VA READS awards an award each year to each category, Picture Books and Middle Grade Readers.   

Students, teachers and librarians are eligible to vote if they have read at least half of the books on the list.  

Votes will be collected via a Google Form on this website in the spring.  

VA READS Illuminate Award :

Award Criteria:

• Quality literature for children

• Picture Books:  This book is an excellent read aloud book. 

• This is the readers' overall favorite from the 10 books on the list.

• This book shines as an outstanding example of children's literature.

• Book helps to expose readers to character(s) or author(s) of diverse backgrounds.

• Diversity of author/illustrator, #ownvoices

• Book provides mirrors, windows or sliding doors to children.

  • (Confused by the term sliding doors? These doors allow readers to walk into a story and become part of the world that has been created by the author. )

Winners will be notified by VA READS in May.

Picture Book Award Winners:

2022-2023 Every Night is Pizza Night by J. Kenji Lopez-Alt

2021- 2022 Fauja Singh Keeps Going by Simran Jeet Singh

2020 - 2021 A Normal Pig by K-Fai Steele

2019 - 2020 Bob Not Bob by Audrey Vernick and Liz Garton Scanlon 

Middle Grade/ES Chapter Book Winners

2022- 2023 Chunky by Yehudi Mercado

2021- 2022 Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B. Alston