Best Books of 2021
Which of thesE was named the best Book of the year?
If you answered “all of them!” You are correct. Thirteen LQ titles have been named among the BEST OF THE YEAR by The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Boston-Globe, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Publishers Weekly, Booklist, Kirkus and School Library Journal, among others. Here’s to another year of excellent, diverse, representative, and ground-breaking books!
PICTURE BOOKS
ALIEN NATION
Kirkus’ Best Books of the Year
BookShop’s Most Astonishingly Unconventional Books of the Year
★ Kirkus
RED AND GREEN AND BLUE AND WHITE
Association of Jewish Libraries’ Best of the Year
“We come together in strength. It's a message the world can use, throughout the year.”— New York Times
“Affecting. This moving tribute to religious pluralism will uplift children.” — Wall Street Journal
★ Publishers Weekly
★ School Library Connection
★ Horn Book
★ School Library Journal
★ Shelf-Awareness
SHY WILLOW
Amazon’s Best Books of the Month
BookPage’s Best Books of the Year
“Richly mysterious.” —The New York Times
★ Booklist
OSNAT AND HER DOVE
Canadian Jewish Literary Award Winner
Evanston Public Library’s 101 Great Books for Kids
School Library Journal’s Best Books of the Year
Tablet’s Best Jewish Children’s Books of the Year
★ School Library Journal
★ Shelf-Awareness
MIDDLE GRADE
NEVERFORGOTTEN
2021 Kids’ Indie Next List
A Fall 2021 Indies Introduce Selection
New York Times Best of the Year
New York Public Library’s Best of the Year
“A transformative, noteworthy debut.”—Pam Muñoz Ryan, New York Times
★ Publishers Weekly
★ Foreword Reviews
★ Kirkus
THE LAST CUENTISTA
TIME’s Best of the Year
Wall Street Journal’s Best of the Year
Minneapolis Star Tribune’s Best of the Year
Boston Globe’s Best of the Year
BookPage’s Best of the Year
Publishers Weekly’s Best of the Year
School Library Journal’s Best of the Year
Kirkus Reviews’ Best of the Year
Bank Street’s Best of the Year
Chicago Public Library’s Best of the Best
New York Public Library Best of the Year
“Gripping in its twists and turns, and moving in its themes—beautiful.”—New York Times
“Wonderfully subversive.” — The Wall Street Journal
“A beautifully told story of what makes us human.”—Star Tribune
“A thrilling and hopeful work of science fiction.”—Boston Globe
“Teaches young readers about the power of storytelling.”—TIME
★ Kirkus
★ Publishers Weekly
★ School Library Journal
★ Shelf-Awareness
THE SEA-RINGED WORLD: SACRED STORIES OF THE AMERICAS
School Library Journal’s Best of the Year
Kirkus’ Best of the Year
Booklist Editors’ Choice
Evanston Public Library’s 101 Great Books for Kids
Chicago Public Library’s Best of the Best
“Hypnotizing...Provocative...Disarming” —The New York Times
“Evocative and stirring...mesmerizing to read aloud.” —The Wall Street Journal
★ Publishers Weekly
★ Booklist
★ Kirkus
★ Horn Book
★ School Library Journal
★ School Library Connection
YOUNG ADULT
EVERYTHING YOU WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT INDIANS BUT WERE AFRAID TO ASK (YOUNG READERS EDITION)
Chicago Public Library’s Best of the Best
Kirkus’ Best of the Year
“A wide-ranging compendium of provocative questions and satisfying answers. Perfect for browsing or a deep dive.”—San Francisco Chronicle
★ Kirkus
★ School Library Journal
OKSI
Kirkus Most Anticipated for Fall
Booklist Editors’ Choice
“A fairytale nightmare of the highest quality, a heartfelt history lesson written in flames, a poem.”—Comics Beat
★ School Library Connection
★ Publishers Weekly
★ Booklist
★ Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
A SNAKE FALLS TO EARTH
National Indie Bestseller
National Book Award Longlist
Minneapolis Star Tribune Best of the Year
Publishers Weekly’s Best of the Year
Kirkus’ Best the Year
Apple’s Best of the Year
Chicago Public Library’s Best of the Best
New York Public Library’s Best of the Year
“Genre-bending narrative.”—TIME
“A spellbinding tale.” —Texas Monthly
“Undeniably charming.”—Tor.com
★ Kirkus
★ Publishers Weekly
★ Booklist
MIDDLETOWN
New England Book Awards Finalist
Chicago Public Library’s Best of the Best
★ Publishers Weekly