Lerner Publishing Group Receives Four American Library Association Youth Media Awards

LERNER AUTHOR CAROLE BOSTON WEATHERFORD WINNER OF THE CHILDREN’S LITERATURE LEGACY AWARD

AN ETROG FROM ACROSS THE SEA BY DEBORAH BODIN COHEN AND KERRY OLITZKY, ILLUSTRATED BY STACEY DRESSEN MCQUEEN, WINNER OF THE 2025 SYDNEY TAYLOR BOOK AWARD IN THE PICTURE BOOK CATEGORY

THE ROCK IN MY THROAT BY KAO KALIA YANG AND ILLUSTRATED BY JIEMEI LIN RECEIVES AN ASIAN/PACIFIC AMERICAN AWARD FOR LITERATURE PICTURE BOOK HONOR

CRUZITA AND THE MARIACHEROS NAMED A PURA BELPRÉ CHILDREN’S AUTHOR HONOR BOOK

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – Lerner Publishing Group™ has received four 2025 American Library Association (ALA) Youth Media Awards. Lerner author Carole Boston Weatherford was honored with the Children’s Literature Legacy Award. In addition, An Etrog from Across the Sea won the Sydney Taylor Book Award in the Picture Book category, The Rock in My Throat received an Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature Picture Book Honor, and Cruzita and the Mariacheros was named a Pura Belpré Children’s Author Honor Book. The ALA awards were announced this morning at the Youth Media Awards ceremony during the LibLearnX conference in Phoenix, Arizona.

Carole Boston Weatherford is the winner of the 2025 Children’s Literature Legacy Award which honors an author or illustrator whose books, published in the United States, have made, over a period of years, a substantial and lasting contribution to literature for children through books that demonstrate integrity and respect for all children’s lives and experiences. Weatherford’s books include Unspeakable: The Tulsa Race Massacre, which was the recipient of a Caldecott Honor, a Sibert Honor, and winner of the Coretta Scott King Book Awards for Author and Illustrator; Call Me Miss Hamilton: One Woman’s Case for Equality and Respect which was named a Chicago Public Library Best of the Best Books; and The Doll Test: Choosing Equality which Booklist acclaimed in a starred review is “Suitable for kids, but deserving of a much wider audience… award winners Weatherford and Cooper have created an impactful and compelling book.”

An Etrog from Across the Sea by Deborah Bodin Coehn and Kerry Olitzky, illustrated by Stacey Dressen McQueen, and published in 2024 by Kar-Ben Publishing®, won the Sydney Taylor Book Award in the Picture Book category. Kirkus Reviews says An Entrog from Across the Sea “offers a glimpse into a lesser-known aspect of colonial America and celebrates the warmth of family togetherness.” The book was recognized by the Sydney Taylor Book Awards committee as an outstanding book for children and teens that authentically portrays the Jewish experience.

The Rock in My Throat, written by Kao Kalia Yang, illustrated by Jiemei Lin, and published in 2024 by Carolrhoda Books®, received a 2025 Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature Picture Book Honor. The award is presented annually to books by or about Asian Pacific Americans that celebrate Asian/Pacific culture and heritage. Also named a Heartland Booksellers Award Finalist, The Rock in My Throat is a moving true story in which Kao Kalia Yang shares her experiences as a Hmong refugee child navigating life at home and school in America while carrying the weight of her selective mutism. In a starred review, Booklist says The Rock in My Throat is “A heartfelt story that teaches children about diversity and reflects difficulties with being different, understood, and accepted.”

Cruzita and the Mariacheros written by Ashley Granillo and published in 2024 by Carolrhoda Books®, was named a Pura Belpré Children’s Author Honor Book. The Pura Belpré awards are presented annually to a Latino/Latina writer and illustrator whose work best portrays, affirms, and celebrates the Latino cultural experience in an outstanding work of literature for children and youth. In this middle grade novel, Cruzita wants to be a pop star. She doesn’t want to take mariachi lessons—until she and her fellow mariacheros come up with a plan to save her family’s struggling bakery and to let Cruzita shine. In a starred review, School Library Journal says “Mariachi, family, and pan dulce are the ingredients for this perfect middle grade novel.”

“Lerner Publishing Group is honored to receive four ALA awards and honors in the same year,” said Adam Lerner, Publisher and CEO of Lerner Publishing Group. “We are thrilled that the Children’s Literature Legacy Award, Sydney Taylor Book Award, Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature, and Pura Belpré Award committees have recognized the amazing stories and wide-ranging talent of Carole, Deborah, Kerry, Stacey, Kalia, Jiemei, and Ashley.”

For more information about author Carole Boston Weatherford, An Etrog from Across the Sea, The Rock in My Throat, and Cruzita and the Mariacheros visit lernerbooks.com.

Praise for An Etrog from Across the Sea:
“This touching story, written by two rabbis, offers a glimpse into a lesser-known aspect of colonial America and celebrates the warmth of family togetherness. A homey, appealing holiday celebration.”—Kirkus Reviews

Praise for The Rock in My Throat:
“A heartfelt story that teaches children about diversity and reflects difficulties with being different, understood, and accepted.”—starred, Booklist

“Tenderly told in first person, Yang’s lyrical autobiographical picture book depicts her childhood struggle with selective mutism. Her descriptions of how selective mutism presents at school are vivid and authentic. . . Lin’s earth tones and muted colors reflect Kalia’s affinity with the natural world.”—The Horn Book Magazine

“Yang’s poetic prose sings in perfect unison with Lin’s gorgeously textured illustrations, rendered in earthy tones . . . A powerful window into the perspective of a young immigrant.”—Kirkus Reviews

“Yang traces a Hmong-speaking child’s experience of selective mutism. . . Lin’s digital illustrations employ scale and perspective to smart effect.”—Publishers Weekly

Praise for Cruzita and the Mariacheros:
“Mariachi, family, and pan dulce are the ingredients for this perfect middle grade novel. Highly recommended for all middle grade collections.”—starred, School Library Journal

“This excellent debut has heart and soul, with an obvious deep love and appreciation for the culture in each word.”—Booklist

“Cruz’s inner conflict and search for identity are sensitively drawn, and Granillo weaves a believable sense of community pride into the heartfelt and enjoyable story.”—The Horn Book Magazine

“Many readers will resonate with the demands on her time, and the children and grandchildren of immigrants will likely identify especially strongly with Cruzita’s journey toward connecting with her roots. A sweet summer quest for identity and belonging.”—Kirkus Reviews

CONTACT: Lindsay Matvick
1-800-328-4929, ext. 385
lmatvick@lernerbooks.com.

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