New York, N.Y.–(November 19, 2023)–The Jane Addams Peace Association is delighted to announce 13 finalist titles under consideration for the 2024 Jane Addams Children’s Book Award in the Picture Book category. Please find them listed at the conclusion of this release.
The Jane Addams Peace Association will announce winning and honor books from among these finalists on January 12, 2024. Awards will be presented to the winning and honored authors and illustrators at an in person ceremony in Spring 2024 (exact date to come). All are invited, whether they be in classrooms, libraries or at home.
Since 1953, the Jane Addams Children’s Book Award has annually recognized “children’s books of literary and aesthetic excellence that effectively engage children in thinking about peace, social justice, global community, and equity for all people.” A national committee of members with passion for and expertise in children’s literature and social justice is responsible for making the choices each year.
We believe that these books, and others like them, can open up conversations between children and their adults–teachers, librarians and caregivers–about what is happening in the world around them and how they can be changemakers in their own families and communities. We hope that promoting our final contenders in this way will serve to highlight a greater number of excellent children’s books that can deepen understanding of peace and justice.
A special thanks to the Hastings Peace & Justice Fund for their generous support of the Jane Addams Children’s Book Award for many years.
2024 Jane Addams Children’s Book Award Finalists for Picture Books
A Hero Like Me. Angela Joy and Jen Reid, illustrated by Leire Salaberria. Frances Lincoln Children’s Books/Quarto Group.
A Song for the Unsung: Bayard Rustin, the Man Behind the 1963 March on Washington. Carole Boston Weatherford and Rob Sanders, illustrated by Byron McCray. Henry Holt & Company/Macmillan.
Autumn Peltier, Water Warrior. Carole Lindstrom, illustrated by Bridget George. Roaring Brook Press/Macmillan.
Hidden Hope: How a Toy and a Hero Saved Lives During the Holocaust. Elisa Boxer, illustrated by Amy June Bates. Abrams Books.
How Do You Spell Unfair? MacNolia Cox and the National Spelling Bee. Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Frank Morrison. Candlewick Press.
Justice Ketanji: The Story of US Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson. Denise Lewis Patrick, illustrated by Kim Holt. Orchard Books/Scholastic.
My Red, White and Blue. Alana Tyson, illustrated by London Ladd. Philomel Books/Penguin Random House.
Something, Someday. Amanda Gorman, illustrated by Christian Robinson. Viking Books/Penguin Random House.
Spanish Is the Language of My Family. Michael Genhart, illustrated by John Parra. Neal Porter/Holiday House.
That Flag. Tameka Fryer Brown, illustrated by Nikkolas Smith. HarperCollins Children’s Books.
The Artivist. Nikkolas Smith. Kokila/Penguin Random House.
The Walk. Winsome Bingham, illustrated by E.B. Lewis. Abrams Books.
To Boldly Go: How Nichelle Nichols and Star Trek Helped Advance Civil Rights. Angela Dalton, illustrated by Lauren Semmer. HarperCollins Children’s Books.