WLA Book Awards Home | The WCCPBA Award | 2024 Nominees

Activity Packets | Committee | Member Duties | Suggested Reading Dates

2025 WCCPBA Nominees

Agatha May and the Anglerfish
Author: Nora Morrison & Jessie Anne Foley
Illustrator: Mika Song
Publisher: Dial Books for Young Readers
Synopsis: When a daydream-prone student is allowed to research her favorite creature, the anglerfish, she dazzles her classmates and teacher with her report.

Suggested Activity from the WCCPBA Activity Packet for Agatha May and the Anglerfish

Web Links Related to This Title:

Bitsy Bat, School Star
Author: Kaz Windness
Publisher: Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers
Synopsis: The only bat at her new school, Bitsy does not feel like she fits in, but after some encouragement, Bitsy learns that everyone shines differently

Suggested Activity from the WCCPBA Activity Packet for Bitsy Bat, School Star

Web Links Related to This Title:

Flat Cat

Author: Tara Lazar

Illustrator: Pete Oswald

Publisher: Flamingo Books

Summary: Flat Cat likes being flat--roaming anywhere and happy to be unseen--until one day when he becomes fluffy, he learns to enjoy the attention it brings, and grows to love being seen.

Suggested Activity from the WCCPBA Activity Packet for Flat Cat

Web Links Related to This Title:

Friends Beyond Measure

Author: Lalena Fisher

Publisher: Harper Collins Publisher
Synopsis: Ana and Harwin's friendship has been off the charts since day one! But when Harwin learns her family is going to move far away, the duo isn't sure how their friendship can survive the move. See how their friend-o-meters calibrate.

Suggested Activity from the WCCPBA Activity Packet for Friends Beyond Measure

Web Links Related to This Title:

Gertie: The Darling Duck of WWII
Author: Shari Swanson
Illustrator: Renee Graef
Publisher: Sleeping Bear Press
Synopsis: In 1945, against the backdrop of WWII, a soon-to-be-mama duck builds a nest in a precarious spot in the city of Milwaukee. Soon, news outlets around the world are carrying the hopeful story of the plucky duck.

Suggested Activity from the WCCPBA Activity Packet for Gertie: The Darling Duck of WWII

Web Links Related to This Title:

The Girl Who Heard the Music
Author: Marni Fogelson
Illustrator: Marta Alvarez Miguens
Publisher: Sourcebooks eXplore
Synopsis: The true story of award-winning pianist and environmental activist Mahani Teave and the beloved island she is helping to save.

Suggested Activity from the WCCPBA Activity Packet for The Girl Who Heard the Music

Web Links Related to This Title:

How Do You Spell Unfair?
Author: Carole Boston Weatherford
Illustrator: Frank Morrison
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Synopsis: A true story of determination and groundbreaking achievement follows eighth grade African American spelling champion MacNolia Cox, who left Akron, Ohio, in 1936 to compete in the prestigious National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., only to be met with prejudice and discrimination.

Suggested Activity from the WCCPBA Activity Packet for How Do You Spell Unfair?

Web Links Related to This Title:

I Don't Care
Author: Julie Fogliano
Illustrator: Mollie Idle and Juana Martinez-Neal
Publisher: Holiday House
Synopsis: Two friends share their delight in the little things that set them apart, and the big things that bring them together.

Web Links Related to This Title:

The King Penguin
Author and Illustrator: Vanessa Roeder
Publisher: Dial Books for Young Readers
Synopsis: King penguin Percival is off to find subjects who will listen to him, as long as they do not eat him first.

Suggested Activity from the WCCPBA Activity Packet for The King Penguin

Web Links Related to This Title:

Not a Monster
Author: Claudia Guadalupe Martinez

Illustrator: Laura Gonzalez
Publisher: Charlesbridge
Synopsis: As things get a bit heated among the amphibian population in the swamp, rivals Frog and Toad must cast their differences aside and work together when they have a close encounter with a snappy alligator.

Suggested Activity from the WCCPBA Activity Packet for Not a Monster

Web Links Related to This Title:

Out of a Jar
Author and Illustrator: Deborah Marcero
Publisher: Penguin Young Readers Group
Synopsis: Llewellyn, a little rabbit overwhelmed by his emotions, hides away his feelings in glass jars, until he discovers life is more colorful when he sets his emotions free.

Suggested Activity from the WCCPBA Activity Packet for Out of a Jar

Web Links Related to This Title:

Paula's Patches
Author: Gabriella Aldeman
Illustrator: Rocío Arreola Mendoza
Publisher: Free Spirit Publishing
Synopsis: Embarrassed about a hole in her pants, creative and resourceful Paula covers it with a patch, and discovers her classmates also have leaky, stained, and hand-me-down items that could benefit from a colorful patch.

Suggested Activity from the WCCPBA Activity Packet for Paula’s Patches

Web Links Related to This Title:

Ramen for Everyone
Author: Patricia Tanumihardja
Illustrator: Shiho Pate
Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Synopsis: The story of Hiro as he tried to make the perfect bowl of ramen with a family recipe passed down from grandfather and dad.

Suggested Activity from the WCCPBA Activity Packet for Ramen for Everyone

Web Links Related to This Title:

The Red Jacket
Author and Illustrator: Bob Holt
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Synopsis: Bob loves his red jacket. The red jacket makes him feel swanky cool. The red jacket makes other seagulls notice him and even speak to him. But when a wave washes it away, will Bob lose his cool and his newfound friends, too?

Suggested Activity from the WCCPBA Activity Packet for The Red Jacket

Web Links Related to This Title:

Remember
Author: Joy Harjo
Illustrator: Michaela Goade
Publisher: Random House Children's Books
Synopsis: A book adaptation of a poem celebrating life, our connection to day, night, nature, plants, animals, our ancestors, each other, and the universe.

Suggested Activity from the WCCPBA Activity Packet for Remember

Web Links Related to This Title:

Something, Someday
Author: Amanda Gorman
Illustrator: Christian Robinson
Publisher: Penguin Young Readers Group
Synopsis: Sometimes the world feels broken. And problems seem too big to fix. But somehow, we all have the power to make a difference. With a little faith, and maybe the help of a friend, together we can find beauty and create change.

Suggested Activity from the WCCPBA Activity Packet for Something, Someday

Web Links Related to This Title:

Spanish is the Language of My Family
Author: Michael Genhart
Illustrator: John Parra
Publisher: Holiday House
Synopsis: As a boy prepares for his school’s Spanish spelling bee, he asks his grandmother for help with some of the words he doesn’t know how to spell yet. When she studies with him, she tells him how different things were back when she was a girl, when she was only allowed to speak English in school. This only inspires him to study even harder and make his family proud.

Suggested Activity from the WCCPBA Activity Packet for Spanish is the Language of My Family

Web Links Related to This Title:

Stranded! A Mostly True Story from Iceland
Author: Aevar Thor Benediktsson

Illustrator: Anne Wilson
Publisher: Barefoot Books
Synopsis: Based on a true story, this shares what happened when the author’s grandfather and a friend were stranded on an active volcano off the coast of Iceland.

Suggested Activity from the WCCPBA Activity Packet for Stranded! A Mostly True Story from Iceland

Web Links Related to This Title:

This is Not My Story

Author: Ryan Uytdewilligen

Illustrator: David Huyck
Publisher: Kids Can Press, Limited

Synopsis: This hilarious and unique take on metafiction offers a behind-the-scenes look at the creative process as the hero of this book embarks on a genre-bending journey to find the right story with the help of the author.

Suggested Activity from the WCCPBA Activity Packet for This is Not My Story

Web Links Related to This Title:

We are Going to be Pals!

Author and Illustrator: Mark Teague
Publisher: Beach Lane Books
Synopsis: A talkative cattle egret explains to a rhinoceros that in addition to having a symbiotic relationship, they also have a friendship built on communication, kindness, and a respect for boundaries.

Suggested Activity from the WCCPBA Activity Packet for We Are Going to Be Pals!

Web Links Related to This Title: