Towner Selection

Books to be considered must:

Be of interest to students in grades two through six
Be published in the year two years before the date of the award (for example, books considered for the 2022 award needed to be published in 2020)
Be informational in nature; books consisting of folktales, jokes, riddles, & etc. will not be considered
Books of poetry or song lyrics will be considered only if the verse serves to convey informational content.

In addition:

We will accept books from authors of any nationality
In the case of books first published in another country, eligibility will be determined by the US Publication date
We will not consider books that are out of print
We will not consider price when choosing books
Being part of a series will not disqualify a book from consideration
Books with invented dialogue or other fictionalized elements will be considered on a case-by-case basis
We will accept nominations from all sources and especially celebrate those coming from students