Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature Books

The Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature is given by the Asian Pacific American Librarians Association, founded in 1980 and affiliated with the American Library Association since 1982, and has been presented since 2001. It honors books reflecting Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pasifika experiences and cultures, and it requires that the creators come from those communities — for a picture book, the illustrator as well as the author, or the book is not eligible.

Six categories run each year, including a picture book category separate from children's literature, and each one splits into an Asian American half and a Pasifika half, with the association stating plainly that Pasifika communities have fewer publishing opportunities. That split is what makes the list worth using: Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander titles get their own winner and honor books rather than competing for a slot against the much larger Asian American field. The youth winners are announced each January alongside the American Library Association's Youth Media Awards.

Information from the Asian Pacific American Librarians Association.