Aven Green, Sleuthing Machine (Aven Green, book 1)by Dusti Bowling, illustrated by Gina Perry (Union Square Kids / Sterling Publishing Company)
Planetary-YUM (Waffles and Pancake, book 1) by Drew Brockington (LB Ink / Little, Brown Young Readers)
Blast Off! (Abby in Orbit, book 1) by Andrea J. Loney, illustrated by Fuuji Takashi (Albert Whitman & Co.)
Awesome Orange Birthday (The Party Diaries, book 1) by Mitali Banerjee Ruths, illustrated by Aaliya Jaleel (Branches / Scholastic)
My Kingdom of Darkness (Pet Rule, Book 1) by Susan Tan, illustrated by Wendy Tan Shiau Wei (Branches / Scholastic)
The Underdogs (Underdogs, Book 1) by Tracey West, illustrated by Kyla May (Scholastic)
AND THE 2023 WINNER IS...
2023 OTTER Award Nominees:
Starla Jean (Starla Jean, book 1) by Elana K. Arnold, illustrated by A. N. Kang (Roaring Brook Press / Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group)
Monster and Boy (Monster and Boy, book 1) by Hannah Barnaby, illustrated by Anoosha Syed (Square Fish / Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group)
Max Meow Book 1: Cat Crusader by John Gallagher (Penguin Random House)
Missed Meal Mayhem(The Hunger Heroes, book 1) by Jarrett Lerner (Aladdin / Simon & Schuster Publishing)
The Alien Adventures of Finn Caspian #1: The Fuzzy Apocalypse by Jonathan Messinger, illustrated by Aleksei Bitskoff (Harper / HarperCollins Publishers)
Trouble at Table 5 #1: The Candy Caper by Tom Watson, illustrated by Marta Kissi (HarperChapters / HarperCollins Publishers)
Red Panda & Moon Bear! by Jarod Roselló, illustrated by Nina Matsumoto
Two Latinx kids battle supernatural threats to their working-class neighborhood with the power of science, magic, and a pair of very special hoodies.
Red Panda and Moon Bear are the defenders of their community! Together, these brave siblings rescue lost cats, scold bullies, and solve mysteries, all before Mami and Papi get home. But lately... the mysteries have been EXTRA mysterious. All of RP and MB's powers may not be enough to handle spooks, supervillains, alien invaders, and time warps! It'll take all their imagination -- and some new friends -- to uncover the secret cause behind all these events before the whole world goes crazy.
In his first book for young readers, Cuban-American cartoonist Jarod Roselló presents a whimsical and tender-hearted adventure, packed with Saturday-morning action and glowing with Caribbean sunshine.
2022 OTTER Award Nominees:
●Dancing at Carnival (Ana & Andrew) by Christine A Platt, illustrated by Sharon Sordo (Calico Kid / ABDO)●Dave the Unicorn: Welcome to Unicorn School by Pip Bird, illustrated by David O’Connell (Imprint / Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group)●High and Dry by Eric Walters, illustrated by Sabrina Gendron (Orca Book Publishers)●Mindy Kim and the Yummy Seaweed Business by Lyla Lee, illustrated by Dung Ho (Aladdin / Simon & Schuster Publishing)●Red Panda & Moon Bear by Jarod Roselló (Top Shelf Productions / IDW Publishing)●Willa the Wisp (The Fabled Stables, book #1) by Jonathan Auxier, illustrated by Olga Demidova (Amulet Books / Abrams)View the 2022 nominees as presented during the WLA 2021 Conference, with links to videos, bookmarks, printables, and more!
2021 OTTER Award Winner:
Sparks! by Ian Boothby, illustrated by Nina Matsumoto
2021 OTTER Award Nominees
Sparks! by Ian Boothby, illustrated Nina Matsumoto (Graphix by Scholastic)
Didi Dodo, Future Spy: Recipe for Disaster (Didi Dodo, Future Spy #1) by Tom Angleberger, illustrated by Jared Chapman (Amulet Books)
Truman the Dog (My Furry Foster Family, book #1) by Debbi Michiko Florence, illustrated by Melanie Demmer (Capstone Publishers)
Isle of Misfits 1: First Class by Jamie Mae, illustrated by Freya Hartas (Little Bee Books)
Mia Mayhem is a Superhero! by Kara West, illustrated by Leeza Hernandez (Simon & Schuster)
Stealing the Sword! (Time Jumpers, book #1) by Wendy Mass, illustrated by Oriol Vidal (Scholastic Branches)
