A Line Can Go Anywhere: The Brilliant, Resilient Life of Artist Ruth Asawa
by Caroline McAlister and Jamie Green
(Finalist, 2026)
A Map for Falasteen: A Palestinian Child’s Search for Home
by Maysa Odeh and Aliaa Betawi
(Honor, 2025)
Amil and the After
by Veera Hiranandani
(Finalist, 2025)
Top Story
by Kelly Yang
(Finalist, 2024)
The Night Diary
by Veera Hiranandani
(Honor, 2019)
Razia’s Ray of Hope: One Girl’s Dream of an Education
by Elizabeth Suneby, illustrated by Suana Verelst
(Honor, 2014)
Weedflower
by Cynthia Kadohata
(Winner, 2007)
The Breadwinner
by Deborah Ellis
(Commended, 2004)
Hiroshima No Pika
by Toshi Maruki
(Winner, 1983)
The Wheel of King Asoka
by Ashok Davar
(Commended, 1978)
The House Before Falling Into the Sea
by Ann Suk Wang and Hanna Cha
(Finalist, 2025)
I’m from Here Too
by Kashmira Sheth
(Finalist, 2025)
Land of Broken Promises
by Jane Kuo
(Finalist, 2024)
Strong as Fire, Fierce as Flame
by Supriya Kelkar
(Honor, 2022)
The Day You Begin
by Jacqueline Woodson, illustrated Rafael López
(Winner, 2019)
Inside Out & Back Again
by Thanhhà Lại
(Honor, 2012)
Henry and the Kite Dragon
by Bruce Edward Hall, illustrated by William Low
(Honor, 2005)
When My Name Was Keoko
by Linda Sue Park
(Honor, 2003)
Passage to Freedom: The Sugihara Story
by Ken Mochizuki, illustrated by Dom Lee
(Honor, 1998)
The Strongest Heart
by Saadia Faruqi
(Finalist, 2026)
Seeker of Truth: Kailash Satyarthi’s Fight to End Child Labor
by Srividhya Venkat and Danica da Silva Pereira
(Finalist, 2025)
Mani Semilla Finds Her Quetzal Voice
by Anna Lapera
(Finalist, 2025)
Dream, Annie, Dream
by Waka T. Brown
(Finalist, 2023)
I Am an American: The Wong Kim Ark Story
by Martha Brockenbrough, Grace Lin, illustrated by Julia Kuo
(Finalist, 2023)
A Wish in the Dark
by Christina Soontornvat
(Winner, 2021)
Malala’s Magic Pencil
by Malala Yousafzai, illustrated by Kerascoët
(Winner, 2018)
Full Cicada Moon
(Honor, 2016)
Mud City
by Deborah Ellis
(Commended, 2004)
Child of the Owl
by Laurence Yep
Up, Up, Ever Up!: Junko Tabei: A Life in the Mountains
by Anita Yasuda and Yuko Shimizu
(Picture Book Finalist, 2025)
Unsettled
by Reem Faruqi
(Finalist, 2022)
Fred Korematsu Speaks Up
by Laura Atkins and Stan Yogi, illustrated by Yutaka Houlette
(Honor, 2018)
Sachiko: A Nagasaki Bomb Survivor’s Story
(Winner, 2017)
Parvana’s Journey
by Deborah Ellis
(Commended, 2004)
(Winner, 2003)
Sylvia & Aki
by Winifred Conkling
(Winner, 2012)
A Group of One
by Rachna Gilmore
(Honor, 2002)
The Road from Home: The Story of an Armenian Girl
by David Kherdian
Every Little Bit Olive Tran
by Phuong Truong
(Finalist, 2026)
Fake Chinese Sounds
by Jing Jing Tsong
(Finalist, 2025)
Brother’s Keeper
by Julie Lee
(Finalist, 2020)
Kamala and Maya’s Big Idea
by Meena Harris, illustrated by Ana Ramírez González
(Finalist, 2020)
Nasreen’s Secret School: A True Story from Afghanistan
by Jeanette Winter
(Winner, 2010)
Rickshaw Girl
by Mitali Perkins, illustrated by Jamie Hogan
(Honor, 2008)
A Place Where Sunflowers Grow
by Amy Lee-Tai, illustrated by Felicia Hoshino
(Winner, 2007)
The Journey: Japanese Americans, Racism and Renewal
by Sheila Hamanaka
Dragonwings
by Laurence Yep
(Honor, 1976)
TeachingBooks defines their category of “AAPI” as: “Books focusing on the histories, cultures, experiences, and perspectives of people of Asian descent living anywhere in the world.”
Other Resources
May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month! Learn more here.
Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association Award for Literature
This award honors and recognizes individual work about Asian/Pacific Americans and their heritage, based on literary and artistic merit. Find out more here.