The first AILA American Indian Youth Literature Awards were presented during the Joint Conference of Librarians of Color in 2006. Awarded biennially, the AIYLA identifies and honors the very best writing and illustrations by Native Americans and Indigenous peoples of North America. Books selected to receive the award present Indigenous North American peoples in the fullness of their humanity. In odd-numbered years, nominations are encouraged in fiction or nonfiction and may include graphic novels; for picture books, the award is for both author and illustrator. Awards are granted in even-numbered years. Authors/illustrators may win the American Indian Youth Literature Award in the categories Best Picture Book, Best Middle Grade Book, and Best Young Adult Book. In addition, up to five awards may be selected as Honors books in each category.
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Picture Book
Bowwow Powwow: Bagosenjige-niimi’idim
Bowwow Powwow: Bagosenjige-niimi’idim
Written by Brenda J. Child (Red Lake Ojibwe)
Translated into Ojibwe by Gordon Jourdain (Lac La Croix First Nation)
Illustrated by Jonathan Thunder (Red Lake Ojibwe)
Published by the Minnesota Historical Society Press, 2018
http://www.mnhs.org/mnhspress/books/bowwow-powwow
Middle School
Indian No More
Indian No More
Written by Charlene Willing McManis (Umpqua/Confederated Tribes of Grande Ronde) with Traci Sorell (Cherokee) cover art by Marlena Myles (Spirit Lake Dakota, Mohegan, Muscogee Creek)
Published by Tu Books / Lee & Low, 2019
Picture Book
Birdsong
Written and illustrated by Julie Flett (Cree-Métis)
Published by Greystone Kids, 2019
Picture Book
At the Mountain’s Base
Written by Traci Sorell (Cherokee)
Illustrated by Weshoyot Alvitre (Tongva/Scots-Gaelic)
Published by Kokila / Penguin Random House, 2019.
Picture Book
Raven Makes the Aleutians
Adapted from a traditional Tlingit story
Illustrated by Janine Gibbons (Haida, Raven of the Double-Finned Killer Whale clan, Brown Bear House)
Published by Sealaska Heritage, 2018
Middle School
The Grizzley Mother
The Grizzly Mother, written by Hetxw’ms Gyetxw (“Bret D. Huson,” Gitxsan), illustrated by Natasha Donovan (Métis Nation of British Columbia), and published by Highwater Press.
Young Adult
Surviving the City
Written by Tasha Spillet (Nehiyaw-Trinidadian)
Illustrated by Natasha Donovan (Métis Nation of British Columbia)
Published by Highwater Press, 2018
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