s) |
1989 - Honor(s) | |
| Under the Sunday Tree
1989 - Honor(s) |
1989 - Honor(s) | |
| Storm in the Night
1989 - Honor(s) |
1989 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| The Invisible Hunters: A Legend from the Miskito Indians of Nicaragua
1988 - Honor(s) |
1988 - Honor(s) | |
| The Friendship
1988 - Winner(s) |
1988 - Winner(s) | |
| Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters: An African Tale
1988 - Winner(s) |
1988 - Winner(s) | |
| An Enchanted Hair Tale
1988 - Honor(s) |
1988 - Honor(s) | |
| The Tales of Uncle Remus: The Adventures of Brer Rabbit
1988 - Honor(s) |
1988 - Honor(s) | |
| What a Morning! The Christmas Story in Black Spirituals
1988 - Honor(s) |
1988 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Justin and the Best Biscuits in the World
1987 - Winner(s) |
1987 - Winner(s) | |
| Half a Moon and One Whole Star
1987 - Winner(s) |
1987 - Winner(s) | |
| Lion and the Ostrich Chicks and Other African Folk Tales
1987 - Honor(s) |
1987 - Honor(s) | |
| Which Way Freedom
1987 - Honor(s) |
1987 - Honor(s) | |
| Lion and the Ostrich Chicks and Other African Folk Tales
1987 - Honor(s) |
1987 - Honor(s) | |
| C.L.O.U.D.S.
1987 - Honor(s) |
1987 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Trouble’s Child
1986 - Winner(s) |
1986 - Winner(s) | |
| The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales
1986 - Honor(s) |
1986 - Honor(s) | |
| The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales
1986 - Winner(s) |
1986 - Winner(s) | |
| The Patchwork Quilt
1986 - Winner(s) |
1986 - Winner(s) | |
| Junius Over Far
1986 - Honor(s) |
1986 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Motown and Didi
1985 - Winner(s) |
1985 - Winner(s) | |
| Circle of Gold
1985 - Honor(s) |
1985 - Honor(s) | |
| A Little Love
1985 - Honor(s) |
1985 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| The Words of Martin Luther King, Jr.
1984 - Winner(s) |
1984 - Winner(s) | |
| Everett Anderson’s Goodbye
1984 - Winner(s) |
1984 - Winner(s) | |
| My Mama Needs Me
1984 - Winner(s) |
1984 - Winner(s) | |
| The Magical Adventures of Pretty Pearl
1984 - Honor(s) |
1984 - Honor(s) | |
| Lena Horne
1984 - Honor(s) |
1984 - Honor(s) | |
| Bright Shadow
1984 - Honor(s) |
1984 - Honor(s) | |
| Because We Are
1984 - Honor(s) |
1984 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Sweet Whispers, Brother Rush
1983 - Winner(s) |
1983 - Winner(s) | |
| Black Child
1983 - Winner(s) |
1983 - Winner(s) | |
| This Strange New Feeling
1983 - Honor(s) |
1983 - Honor(s) | |
| All the Colors of the Race
1983 - Honor(s) |
1983 - Honor(s) | |
| I’m Going to Sing: Black American Spirituals
1983 - Honor(s) |
1983 - Honor(s) | |
| Just Us Women
1983 - Honor(s) |
1983 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Mary: An Autobiography
1982 - Honor(s) |
1982 - Honor(s) | |
| Daydreamers
1982 - Honor(s) |
1982 - Honor(s) | |
| Let the Circle Be Unbroken
1982 - Winner(s) |
1982 - Winner(s) | |
| Mother Crocodile: An Uncle Amadou Tale from Sengal
1982 - Winner(s) |
1982 - Winner(s) | |
| Rainbow Jordan
1982 - Honor(s) |
1982 - Honor(s) | |
| Lou in the Limelight
1982 - Honor(s) |
1982 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| This Life
1981 - Winner(s) |
1981 - Winner(s) | |
| Beat the Story Drum, Pum-Pum
1981 - Winner(s) |
1981 - Winner(s) | |
| Don’t Explain: A Song of Billie Holiday
1981 - Honor(s) |
1981 - Honor(s) | |
| Grandmama’s Joy
1981 - Winner(s) |
1981 - Winner(s) | |
| Count on Your Fingers African Style
1981 - Honor(s) |
1981 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Childtimes: A Three-Generation Memoir
1980 - Honor(s) |
1980 - Honor(s) | |
| Andrew Young: Young Man with a Mission
1980 - Honor(s) |
1980 - Honor(s) | |
| James Van Der Zee: The Picture Takin’ Man
1980 - Honor(s) |
1980 - Honor(s) | |
| Let the Lion Eat Straw
1980 - Honor(s) |
1980 - Honor(s) | |
| The Young Landlords
1980 - Winner(s) |
1980 - Winner(s) | |
| Cornrows
1980 - Winner(s) |
1980 - Winner(s) | |
| Movin’ Up
1980 - Honor(s) |
1980 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Escape to Freedom
1979 - Winner(s) |
1979 - Winner(s) | |
| Something on My Mind
1979 - Winner(s) |
1979 - Winner(s) | |
| Benjamin Banneker
1979 - Honor(s) |
1979 - Honor(s) | |
| I Have a Sister, My Sister is Deaf
1979 - Honor(s) |
1979 - Honor(s) | |
| Justice and Her Brothers
1979 - Honor(s) |
1979 - Honor(s) | |
| Skates of Uncle Richard
1979 - Honor(s) |
1979 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Africa Dream
1978 - Winner(s) |
1978 - Winner(s) | |
| The Days When the Animals Talked: Black Folk Tales and How They Came to Be
1978 - Honor(s) |
1978 - Honor(s) | |
| Marvin and Tige
1978 - Honor(s) |
1978 - Honor(s) | |
| Mary McCleod Bethune
1978 - Honor(s) |
1978 - Honor(s) | |
| Barbara Jordan
1978 - Winner(s) |
1978 - Winner(s) | |
| Coretta Scott King
1978 - Honor(s) |
1978 - Honor(s) | |
| Portia: The Life of Portia Washington Pittman, the Daughter of Booker T. Washington
1978 - Honor(s) |
1978 - Honor(s) | |
| Africa Dream
1978 - Winner(s) |
1978 - Winner(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| The Story of Stevie Wonder
1977 - Winner(s) |
1977 - Winner(s) | |
| Everett Anderson's Friend
1977 - Honor(s) |
1977 - Honor(s) | |
| Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry
1977 - Honor(s) |
1977 - Honor(s) | |
| Quick Book on Black America
1977 - Honor(s) |
1977 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Duey’s Tale
1976 - Winner(s) |
1976 - Winner(s) | |
| Julius K. Nyerere: Teacher of Africa
1976 - Honor(s) |
1976 - Honor(s) | |
| Paul Robeson
1976 - Honor(s) |
1976 - Honor(s) | |
| Fast Sam, Cool Clyde and Stuff
1976 - Honor(s) |
1976 - Honor(s) | |
| Song of the Trees
1976 - Honor(s) |
1976 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| The Legend of Africana
1975 - Winner(s) |
1975 - Winner(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Ms. Africa: Profiles of Modern African Women
1974 - Honor(s) |
1974 - Honor(s) | |
| Guest in the Promised Land
1974 - Honor(s) |
1974 - Honor(s) | |
| Mukasa
1974 - Honor(s) |
1974 - Honor(s) | |
| Ray Charles
1974 - Winner(s) |
1974 - Winner(s) | |
| Ray Charles
1974 - Winner(s) |
1974 - Winner(s) | |
| A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich
1974 - Honor(s) |
1974 - Honor(s) | |
| Do You Remember?
1974 - Honor(s) |
1974 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| I Never Had it Made: The Autobiography of Jackie Robinson
1973 - Winner(s) |
1973 - Winner(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| 17 Black Artists
1972 - Winner(s) |
1972 - Winner(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Black Means
1971 - Honor(s) |
1971 - Honor(s) | |
| Ebony Book of Black Achievement
1971 - Honor(s) |
1971 - Honor(s) | |
| Mary Jo's Grandmother
1971 - Honor(s) |
1971 - Honor(s) | |
| Black Troubador: Langston Hughes
1971 - Winner(s) |
1971 - Winner(s) | |
| I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
1971 - Honor(s) |
1971 - Honor(s) | |
| Unbought and Unbossed
1971 - Honor(s) |
1971 - Honor(s) | |
| I Am a Black Woman
1971 - Honor(s) |
1971 - Honor(s) | |
| Every Man Heart Lay Down
1971 - Honor(s) |
1971 - Honor(s) | |
| The Voice of the Children
1971 - Honor(s) |
1971 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Martin Luther King, Jr.: Man of Peace
1970 - Winner(s) |
1970 - Winner(s) |
- Author or illustrator must live in the U.S. or maintain dual residency/citizenship.
- Book must be published in the year preceding the year the award is given, evidenced by the copyright date printed in the book.
- Only finished copies will be accepted. Do not send advance reader copies, galleys, etc.
- ALA Staff and the CSK Jury DOES NOT give reviews or critiques on books. This includes books being submitted to the Coretta Scott King Book Awards.
- Titles submitted for the Coretta Scott King Book Awards will not be returned. Titles received by the ODLOS office are donated as part of The Coretta Scott King Books Awards Donation Grant
- Due to supply chain issues throughout the publishing industry, digital copies of your book may be submitted if you are unable to submit a physical copy before the December 1st deadline. For more information, please contact dponton@ala.org.
The Award is given to an African American author and illustrator for outstanding inspirational and educational contributions. The Coretta Scott King Book Award titles promote understanding and appreciation of the culture of all peoples and their contribution to the realization of the American dream of a pluralistic society.
The Award is further designed to commemorate the life and works of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and to honor Mrs. Coretta Scott King for her courage and determination to continue the work for peace and world brotherhood.
The Criteria of the award is as follows:
- Must portray some aspect of the black experience, past, present, or future.
- Must be written/illustrated by an African American
- Must be published in the U.S. in the year preceding presentation of the Award. (For example: only books published in 2023 will qualify for the 2024 award.)
- Must be an original work
- Must meet established standards of quality writing for youth which include:
- Clear plot
- Well drawn characters, which portray growth and development during the course of the story.
- Writing style which is consistent with and suitable to the age intended
- Accuracy
- Must be written for a youth audience in one of three categories:
- Preschool-grade 4
- Grades 5-8
- Grades 9-12
- Particular attention will be paid to titles which seek to motivate readers to develop their own attitudes and behaviors as well as comprehend their personal duty and responsibility as citizens in a pluralistic society.
-
Illustrations should reflect established qualitative standards identified in the statement below:
Illustrations should... “heighten and extend the readers' awareness of the world around him. They should lead him to an appreciation of beauty. The style and content of the illustrations should be...neither coy nor condescending...Storytelling qualities should enlarge upon the story elements that were hinted in the text and should include details that will awaken and strengthen the imagination of the reader and permit him to interpret the words and pictures in a manner unique to him”
--Cianciolo, Illustrations in Children's Books (p. 24-25)
Review ALA’s personal data notification (PDN) before proceeding.
To submit a title for consideration:
- Review the eligibility and criteria.
- Complete the application form.
- After the form is submitted, you will receive additional information. All submissions must be received by the jury by December 1, 2024 at 4pm CST.
- Follow the mailing instructions in the confirmation to submit copies to the jury and ALA office.
FAQs
The Coretta Scott King Book Award was founded in 1969 by Mabel McKissick and Glyndon Greer at the American Library Association (ALA) Annual Conference in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The first award was given to Lillie Patterson in 1970 for her biography, Martin Luther King, Jr.: Man of Peace (Garrard).
In 1979, the Coretta Scott King Task Force was formed and became part of ALA’s Social Responsibilities Round Table (SRRT) the next year. In 1982, the Coretta Scott King Book Awards became an officially recognized ALA award. The Coretta Scott King Task Force joined ALA’s Ethnic and Multicultural Information Exchange Round Table (EMIERT) in 2003 and became the Coretta Scott Book Awards Committee.
The Coretta Scott King Book Awards have grown to include several categories. In 1974, George Ford became the first illustrator to receive the award for Ray Charles (Crowell). The John Steptoe Award for New Talent (originally the Genesis Award) was established in 1995 to recognize exceptional work from new African American authors and illustrators. The first Steptoe Award was given to Sharon Draper for Tears of a Tiger (Simon & Schuster). In 2010, the committee established the Coretta Scott King – Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement to be given alternately to an author or illustrator and a practitioner. The first Hamilton Award recipients were Walter Dean Myers (2010) and Henrietta M. Smith (2011).
Since 1972, the recipients of the Coretta Scott King Book Awards have been honored at a celebratory breakfast during the ALA Annual Conference. In 2009, ALA published the fourth edition of The Coretta Scott King Awards, a complete history of the awards edited by Henrietta M. Smith.
The Coretta Scott King Book Awards Seal was designed by artist Lev Mills in 1974. The symbolism in the seal reflects both Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s philosophy and the ideals of the award.
The basic circle represents continuity in movement, resolving from one idea to another. Within the circle is the image of an African American child reading a book. The five main religious symbols below the image of the child represent nonsectarianism. The superimposed pyramid symbolizes both strength and Atlanta University, the award’s headquarters when the seal was designed. At the apex of the pyramid is the dove, symbolic of peace. The rays shine toward peace and brotherhood.
The bronze seal denotes a Coretta Scott King Book Award author or illustrator winner; the silver denotes an author or illustrator honoree; and the green seal denotes a John Steptoe Award for New Talent recipient.
According to Lev Mills, the five nonsectarian* symbols on the seal represent:
Star and Crescent - a symbol of Islam. Many nations with a Muslim majority display this symbol on its flags. This not a religious symbol but rather it is a national, cultural, political, military, or community symbol.
Om - a symbol of Hinduism. The written form of the word is in Sanskrit, a language of India. The sound OM is used repeatedly during meditation.
Latin Cross - a symbol of Christianity; the cross upon which Jesus died; Christian emblem or badge.
Star of David - a hexagram used as a symbol of Judaism.
Tao - a symbol of China. Pronounced “Dow,” it has the design of “Yang and Yin” (Dualism); its purpose is to nourish balance in the universe.
*not affiliated with or limited to a specific religious denomination.
Information provided by Lev T. Mills designer of the Coretta Scott King Award seal. 6/13/2002, published in Ask the ALA Librarian (Hawkins, Valerie. Ask the ALA Librarian. (blog) American Library Association, October 10, 2012.)
The Coretta Scott King Book Awards seal images and award names are solely and exclusively owned by the American Library Association.
The John Steptoe Award for New Talent is occasionally given for young authors or illustrators who demonstrate outstanding promise at the beginning of their careers. Steptoe winners receive a plaque.
The Coretta Scott King - Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement is presented in even years to an African American author, illustrator or author/illustrator for a body of his or her published books for children and/or young adults, and who has made a significant and lasting literary contribution. In odd years, the award is presented to a practitioner for substantial contributions through active engagement with youth using award-winning African American literature for children and/or young adults, via the implementation of reading and reading-related activities/programs. Virginia Hamilton Award recipients receive a medal and $1,500.
The Awards are given in author and illustrator categories; honor recipients may also be named. Both the Author and Illustrator Winner recipients receive a plaque and $1,000.
Winners are announced during the ALA Youth Media Awards Announcement on the Monday morning of the ALA Midwinter Meeting in January. Winners are contacted that morning.
John Steptoe Award for New Talent
Purpose
The award is established to affirm new talent and to offer visibility to excellence in writing and/or illustration which otherwise might be formally unacknowledged within a given year within the structure of the two awards given annually by the Coretta Scott King Book Awards Committee.
These books affirm new talent and offer visibility to excellence in writing or illustration at the beginning of a career as a published book creator.
Selection Criteria
The criteria for eligibility will be the same as those for the writing and illustration awards, with the exception that the winner(s)' published works cannot exceed three in number.
An author or illustrator who has already received or has just been selected to win one of the Coretta Scott King Book Awards in the current year is not eligible for the John Steptoe Award for New Talent. An author may receive this award one time.
One award will be presented annually for text or illustrations. The committee may choose to select one book for writing and a second book for illustration. The award need not be given if the committee so decides in a particular year.
