Theodor Seuss Geisel Award
Award Information
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Gigi and Ojiji
2023 - Honor(s) Gigi’s excitement about meeting Ojiji, her Japanese grandfather, gives way to uncertainty when he arrives. After her mother reassures her, Gigi and Ojiji begin to... |
2023 - Honor(s) | |
| Owl and Penguin
2023 - Honor(s) In three short chapters, Owl and Penguin support each other and find humor in sharing ice cream, attempting to fly, and enjoying a rainy day. |
2023 - Honor(s) | |
| A Seed Grows
2023 - Honor(s) The lifecycle of a sunflower from seed to flower and back to seed is presented in minimalistic, lyrical text accompanied by richly textured images of... |
2023 - Honor(s) | |
| I Did It!
2023 - Winner(s) With determination and some help from friends, a little creature learns to ride a bike. |
2023 - Winner(s) | |
| Fish and Wave
2023 - Honor(s) This gentle, action-packed comics reader presents a distinctive anthropomorphic pair navigating the early waters of friendship. Flexibility is key as this duo transitions from “me”... |
2023 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Fox at Night
2022 - Winner(s) Equipped with a pair of binoculars, Fox encounters nocturnal forest creatures who offer to help Fox realize the night is full of friends, not monsters—but... |
2022 - Winner(s) | |
| Beak & Ally #1: Unlikely Friends
2022 - Honor(s) |
2022 - Honor(s) | |
| I Hop
2022 - Honor(s) |
2022 - Honor(s) | |
| Nothing Fits a Dinosaur
2022 - Honor(s) |
2022 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| See the Cat: Three Stories About a Dog
2021 - Winner(s) |
2021 - Winner(s) | |
| The Bear in My Family
2021 - Honor(s) |
2021 - Honor(s) | |
| Ty's Travels: Zip, Zoom!
2021 - Honor(s) |
2021 - Honor(s) | |
| What About Worms!?
2021 - Honor(s) |
2021 - Honor(s) | |
| Where's Baby?
2021 - Honor(s) |
2021 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
Stop! Bot!
2020 - Winner(s) |
2020 - Winner(s) |
|
Flubby is Not a Good Pet!
2020 - Honor(s) |
2020 - Honor(s) |
|
Chick and Brain: Smell My Foot!
2020 - Honor(s) |
2020 - Honor(s) |
|
The Book Hog
2020 - Honor(s) |
2020 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Fox the Tiger
2019 - Winner(s) Playful Fox loves tigers so much he turns into one (with the help of some paint) in this comical early reader. |
2019 - Winner(s) | |
| The Adventures of Otto: See Pip Flap
2019 - Honor(s) Pip wants to fly! With ingenuity and robot know-how, Otto figures out a way to help his rodent friend achieve his airborne dream. In “See... |
2019 - Honor(s) | |
| Fox + Chick: The Party and Other Stories
2019 - Honor(s) Wily Chick and patient pal Fox star in three charming vignettes in which they explore the fun and frustrations of friendship. The warm and humorous... |
2019 - Honor(s) | |
| King & Kayla and the Case of the Lost Tooth
2019 - Honor(s) When Kayla's tooth goes missing from the tooth fairy pillow, she and her dog, King, investigate the mystery. |
2019 - Honor(s) | |
| Tiger vs. Nightmare
2019 - Honor(s) Tiger relies on her friend, Monster, to keep her nightmares at bay each night, until one nightmare slips through, causing Tiger to rethink the arrangement. |
2019 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
Charlie & Mouse
2018 - Winner(s) In four short chapters that could each stand alone, readers join young brothers Charlie and Mouse on a full day of imaginative adventures. The brothers talk... |
2018 - Winner(s) |
|
I See a Cat
2018 - Honor(s) Earliest readers enjoy a bird’s-eye view of the daily experiences of a family’s pet dog as it waits for the return of his beloved boy... |
2018 - Honor(s) |
|
King & Kayla and the Case of the Missing Dog Treats
2018 - Honor(s) In this mystery, Kayla’s dog King is accused of eating treats that she baked for her friend’s puppy. In five chapters King displays his sleuthing... |
2018 - Honor(s) |
|
My Kite Is Stuck! And Other Stories
2018 - Honor(s) In this sequel to “Duck, Duck, Porcupine,” the hilarious trio continue their antics with Little Duck saving the day every time. The graphic novel format... |
2018 - Honor(s) |
|
Noodleheads See the Future
2018 - Honor(s) Mac and Mac, Noodleheads hoping to eat a cake in their future, find themselves in hilarious situations generated from their own foolishness. The authors and... |
2018 - Honor(s) |
|
Snail & Worm Again
2018 - Honor(s) Snail and Worm’s gentle friendship and support of one another in these humorous and charming stories will delight readers. The seamless introduction of consonant blends... |
2018 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| We Are Growing: A Mo Willems’ Elephant & Piggie Like Reading! Book
2017 - Winner(s) With an endorsement from Elephant and Piggie, early readers will delight in following the hilarious and zany growth spurts of seven blades of grass. As... |
2017 - Winner(s) | |
| Good Night Owl
2017 - Honor(s) As owl is going to sleep, he is repeatedly interrupted by a "squeek". Determined to find its source, Owl tears apart his house from cupboard... |
2017 - Honor(s) | |
| Oops, Pounce, Quick, Run! An Alphabet Caper
2017 - Honor(s) A mouse. A dog. And a ball. This clever romp carries beginning readers on an epic chase using common and decodable words and strong illustrative... |
2017 - Honor(s) | |
| Go Otto Go!
2017 - Honor(s) Using just twenty different words, readers encounter an engaging robot adventure with surprising emotional complexity. Milgrim masterfully expands this extremely simple text through humorous, energetic... |
2017 - Honor(s) | |
| The Infamous Ratsos
2017 - Honor(s) Two city dwelling rat brothers set out to prove just how tough they are. Yet their every attempt to cause havoc has unintended – and... |
2017 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
Waiting
2016 - Honor(s)
Five animal figurines wait together by the window. In this gentle story, readers and characters meet new friends, observe the unhurried passage of the... |
2016 - Honor(s) |
|
Supertruck
2016 - Honor(s)
When a blizzard comes to town, an unassuming garbage truck secretly trades his glasses for a powerful snowplow and becomes the heroic "Supertruck.” Savage’s... |
2016 - Honor(s) |
|
Don’t Throw It to Mo!
2016 - Winner(s)
In Don’t Throw It to Mo! underdog football player Mo Jackson may be the smallest kid on his team, but Coach Steve has a...
|
2016 - Winner(s) |
|
A Pig, a Fox, and a Box
2016 - Honor(s)
Fox likes to play tricks on Pig using a box, but in three brief episodes the not-so-clever Fox comes out worse in each event... |
2016 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
You Are (Not) Small
2015 - Winner(s) In “You Are (Not) Small,” a heated debate quickly ensues when two furry creatures can’t agree on who is big and who is small. As... |
2015 - Winner(s) |
|
Waiting Is Not Easy!
2015 - Honor(s) Piggie has a big surprise for Gerald, but does he have the patience to wait? As the day wears on, Piggie remains calm while...
|
2015 - Honor(s) |
|
Mr. Putter and Tabby Turn the Page
2015 - Honor(s) Mr. Putter and his cat Tabby are excited to participate in a library read-aloud program, but they are nervous when Mrs. Teaberry and her unpredictable... |
2015 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
The Watermelon Seed
2014 - Winner(s) A watermelon-loving crocodile becomes distraught after swallowing a seed, believing it will grow inside of him. Told in straight-forward, accessible vocabulary, this innovative look at... |
2014 - Winner(s) |
|
A Big Guy Took My Ball!
2014 - Honor(s) Gerald comes to Piggie’s aid when a big guy takes away the ball she found. The classic schoolyard encounter has a wry twist and satisfying... |
2014 - Honor(s) |
|
Ball
2014 - Honor(s) A ball-obsessed pup desperately waits for his owner to return to continue their play. The earliest reader will be empowered by the one-word text melded... |
2014 - Honor(s) |
|
Penny and Her Marble
2014 - Honor(s) Penny has second thoughts after picking up a beautiful, blue marble from her neighbor’s yard. Was it wrong to take this treasure? Penny’s moral dilemma... |
2014 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
Up, Tall and High
2013 - Winner(s) |
2013 - Winner(s) |
|
Let’s Go for a Drive
2013 - Honor(s) |
2013 - Honor(s) |
|
Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons
2013 - Honor(s) |
2013 - Honor(s) |
|
Rabbit & Robot: The Sleepover
2013 - Honor(s) |
2013 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
See Me Run
2012 - Honor(s) |
2012 - Honor(s) |
|
Tales for Very Picky Eaters
2012 - Winner(s) |
2012 - Winner(s) |
|
I Broke My Trunk
2012 - Honor(s) |
2012 - Honor(s) |
|
I Want My Hat Back
2012 - Honor(s) |
2012 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
Bink and Gollie
2011 - Winner(s) |
2011 - Winner(s) |
|
Ling & Ting: Not Exactly the Same!
2011 - Honor(s) |
2011 - Honor(s) |
|
We Are in a Book!
2011 - Honor(s) |
2011 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
Mouse and Mole: Fine Feathered Friends
2010 - Honor(s) |
2010 - Honor(s) |
|
Benny and Penny in the Big No-No!
2010 - Winner(s) Geoffrey Hayes, creator of over forty books for children presents beginning readers with an exciting new tale. Siblings Benny and Penny encounter trouble when curiosity... |
2010 - Winner(s) |
|
I Spy Fly Guy!
2010 - Honor(s) |
2010 - Honor(s) |
|
Little Mouse Gets Ready
2010 - Honor(s) |
2010 - Honor(s) |
|
Pearl and Wagner: One Funny Day
2010 - Honor(s) |
2010 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
Chicken Said, 'Cluck!'
2009 - Honor(s) Earl and Pearl shoo Chicken away as they work on their pumpkin patch, but as the story comes full circle, it’s Chicken who does the... |
2009 - Honor(s) |
|
One Boy
2009 - Honor(s) One Boy is an eye-catching picture book leading readers to discover words within words through a distinctive die-cut design and clean, bold illustrations. A surprise... |
2009 - Honor(s) |
|
Are You Ready to Play Outside?
2009 - Winner(s) Willems has created a masterpiece for beginning readers that is simply told through the use of dialogue, which melds perfectly with uncluttered pink and grey... |
2009 - Winner(s) |
|
Stinky
2009 - Honor(s) Stinky, the swamp monster, is at first determined to rid his beloved “muddy, slimy, smelly swamp” of Nick, only to realize that this dreaded “kid”... |
2009 - Honor(s) |
|
Wolfsnail: A Backyard Predator
2009 - Honor(s) An exciting nonfiction look at the carnivorous wolfsnail trapping and devouring its victim, this science book uses bold block type against a white background to... |
2009 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
There Is a Bird on Your Head
2008 - Winner(s) In this humorous account of Elephant Gerald and Piggie's ongoing friendship, Gerald learns that there is something worse than having a bird on your head--having... |
2008 - Winner(s) |
|
First the Egg
2008 - Honor(s) Simple words and paintings create a jewel-like package in a stylish yet unpretentious book, inviting the new reader in again and again. Lush, textured paint... |
2008 - Honor(s) |
|
Hello, Bumblebee Bat
2008 - Honor(s) Nine questions and answers introduce the world's smallest bat in an informational book for emerging readers. Straightforward text pops out of a sparse background allowing... |
2008 - Honor(s) |
|
Jazz Baby
2008 - Honor(s) Bebop rhyme and repeated stanzas are just the right rhythm for young readers in a nostalgic celebration of dancing, singing and playing music. New words... |
2008 - Honor(s) |
|
Vulture View
2008 - Honor(s) Rhyming, lyrical text, juxtaposed with dramatic textured collage come together in an innovative combination of science and poetry for new readers. Spare text placed on... |
2008 - Honor(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
Mercy Watson Goes for a Ride
2007 - Honor(s) Mr. Watson's pig, the "porcine wonder" finally gets behind the wheel of a 1959 pink convertible. Van Dusen's gouache illustrations add a retro appearance to... |
2007 - Honor(s) |
|
Move Over, Rover!
2007 - Honor(s) Beaumont's patterned cumulative text is expanded by Dyer's watercolors containing context clues to tell the story of creatures from Squirrel to Skunk seeking shelter by... |
2007 - Honor(s) |
|
Not a Box
2007 - Honor(s) Spare line drawings and minimal text show a personified bunny playing with, in and on a cardboard box. Beginning readers delight in discovering the rabbit's... |
2007 - Honor(s) |
|
Zelda and Ivy: The Runaways
2007 - Winner(s) The popular fox sisters return in this book with three adventures precipitated by their need to avoid the dreaded cucumber sandwiches dad is preparing. Strong... |
2007 - Winner(s) |
| Title | Year | |
|---|---|---|
|
Henry and Mudge and the Great Grandpas
2006 - Winner(s) In four simple and joyful chapters, Henry and his sweet-natured dog enjoy a memorable visit with great-grandpa Bill and his buddies at the "grandpa house." ... |
2006 - Winner(s) |
|
Hi! Fly Guy
2006 - Honor(s) In Hi! Fly Guy, a beautiful friendship begins when Buzz the boy, proves that a fly can be one smart pet. This slim, reader-friendly... |
2006 - Honor(s) |
|
A Splendid Friend, Indeed
2006 - Honor(s) In a picture-book format perfect for emergent readers, a persistent goose wins the affection and friendship of a preoccupied polar bear. The expressive pastel paintings... |
2006 - Honor(s) |
|
Cowgirl Kate and Cocoa
2006 - Honor(s) Plucky Kate and her beloved horse have a day of adventures, including surprises, counting crows, and bedding down in the barn. Along the trail, the... |
2006 - Honor(s) |
|
Amanda Pig and the Really Hot Day
2006 - Honor(s) It's too darn hot. Hot as a fried egg. Hot as toast. Hot as oatmeal. In four simple linked tales, Amanda Pig and the Really... |
2006 - Honor(s) |
The Award is restricted to author(s) and illustrator(s) who are citizens or residents of the United States.The committee in its deliberations is to consider only the books eligible for the award, as specified in the terms.The "author(s) and illustrator(s)" may include co-authors and co-illustrators. The author(s) and illustrator(s) may be awarded the medal posthumously."Distinguished" is defined as: Marked by distinction: noted for significant achievement; Marked by excellence in quality; Marked by conspicuous excellence or eminence; Individually distinct; Providing a stimulating and successful reading experience for the beginning reader containing the kind of plot, sensibility, and rhythm that can carry a child along from start to finish."American children’s literature" means that books originally published in other countries are not eligible."Contribution to the body of children’s literature that encourages and supports the beginning reader" indicates the text of a book, which must be directed at readers from pre-K through Grade 2. The book must also contain illustrations, which function as keys or clues to the text. The committee shall consider all forms of writing—fiction, non-fiction, and poetry.
Reprints and compilations are not eligible.
The ALSC office is only requesting for one copy to be sent to the ALSC office and one copy to the committee chair. Standards are in place for the committee members to review and share submissions. If you are submitting for multiple awards, only one copy needs to be sent to the ALSC office.
Neither the ALSC office nor the committee chair can confirm receipt of submissions. If you would like to confirm receipt of your submission please use a mailing service with delivery confirmation. Submissions that are dropped off in- person to the ALSC office will not be accepted.
The ALSC office cannot answer eligibility questions or advise on which award your submission is eligible for. It is up to you to review the terms and criteria and if you feel you qualify, submit as appropriate. Eligibility is determined by the committee and is confidential.
The book and media awards are announced each year at ALA’s Midwinter Meeting in January. The materials received by the ALSC office throughout the year will be used for ALSC’s Bookapalooza Program. The Bookapalooza Program selects three libraries to receive a Bookapalooza collection of these materials to be used in a way that creatively enhances their library service to children and families.
Deadline for submitting books is December 31 of the publication year.
