ALA 2026 Winners
The ALA 2026 Youth Media Awards were announced on Jan. 26, 2026 in Chicago. It’s a celebration of kidlit and a way to discover new books and support authors and illustrators. Below are the books on this year’s winner list that I have read and enjoyed.
You and Me on Repeat by Mary Shyne (2025)
William C. Morris Award Finalist
This graphic novel is in the mold of Groundhog Day and other stories where characters have to repeat a time of their lives endlessly. Frenemies Chris and Alicia are stuck in the time loop together on graduation day. Chris believes he just need to experience the perfect kiss to break out of the repeats, but Alicia knows there is more to it.
Where Wolves Don’t Die by Anton Treuer and Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley (2024)
American Indian Youth Literature Young Adult Honor Book
When trouble finds 15-year-old Ezra at home in Minneapolis, the teen — a member of the Nigigoonsiminikaaning First Nation in Canada — goes north to live with his grandfather until things quiet down. He spends the winter helping his grandfather set trap lines and learning the ways to live in the wilderness. I loved the details given about the intricacies of survival.
Sisters in the Wind by Angeline Boulley (2025)
Printz Honor Book; American Indian Youth Literature Young Adult Honor Book
This third book in Boulley’s Sugar Island universe follows Lucy, a girl poised between adolescence and adulthood. Lucy’s dad died of cancer when she was a tween, and she’s been in foster care since. She quickly learned that there are good foster homes and not-good foster homes. Characters Daunis and Jamie (familiar from Firekeeper’s Daughter) enter Lucy’s life as she tries to reach a place of independence, family, and peace. Boulley carefully doles out information on the mystery of the book to keep the reader hooked.
Song of a Blackbird by Maria van Lieshout (2025)
Printz Honor Book
This graphic novel depicts two time periods in The Netherlands: the early 2000s and World War II. A granddaughter in the near present helps an ailing elder solve mysteries about her past and her birth family while we see what that family endured during the war. I liked how the book showed many forms of resistance and reminded me that we can all play a part in fighting against fascism.
Legendary Frybread Drive-in: Intertribal Stories, edited by Cynthia Leitich Smith
American Indian Youth Literature Award for Best Young Adult Book; Michael L. Printz Award Winner
The stories in this collection all connect to a mystical drive-in. Any Native person can find it when they need it — for food, companionship, and community. The teens in the stories are all searching, and the drive-in helps them find home.