2024-2025 Texas Bluebonnet Award Master List Released

The Texas Library Association’s (TLA) 2024-2025 Texas Bluebonnet Award (TBA) Master List was announced at the Texas Book Festival in Austin on Saturday, November 11, 2023.

As is tradition, students in grades 3 – 6 from across Texas revealed the books on the list. Award-winning children’s book author and illustrator Don Tate served as the emcee for the event.

The Texas Bluebonnet Award Master List is one of the most distinguished children’s literature lists in the country.

This prestigious list is composed of titles from creative, talented and diverse authors. The titles on the list offer students in third through sixth grades quality fiction and nonfiction literature to be read for pleasure. The TBA selection committee considered a whopping 863 books for this year’s master list.

The primary goals of the TBA list are to introduce children to a variety of quality books, develop critical reading skills, and honor and encourage authors. To compose the list, the committee selected five outstanding books of various genres for grades 3, 4, 5, and 6.

Each year, more than 75,000 third-through-sixth graders from across Texas vote for their favorite title from the master list. “Read 5, then decide” is a slogan known by school librarians, public librarians and homeschooling parents across the state. The TBA Award winner is announced in the spring and will be honored at the TLA 2024 Annual Conference in San Antonio in April.

Here is the list, alphabetized by title. Printable PDF of list.

1. Caves by Nell Cross Beckerman. Illustrated by Kalen Chock.
2. The Cursed Moon by Angela Cervantes.
3. Daybreak on Raven Island by Fleur Bradley.
4. The Fire, The Water, and Maudie McGinn by Sally J. Pla.
5. The Ghost of Spruce Point by Nancy Tandon.
6. How to Stay Invisible by Maggie C. Rudd.
7. Ice Cream Man: How Augustus Jackson Made a Sweet Treat Better by Glenda Armand and Kim Freeman. Illustrated by Keith Mallett.
8. Jovita Wore Pants: The Story of a Mexican Freedom Fighter by Aida Salazar. Illustrated by Molly Mendoza.
9. Ketanji: Justice Jackson’s Journey to the U.S. Supreme Court by Kekla Magoon. Illustrated by Laura Freeman.
10.  Legends of Lotus Island: The Guardian Test by Christina Soontornvat. Illustrated by Kevin Hong.
11.  The Mystery of the Monarchs by Barb Rosenstock. Illustrated by Erika Meza.
12.  New Dragon City by Mari Mancusi.
13.  Odder by Katherine Applegate. Illustrated by Charles Santoso.
14.  A Rover’s Story by Jasmine Warga.
15.  Shermy & Shake, The Not-So-Nice Neighbor by Kirby Larson. Illustrated by Shinji Fujioka.
16.  Something Like Home by Andrea Beatriz Arango.
17.  Stars of the Night: The Courageous Children of the Czech Kindertransport by Caren Stelson. Illustrated by Selina Alko.
18.  Two Tribes by Emily Bowen Cohen.
19.  You Are Here: Connecting Flights, edited by Ellen Oh.
20.  Yuck You Suck! Poems about Animals That SIP, SLURP, SUCK by Jane Yolen and Heidi E. Y. Stemple. Illustrated by Eugenia Nobati.

The Texas Bluebonnet Award Master List includes titles for grades 3 – 6 and is not designed to support any particular curriculum. Librarians are not required or expected to purchase every book on the list to participate in the voting program. Due to the diversity in age range and topics, librarians should follow their collection development policies and guidelines when considering which titles to purchase for their library.