Coretta Scott King Book Award Winners 1970 to Present
The Coretta Scott King Awards are presented annually by the American Library Association to honor African-American authors and illustrators who create outstanding books for children and young adults. “… an
excellent start on your quest for the best in African-American literature for children.”
The CSK Book Awards seal and award names are owned by the American Library Association.
The award was established in 1969 to recognize authors. In 1979 it was expanded to include a separate award for illustrators. There are now five categories for book awards; Author, Author Honor, Illustrator, Illustrator Honor, and the John Steptoe Award for New Talent.
These awards are given to commemorate the life and work of the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and to honor Mrs. Coretta Scott King for her continuing efforts in working for peace and civil rights issues. In 2015 The Coretta Scott King Awards became part of the Youth Media Awards. Here is a printable list of all the award winning books.
You may learn more, about this award, at the American Library Association’s website. Also check out our list of Top 100+ Recommended African-American Children’s Books, some are also CSK Award winning titles.
9 Coretta Scott King Award Winning and Honored Books for 2020
Author Award
New Kid
by Jerry Craft
- A Top 150 Children’s Book
- 4 Time AALBC.com Bestselling Book!
- Selected for 1 Book Club’s Reading List
- Coretta Scott King Award Winning Book 2020
- Kirkus Prize Finalist/Winner 2019
- Newbery Medal Winner or Honor 2020
HarperCollins (Feb 05, 2019)
Fiction, Hardcover, 256 pages
Target Age Group: Middle Grade
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Read Our Review of New Kid
Author Honor
Look Both Ways: A Tale Told in Ten Blocks
by Jason Reynolds
List Price: $17.99Atheneum (Oct 08, 2019)
Fiction, Paperback, 208 pages
Target Age Group: Young Adult
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Author Honor
The Stars and the Blackness Between Them
by Junauda Petrus
List Price: $17.99Dutton Books for Young Readers (Sep 17, 2019)
Fiction, Hardcover, 320 pages
Target Age Group: Young Adult
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Author Honor
Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky
by Kwame Mbalia
List Price: $17.99Rick Riordan Presents (Oct 15, 2019)
Fiction, Hardcover, 496 pages
Target Age Group: Middle Grade
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Illustrator Award
The Undefeated
by Kwame Alexander, Illustrated by Kadir Nelson
3-time National Bestseller, Juvenile Nonfiction
- A 2024 National Bestselling Book – Juvenile Nonfiction
- A 2023 National Bestselling Book - Juvenile Nonfiction
- A Top 150 Children’s Book
- 11 Time AALBC.com Bestselling Book!
- Coretta Scott King Award Winning Book 2020
- Carter G. Woodson Award Winning Book 2020
- Kirkus Prize Finalist/Winner 2019
- Newbery Medal Winner or Honor 2020
- Caldecott Medal Winner or Honor 2020
Versify (Apr 02, 2019)
Nonfiction, Hardcover, 40 pages
Target Age Group: Picture Book
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Read Our Review of The Undefeated
Illustrator Honor
Infinite Hope: A Black Artist’s Journey from World War II to Peace
by Ashley Bryan
List Price: $21.99Atheneum (Oct 15, 2019)
Nonfiction, Hardcover, 112 pages
Target Age Group: Middle Grade
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Illustrator Honor
Sulwe
by Lupita Nyong’o, Illustrated by Vashti Harrison
- A Top 150 Children’s Book
- 11 Time AALBC.com Bestselling Book!
- Coretta Scott King Award Winning Book 2020
- An NAACP Image Award Honored Book
- 2020 Children’s Africana Book Award Winner or Honoree
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers (Oct 15, 2019)
Fiction, Hardcover, 48 pages
Target Age Group: Picture Book
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Read Our Review of Sulwe
John Steptoe Award for New Talent
Genesis Begins Again
by Alicia D. Williams
- A Top 150 Children’s Book
- 4 Time AALBC.com Bestselling Book!
- Coretta Scott King Award Winning Book 2020
- Kirkus Prize Finalist/Winner 2019
- Newbery Medal Winner or Honor 2020
Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books (Jan 15, 2019)
Fiction, Hardcover, 336 pages
Target Age Group: Middle Grade
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Read Our Review of Genesis Begins Again
John Steptoe Illustrator Award for New Talent
What Is Given from the Heart
by Patricia C. Mckissack, Illustrated by April Harrison
List Price: $17.99Schwartz & Wade (Jan 08, 2019)
Fiction, Hardcover, 40 pages
Target Age Group: Picture Book
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