| Charlotte Zolotow Award | |
|---|---|
| Awarded for | outstanding writing in a picture book published in the United States in the preceding year |
| Country | United States |
| Presented by | Cooperative Children's Book Center |
| First award | 1998 |
| Website | ccbc |
The Charlotte Zolotow Award is an American literary award presented annually for outstanding writing in a picture book published in the United States during the preceding year. By contrast, the Caldecott Medal is for outstanding illustration in a picture book. The Zolotow award was established in 1998 by the Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC) at the University of Wisconsin–Madison School of Education and named to honor the work of Charlotte Zolotow, an American children's book editor and author. Ms. Zolotow worked with Harper Junior Books for 38 years during which time she wrote more than 70 picture books. [1] Zolotow attended the University of Wisconsin in Madison on a writing scholarship from 1933 to 36. The Cooperative Children's Book Center is a children's literature library of the School of Education, University of Wisconsin–Madison.
The winner is announced in January each year. A bronze medallion is formally presented to the winning author in the spring during an annual public event that honors the career of Charlotte Zolotow. [1]
| Year | Author | Title | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Vera B. Williams | Lucky Song | Winner |
| Keiko Kasza | Don't Laugh, Joe! | Honor | |
| Marion Dane Bauer | If You Were Born a Kitten | Commended | |
| Elisha Cooper | Country Fair | Commended | |
| Denise Fleming | Time to Sleep | Commended | |
| Patricia C. McKissack | Ma Dear's Aprons | Commended | |
| Bernard Waber | Bearsie Bear and the Surprise Sleepover Party | Commended | |
| Rosemary Wells | Bunny Cakes | Commended | |
| 1999 | Uri Shulevitz | Snow | Winner |
| Holly Meade | John Willy and Freddy McGee | Honor | |
| William Steig | Pete's a Pizza | Honor | |
| Denise Fleming | Mama Cat Has Three Kittens | Commended | |
| Kevin Henkes | Circle Dogs | Commended | |
| Bill T. Jones and Susan Kuklin | Dance | Commended | |
| Lynn Reiser | Little Clam | Commended | |
| Stephanie Stuve-Bodeen | Elizabeti's Doll | Commended | |
| 2000 | Molly Bang | When Sophie Gets Angry -- Really, Really Angry.... | Winner |
| Cari Best | Three Cheers for Catherine the Great | Honor | |
| Jules Feiffer | Bark, George | Honor | |
| Baba Wagué Diakité | The Hatseller and the Monkeys: A West African Folktale | Commended | |
| Kristine O'Connell George | Little Dog Poems | Commended | |
| Joan Bransfield Graham | Flicker Flash | Commended | |
| Elizabeth Fitzgerald Howard | When Will Sarah Come? | Commended | |
| Amy Schwartz | How to Catch an Elephant | Commended | |
| Joyce Carol Thomas | You Are My Perfect Baby | Commended | |
| Andrea Zimmerman and David Clemesha | Trashy Town | Commended | |
| 2001 | Kate Banks | The Night Worker | Winner |
| Christopher Myers | Wings | Honor | |
| Peggy Christian | If You Find a Rock | Commended | |
| Doreen Cronin | Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type | Commended | |
| Joy Harjo | The Good Luck Cat | Commended | |
| Kimiko Kajikawa | Yoshi's Feast | Commended | |
| Sandra L. Pinkney | Shades of Black: A Celebration of Our Children | Commended | |
| Nancy Van Laan | When Winter Comes | Commended | |
| 2002 | Margaret Willey | Clever Beatrice | Winner |
| Emily Jenkins | Five Creatures | Honor | |
| Lenore Look | Henry's First-Moon Birthday | Commended | |
| Margaret Read MacDonald | Mabela the Clever | Commended | |
| Marisabina Russo | Come Back, Hannah! | Commended | |
| Catherine Stock | Gugu's House | Commended | |
| Janet S. Wong | Grump | Commended | |
| 2003 | Holly Keller | Farfallina & Marcel | Winner |
| Susan Marie Swanson | The First Thing My Mama Told Me | Honor | |
| Nancy Andrews-Goebel | The Pot That Juan Built | Commended | |
| Kate Banks | Close Your Eyes | Commended | |
| Kevin Henkes | Owen's Marshmallow Chick | Commended | |
| Juan Felipe Herrera | Grandma and Me at the Flea / Los Meros Meros Remateros | Commended | |
| Kate McMullan and Jim McMullan | I Stink! | Commended | |
| Jean Davies Okimoto and Elaine M. Aoki | The White Swan Express: A Story About Adoption | Commended | |
| Alice Schertle | All You Need for a Snowman | Commended | |
| David Shannon | Duck on a Bike | Commended | |
| Karma Wilson | Bear Snores On | Commended | |
| Janet S. Wong | Apple Pie 4th of July | Commended | |
| 2004 | Amy Schwartz | What James Likes Best | Winner |
| John Coy | Two Old Potatoes and Me | Honor | |
| Rebecca O'Connell | The Baby Goes Beep | Honor | |
| Won-Ldy Paye and Margaret H. Lippert | Mrs. Chicken and the Hungry Crocodile | Honor | |
| James Rumford | Calabash Cat and His Amazing Journey | Honor | |
| George Shannon | Tippy-Toe Chick, Go! | Honor | |
| Kate Banks | Mama's Coming Home | Commended | |
| Deborah Chandra and Madeleine Comora | George Washington's Teeth | Commended | |
| Denise Fleming | Buster | Commended | |
| Jeron Ashford Frame | Yesterday I Had the Blues | Commended | |
| Steve Jenkins and Robin Page | What Do You Do With a Tail Like This? | Commended | |
| Naomi Shihab Nye | Baby Radar | Commended | |
| Lynne Rae Perkins | Snow Music | Commended | |
| Andrea U'Ren | Mary Smith | Commended | |
| Mo Willems | Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! | Commended | |
| 2005 | Kevin Henkes | Kitten's First Full Moon | Winner |
| Lauren Thompson | Polar Bear Night | Honor | |
| Mo Willems | Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale | Honor | |
| Jacqueline Woodson | Coming On Home Soon | Honor | |
| Karen Beaumont | Baby Danced the Polka | Commended | |
| Caralyn Buehner | Superdog: The Heart of a Hero | Commended | |
| Oliver Dunrea | BooBoo | Commended | |
| Alan Durant | Always and Forever | Commended | |
| Karen English | Hot Day on Abbott Avenue | Commended | |
| Mary Ann Hoberman | Whose Garden Is It? | Commended | |
| Dave Horowitz | A Monkey Among Us | Commended | |
| Patricia MacLachlan and Emily MacLachlan | Bittle | Commended | |
| Carole Lexa Schaefer | The Biggest Soap | Commended | |
| 2006 | Mary Ann Rodman | My Best Friend | Winner |
| Patricia C. McKissack and Onawumi Jean Moss | Precious and the Boo Hag | Honor | |
| Jon J Muth | Zen Shorts | Honor | |
| William Bee | Whatever | Commended | |
| Mara Bergman | Snip, Snap! What's That? | Commended | |
| Bob Graham | Oscar's Half Birthday | Commended | |
| Norton Juster | The Hello, Goodbye Window | Commended | |
| Stephen Michael King | Mutt Dog! | Commended | |
| Leslie Patricelli | Binky | Commended | |
| Elivia Savadier | No Haircut Today! | Commended | |
| Sandy Turner | Cool Cat, Hot Dog | Commended | |
| Mo Willems | Leonardo, the Terrible Monster | Commended | |
| 2007 | Peter McCarty | Moon Plane | Winner |
| Lenore Look | Uncle Peter's Amazing Chinese Wedding | Honor | |
| Linda Smith | Mrs. Crump's Cat | Honor | |
| Kristen Balouch | Mystery Bottle | Commended | |
| Shari Becker | Maxwell's Mountain | Commended | |
| Eve Bunting | One Green Apple | Commended | |
| Margaret Chodos-Irvine | Best Best Friends | Commended | |
| Robin Cruise | Little Mamá Forgets | Commended | |
| Kevin Henkes | Lilly's Big Day | Commended | |
| Lola M. Schaefer | An Island Grows | Commended | |
| Sarah Weeks | Overboard! | Commended | |
| Jeanne Willis | Gorilla! Gorilla! | Commended | |
| 2008 | Greg Foley | Thank You, Bear | Winner |
| Jonathan Bean | At Night | Honor | |
| Lynne Rae Perkins | Pictures from Our Vacation | Honor | |
| Carole Lexa Schaefer | Dragon Dancing | Honor | |
| Maribeth Boelts | Those Shoes | Commended | |
| Robin Cruise | Only You | Commended | |
| Bob Graham | "The Trouble with Dogs..." Said Dad. | Commended | |
| Janice Harrington | The Chicken-Chasing Queen of Lamar County | Commended | |
| Kevin Henkes | A Good Day | Commended | |
| Emily Jenkins | What Happens on Wednesdays | Commended | |
| Patricia C. McKissack | The All-I'll-Ever-Want Christmas Doll | Commended | |
| Sara Pennypacker | Pierre in Love | Commended | |
| Mary Quigley | Granddad's Fishing Buddy | Commended | |
| Lisa Wheeler | Jazz Baby | Commended | |
| 2009 | Bob Graham | How to Heal a Broken Wing | Winner |
| Jim Averbeck | In a Blue Room | Honor | |
| Jen Bryant | A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams | Honor | |
| Fran Manushkin | How Mama Brought the Spring | Honor | |
| James Rumford | Silent Music: A Story of Baghdad | Honor | |
| Uri Shulevitz | How I Learned Geography | Honor | |
| Elizabeth Alalou and Ali Alalou | The Butter Man | Commended | |
| Mary Amato | The Chicken of the Family | Commended | |
| Andy Cutbill | The Cow That Laid an Egg | Commended | |
| Greg Foley | Don't Worry Bear | Commended | |
| Kevin Henkes | Old Bear | Commended | |
| Megan McDonald | Hen Hears Gossip | Commended | |
| Charles R. Smith, Jr. | Dance with Me | Commended | |
| Gwendolyn Zepeda | Growing Up with Tamales | Commended | |
| 2010 | Carmen Tafolla | What Can You Do With a Paleta? | Winner |
| Florence Parry Heide | Princess Hyacinth (The Surprising Tale of A Girl Who Floated) | Honor | |
| Kevin Henkes | Birds | Honor | |
| David Ezra Stein | Pouch! | Honor | |
| Mem Fox | Hello Baby! | Commended | |
| Keiko Kasza | Ready for Anything | Commended | |
| Vaunda Micheaux Nelson | Who Will I Be, Lord? | Commended | |
| Melissa Stewart | Under the Snow | Commended | |
| 2011 | Rukhsana Khan | Big Red Lollipop | Winner |
| Bob Graham | April and Esme: Tooth Fairies | Honor | |
| Sandra Markle | Hip-Pocket Papa | Honor | |
| Phillip C. Stead | A Sick Day for Amos McGee | Honor | |
| Mo Willems | City Dog, Country Frog | Honor | |
| Monica Brown | Chavela and the Magic Bubble | Commended | |
| Greg Foley | Willoughby & the Moon | Commended | |
| Kevin Henkes | My Garden | Commended | |
| Anna Grossnickle Hines | I Am a Backhoe | Commended | |
| Chris Raschka | Little Black Crow | Commended | |
| Karen Lynn Williams | A Beach Tail | Commended | |
| 2012 | Patrick McDonnell | Me... Jane | Winner |
| Susan Campbell Bartoletti | Naamah and the Ark at Night | Honor | |
| Jon Katz | Meet the Dogs of Bedlam Farm | Honor | |
| Alison Murray | Apple Pie ABC | Honor | |
| Linda Ashman | Samantha on a Roll | Commended | |
| Albert Bitterman | Fortune Cookies | Commended | |
| Mini Grey | Three By the Sea | Commended | |
| George Ella Lyon | All the Water in the World | Commended | |
| Margaret H. Mason | These Hands | Commended | |
| Meg Medina | Tía Isa Wants a Car | Commended | |
| Joyce Sidman | Swirl by Swirl: Spirals in Nature | Commended | |
| Sue Soltis | Nothing Like a Puffin | Commended | |
| Melissa Sweet | Balloons Over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy's Parade | Commended | |
| Hyewon Yum | The Twins' Blanket | Commended | |
| 2013 | Jacqueline Woodson | Each Kindness | Winner |
| Mary Logue | Sleep Like a Tiger | Honor | |
| Mara Rockliff | Me and Momma and Big John | Honor | |
| Rachel Vail | Flabbersmashed about You | Honor | |
| Julie Danneberg | Monet Paints a Day | Commended | |
| Shane W. Evans | We March | Commended | |
| Kate Feiffer | No Go Sleep! | Commended | |
| Candace Fleming | Oh, No! | Commended | |
| Denise Fleming | underGROUND | Commended | |
| Susan Hood | Spike, the Mixed-Up Monster | Commended | |
| Ginnie Lo | Auntie Yang's Great Soybean Picnic | Commended | |
| Kelly Starling Lyons | Tea Cakes for Tosh | Commended | |
| Doreen Rappaport | Helen's Big World: The Life of Helen Keller | Commended | |
| 2014 | Lemony Snicket | The Dark | Winner |
| Jonathan Bean | Building Our House | Honor | |
| Tameka Fryer Brown | My Cold Plum Lemon Pie Bluesy Mood | Honor | |
| Suzanne Collins | Year of the Jungle | Honor | |
| Pat Zietlow Miller | Sophie's Squash | Honor | |
| Jacqueline Woodson | This Is the Rope: A Story from the Great Migration. | Honor | |
| Jonathan Bean | Big Snow | Commended | |
| Floyd Cooper | Max and the Tag-Along Moon | Commended | |
| Bob Graham | The Silver Button | Commended | |
| Yuyi Morales | Niño Wrestles the World | Commended | |
| Eileen Spinelli | When No One Is Watching | Commended | |
| Susan Stockdale | Stripes of All Types | Commended | |
| Jessica Young | My Blue Is Happy | Commended | |
| 2015 | Jenny Offill | Sparky | Winner |
| Katherine Applegate | Ivan: The Remarkable True Story of the Shopping Mall Gorilla | Honor | |
| Elizabeth Bluemle | Tap Tap Boom Boom | Honor | |
| Tonya Bolden | Beautiful Moon: A Child's Prayer | Honor | |
| Pat Mora | Water Rolls, Water Rises = El agua rueda, el agua sube | Honor | |
| Barney Saltzberg | Chengdu Could Not, Would Not Fall Asleep | Honor | |
| Laura Gehl | One Big Pair of Underwear | Commended | |
| Thelma Lynne Godin | The Hula-Hoopin’ Queen | Commended | |
| George Ella Lyon | What Forest Knows | Commended | |
| Mary Lyn Ray | Go to Sleep, Little Farm | Commended | |
| Laura Purdie Salas | Water Can Be... | Commended | |
| Melissa Stewart | Beneath the Sun | Commended | |
| Jamie A. Swenson | If You Were a Dog | Commended | |
| Audrey Vernick | Edgar's Second Word | Commended | |
| Brian Won | Hooray for Hat! | Commended | |
| 2016 | Margarita Engle | Drum Dream Girl: How One Girl's Courage Changed Music | Winner |
| Kathi Appelt | When Otis Courted Mama | Honor | |
| Lauren Child | The New Small Person | Honor | |
| Matt de la Peña | Last Stop on Market Street | Honor | |
| Lindsay Mattick | Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World's Most Famous Bear | Honor | |
| Sean Taylor | Hoot Owl, Master of Disguise | Honor | |
| Molly Bang | When Sophie's Feelings Are Really, Really Hurt | Commended | |
| Monica Brown | Maya's Blanket / La manta de Maya | Commended | |
| Edwidge Danticat | Mama's Nightingale: A Story of Immigration and Separation | Commended | |
| Bob Graham | How the Sun Got to Coco's House | Commended | |
| Kevin Henkes | Waiting | Commended | |
| Anne Vittur Kennedy | Ragweed's Farm Dog Handbook | Commended | |
| Margaret McNamara | A Poem in Your Pocket | Commended | |
| Miranda Paul | Water Is Water: A Book about the Water Cycle | Commended | |
| Alicia Potter | Miss Hazeltine's Home for Shy and Fearful Cats | Commended | |
| Mary Lyn Ray | Goodnight, Good Dog | Commended | |
| 2017 | Carole Boston Weatherford | Freedom in Congo Square | Winner |
| Sherman Alexie | Thunder Boy Jr. | Honor | |
| Candace Fleming | Giant Squid | Honor | |
| Jarvis | Alan's Big, Scary Teeth | Honor | |
| Micha Archer | Daniel Finds a Poem | Commended | |
| Kate Berube | Hannah and Sugar | Commended | |
| Maribeth Boelts | A Bike Like Sergio's | Commended | |
| Isabel Campoy and Theresa Howell | Maybe Something Beautiful: How Art Transformed a Neighborhood | Commended | |
| Irene Dickson | Blocks | Commended | |
| Renata Galindo | My New Mom & Me | Commended | |
| Katrina Goldsaito | The Sound of Silence | Commended | |
| Gemma Merino | The Cow Who Climbed a Tree | Commended | |
| Adam Rex | School's First Day of School | Commended | |
| Duncan Tonatiuh | The Princess and the Warrior | Commended | |
| 2018 | Bao Phi | A Different Pond | Winner [3] |
| Atinuke | Baby Goes to Market | Honor [3] | |
| Gaia Cornwall | Jabari Jumps | Honor [3] | |
| Amy Hest | Buster and the Baby | Honor [3] | |
| Bob Raczka | Niko Draws a Feeling | Honor [3] | |
| Cynthia Rylant | Herbert's First Halloween | Honor [3] | |
| Lesa Cline-Ransome | Before She Was Harriet | Commended | |
| Elisha Cooper | Big Cat, Little Cat | Commended | |
| Julia Durango | The One Day House | Commended | |
| Margarita Engle | All the Way to Havana | Commended | |
| Julie Fogliano | When's My Birthday? | Commended | |
| Kevin Henkes | In the Middle of Fall | Commended | |
| Laura McGee Kvasnosky | Little Wolf's First Howling | Commended | |
| Joyce Sidman | Round | Commended | |
| 2019 | Marla Frazee | Little Brown | Winner |
| David Ezra Stein | Honey | Honor | |
| Hyewon Yum | Saturday Is Swimming Day | Honor | |
| Grace Lin | A BIG Mooncake for Little Star | Commended | |
| Matt de la Peña | Carmela Full of Wishes | Commended | |
| Jacqueline Woodson | The Day You Begin | Commended | |
| Yuyi Morales | Dreamers | Commended | |
| Maxine Beneba Clarke | The Patchwork Bike | Commended | |
| Brian Lies | The Rough Patch | Commended | |
| Oge Mora | Thank You, Omu! | Commended | |
| Ryan T. Higgins | We Don't Eat Our Classmates | Commended | |
| Kevin Henkes | Winter is Here | Commended | |
| 2020 | Cheryl Minnema | Johnny's Pheasant | Winner |
| Kevin Noble Maillard | Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story | Honor | |
| Kao Kalia Yang | A Map into the World | Honor | |
| Matthew Forsythe | Pokko and the Drum | Honor | |
| Oge Mora | Saturday | Honor | |
| Jean Reidy | Truman | Honor | |
| Martin Jenkins | Beware of the Crocodile | Commended | |
| Micha Archer | Daniel's Good Day | Commended | |
| Cori Doerrfeld | Goodbye, Friend! Hello, Friend! | Commended | |
| Isabel Quintero | My Papi Has a Motorcycle | Commended | |
| Kate Read | One Fox: A Counting Book Thriller | Commended | |
| Sydney Smith | Small in the City | Commended | |
| Shabazz Larkin | The Thing About Bees: A Love Letter | Commended | |
| 2021– 2022 | Meg Medina | Evelyn Del Rey Is Moving Away | Winner |
| Atinuke | Catch That Chicken! | Honor | |
| Hilda Eunice Burgos | The Cot in the Living Room | Honor | |
| Jordan Scott | I Talk like a River | Honor | |
| Julie Fogliano | My Best Friend | Honor | |
| Elizabeth Lilly | Let Me Fix You a Plate: A Tale of Two Kitchens | Honor | |
| Jennifer K. Mann | The Camping Trip | Commended | |
| Joanna Ho | Eyes That Kiss in the Corners | Commended | |
| Alice Faye Duncan | Just like a Mama | Commended | |
| Maribeth Boelts | Kaia and the Bees | Commended | |
| Tom Gauld | The Little Wooden Robot and the Log Princess | Commended | |
| Tami Charles | My Day with the Panye | Commended | |
| Winsome Bingham | Soul Food Sunday | Commended | |
| Kevin Henkes | Sun Flower Lion | Commended | |
| Lesléa Newman | Welcoming Elijah: A Passover Tale with a Tail | Commended | |
| Rajani LaRocca | Where Three Oceans Meet | Commended | |
| 2023 | Michelle Edwards (writer) | Me and the Boss: A Story about Mending and Love | Winner |
| Niki Daly | On My Papa's Shoulders | Honor | |
| Nan Forler | Rodney Was a Tortoise | Honor | |
| Sara Greenwood | My Brother Is Away | Honor | |
| Rilla Alexander | Herbert on the Slide | Commended | |
| Jan Andrews | When the Wind Came | Commended | |
| Mac Barnett | The Three Billy Goats Gruff | Commended | |
| Candace Fleming | The Tide Pool Waits | Commended | |
| Matthew Forsythe | Mina | Commended | |
| Kevin Henkes | Little Houses | Commended | |
| Jane Park | Juna and Appa | Commended | |
| Grant Snider | One Boy Watching | Commended | |
| Traci Sorell | Powwow Day | Commended | |
| Shay Youngblood | Mama's Home | Commended | |
| 2024 | Kim Rogers | Just Like Grandma | Winner |
| Laura Alary | All the Faces of Me | Honor | |
| Laura Purdie Salas | Finding Family: The Duckling Raised by Loons | Honor | |
| Jordan Scott | My Baba's Garden | Honor | |
| Ariel Bernstein | You Go First | Commended | |
| Lucy Ruth Cummins | Our Pool | Commended | |
| X. Fang | Dim Sum Palace | Commended | |
| Emily Jenkins | The Kitten Story: A Mostly True Tale | Commended | |
| Rajani LaRocca | Summer Is for Cousins | Commended | |
| Kim Rogers | A Letter for Bob | Commended | |
| Sydney Smith | Do You Remember? | Commended | |
| Corey R. Tabor | Simon and the Better Bone | Commended | |
| Jesus Trejo | Papa's Magical Water-Jug Clock | Commended | |
| Anne Wynter | Nell Plants a Tree | Commended |
Kevin Henkes and Bob Graham are the only two authors to receive all three citations and are the two authors who have received the most citations overall (10 and 8, respectively). No author has yet to receive multiple awards. Jonathan Bean is the only author to receive two citations in one year. In 2014 he received an honor for Building Our House and a commendation Big Snow.
Three authors have received two Zolotow Honors: Jonathan Bean, James Rumford, Mo Willems, and Jacqueline Woodson.
One author has received nine Zolotow commendations.
Two authors have received four Zolotow commendations.
Multiple authors have received two Zolotow commendations: Kate Banks, Maribeth Boelts, Monica Brown, Elisha Cooper, Robin Cruise, Greg Foley, George Ella Lyon, Patricia C. McKissack, Mary Lyn Ray, Joyce Sidman, Melissa Stewart, Mo Willems, and Janet S. Wong.
