The Randolph Caldecott Medal is awarded annually by the American Library Association “to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children […] Honor books may be named. These shall be books that are also truly distinguished.” The Caldecotts are awarded to an illustrator of an American picturebook; the ALA gives a sister award, the Newbery, to authors for literary merit.
The Randolph Caldecott Medal recognizes the preceding year’s “most distinguished American picture book for children”, beginning with 1937 publications. It is awarded to the illustrator by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA). The Caldecott and Newbery Medals are the most prestigious American children’s book awards.
Caldecott Medal Award Winners
| Year | Illustrator | Book | Award | Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1938 | Dorothy P. Lathrop | Animals of the Bible | Winner | J. B. Lippincott Company |
| Robert Lawson | Four and Twenty Blackbirds | Honor | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins | |
| Boris Artzybasheff | Seven Simeons: A Russian Tale | Honor | Viking Books | |
| 1939 | Thomas Handforth | Mei Li | Winner | Doubleday |
| James Daugherty | Andy and the Lion | Honor | The Viking Press | |
| Clare Turlay Newberry | Barkis | Honor | Smithmark Publishers | |
| Laura Adams Armer | The Forest Pool | Honor | Longmans, Green & Co. | |
| Wanda Gág | Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs | Honor | Coward McCann | |
| Robert Lawson | Wee Gillis | Honor | Viking Press | |
| 1940 | Ingri and Edgar Parin d'Aulaire | Abraham Lincoln | Winner | Doubleday |
| Berta and Elmer Hader | Cock-a-Doodle Doo | Honor | Macmillan | |
| Ludwig Bemelmans | Madeline | Honor | Viking Press | |
| Lauren Ford | The Ageless Story | Honor | Dodd & Mead | |
| 1941 | Robert Lawson | They Were Strong and Good | Winner | Viking Press |
| Clare Turlay Newberry | April's Kittens | Honor | Harper & Brothers | |
| 1942 | Robert McCloskey | Make Way for Ducklings | Winner | The Viking Press |
| Maud and Miska Petersham | An American ABC | Honor | Macmillan | |
| Velino Herrera | In My Mother's House | Honor | Puffin Books | |
| Holling C. Holling | Paddle-to-the-Sea | Honor | Houghton Mifflin | |
| Wanda Gág | Nothing At All | Honor | Coward McCann | |
| 1943 | Virginia Lee Burton | The Little House | Winner | Houghton Mifflin |
| Mary and Conrad Buff | Dash and Dart | Honor | Viking Press | |
| Clare Turlay Newberry | Marshmallow | Honor | Harper & Brothers | |
| 1944 | Louis Slobodkin | Many Moons | Winner | Harcourt, Brace & Company |
| Elizabeth Orton Jones | Small Rain: Verses From The Bible | Honor | Viking Press | |
| Arnold E. Bare | Pierre Pidgeon | Honor | Houghton Mifflin Company | |
| Berta and Elmer Hader | The Mighty Hunter | Honor | Macmillan Company | |
| Jean Charlot | A Child's Good Night Book | Honor | Addison-Wesley | |
| Plato Chan | The Good-Luck Horse | Honor | Whittlesey House | |
| 1945 | Elizabeth Orton Jones | Prayer for a Child | Winner | The Macmillan Company |
| Tasha Tudor | Mother Goose | Honor | Oxford University Press | |
| Marie Hall Ets | In the Forest | Honor | Puffin Books | |
| Marguerite de Angeli | Yonie Wondernose | Honor | Doubleday Doran | |
| Kate Seredy | The Christmas Anna Angel | Honor | Viking Press | |
| 1946 | Maud and Miska Petersham | The Rooster Crows | Winner | Simon & Schuster |
| Leonard Weisgard | Little Lost Lamb | Honor | Doubleday Doran | |
| Marjorie Torrey | Sing Mother Goose | Honor | EP Dutton | |
| Ruth Stiles Gannett | My Mother Is the Most Beautiful Woman in the World | Honor | Lothrop | |
| Kurt Wiese | You Can Write Chinese | Honor | Viking Press | |
| 1947 | Leonard Weisgard | The Little Island | Winner | Doubleday Doran |
| Leonard Weisgard | Rain Drop Splash | Honor | Lothrop Company | |
| Jay Hyde Barnum | Boats on the River | Honor | Viking Press | |
| Tony Palazzo | Timothy Turtle | Honor | Welch | |
| Leo Politi | Pedro, the Angel of Olvera Street | Honor | Charles Scribner's Sons | |
| Marjorie Torrey | Sing in Praise: A Collection of the Best Loved Hymns | Honor | EP Dutton | |
| 1948 | Roger Duvoisin | White Snow, Bright Snow | Winner | Lothrop |
| Marcia Brown | Stone Soup | Honor | Charles Scribner's Sons, New York | |
| Dr. Seuss | McElligot's Pool | Honor | Random House | |
| Georges Schreiber | Bambino the Clown | Honor | Viking Press | |
| Hildegard Woodward | Roger and the Fox | Honor | Doubleday Doran | |
| Virginia Lee Burton | Song of Robin Hood | Honor | Houghton, Mifflin | |
| 1949 | Berta and Elmer Hader | The Big Snow | Winner | Macmillan Publishers |
| Robert McCloskey | Blueberries for Sal | Honor | The Viking Press | |
| Helen Stone | All Around the Town | Honor | Lippincott | |
| Leo Politi | Juanita | Honor | Charles Scribner's Sons | |
| Kurt Wiese | Fish in the Air | Honor | Viking Press | |
| 1950 | Leo Politi | Song of the Swallows | Winner | Charles Scribner's Sons |
| Lynd Ward | America's Ethan Allen | Honor | Houghton, Mifflin | |
| Hildegard Woodward | The Wild Birthday Cake | Honor | Doubleday & Company. | |
| Marc Simont | The Happy Day | Honor | Harper & Brothers | |
| Dr. Seuss | Bartholomew and the Oobleck | Honor | Random House | |
| Marcia Brown | Henry Fisherman | Honor | Charles Scribner's Sons | |
| 1951 | Katherine Milhous | The Egg Tree | Winner | Charles Scribner's Sons |
| Marcia Brown | Dick Whittington and His Cat | Honor | Charles Scribner's Sons | |
| Nicholas Mordvinoff | The Two Reds | Honor | Harcourt Brace Janovich, NY | |
| Dr. Seuss | If I Ran the Zoo | Honor | Random House | |
| Helen Stone | The Most Wonderful Doll in the World | Honor | Lippincott, NY | |
| Clare Turlay Newberry | T-Bone, the Baby Sitter | Honor | Harpercollins | |
| 1952 | Nicholas Mordvinoff | Finders Keepers | Winner | Harcourt Brace |
| Marie Hall Ets | Mr. T. W. Anthony Woo | Honor | The Viking Press | |
| Marcia Brown | Skipper John's Cook | Honor | Charles Scribner's Sons | |
| Margaret Bloy Graham | All Falling Down | Honor | Harper & Brothers | |
| William Pène du Bois | Bear Party | Honor | The Viking Press | |
| Elizabeth Olds | Feather Mountain | Honor | Houghton Mifflin | |
| 1953 | Lynd Ward | The Biggest Bear | Winner | Houghton Mifflin |
| Marcia Brown | Puss in Boots | Honor | Charles Scribner's Sons | |
| Robert McCloskey | One Morning in Maine | Honor | The Viking Press | |
| Fritz Eichenberg | Ape in a Cape: An Alphabet of Odd Animals | Honor | ||
| Margaret Bloy Graham | The Storm Book | Honor | Harper & Brothers | |
| Juliet Kepes | Five Little Monkeys | Honor | Houghton Mifflin | |
| 1954 | Ludwig Bemelmans | Madeline's Rescue | Winner | The Viking Press |
| Robert McCloskey | Journey Cake, Ho! | Honor | The Viking Press, | |
| Jean Charlot | When Will the World Be Mine? | Honor | ||
| Marcia Brown | The Steadfast Tin Soldier | Honor | Charles Scribner's Sons | |
| Maurice Sendak | A Very Special House | Honor | Harper & Row | |
| A. Birnbaum | Green Eyes | Honor | Capital Publishing | |
| 1955 | Marcia Brown | Cinderella, or the Little Glass Slipper | Winner | Charles Scribner's Sons |
| Marguerite de Angeli | Book of Nursery and Mother Goose Rhymes | Honor | Doubleday | |
| Tibor Gergely | Wheel on the Chimney | Honor | J. B. Lippincott | |
| Helen Sewell | The Thanksgiving Story | Honor | Charles Scribner's Sons | |
| 1956 | Feodor Rojankovsky | Frog Went A-Courtin' | Winner | Harcourt Brace |
| Marie Hall Ets | Play With Me | Honor | The Viking Press | |
| Taro Yashima | Crow Boy | Honor | The Viking Press | |
| 1957 | Marc Simont | A Tree Is Nice | Winner | Harper & Brothers |
| Marie Hall Ets | Mr. Penny's Race Horse | Honor | The Viking Press | |
| Tasha Tudor | 1 Is One | Honor | Oxford University Press | |
| Paul Galdone | Anatole | Honor | McGraw-Hill Book Co. | |
| James Daugherty | Gillespie and the Guards | Honor | The Viking Press | |
| William Pène du Bois | Lion | Honor | The Viking Press | |
| 1958 | Robert McCloskey | Time of Wonder | Winner | The Viking Press |
| Don Freeman | Fly High, Fly Low | Honor | The Viking Press | |
| Paul Galdone | Anatole and the Cat | Honor | McGraw-Hill Book Co., | |
| 1959 | Barbara Cooney | Chanticleer and the Fox | Winner | Thomas Y. Crowell |
| Antonio Frasconi | The House that Jack Built: La Maison Que Jacques A Batie | Honor | Harcourt Brace | |
| Maurice Sendak | What Do You Say, Dear? | Honor | Young Scott Books | |
| Taro Yashima | Umbrella | Honor | The Viking Press | |
| 1960 | Marie Hall Ets | Nine Days to Christmas | Winner | The Viking Press |
| Adrienne Adams | Houses from the Sea | Honor | Charles Scribner's Sons | |
| Maurice Sendak | The Moon Jumpers | Honor | Harper & Brothers | |
| 1961 | Nicolas Sidjakov | Baboushka and the Three Kings | Winner | Parnassus Press |
| Leo Lionni | Inch by Inch | Honor | Ivan Obolensky Inc. | |
| 1962 | Marcia Brown | Once a Mouse | Winner | Charles Scribner's Sons |
| Peter Spier | Fox Went out on a Chilly Night: An Old Song | Honor | Doubleday | |
| Maurice Sendak | Little Bear's Visit | Honor | Harper & Brothers | |
| Adrienne Adams | The Day We Saw the Sun Come Up | Honor | Charles Scribner's Sons | |
| 1963 | Ezra Jack Keats | The Snowy Day | Winner | The Viking Press |
| Bernarda Bryson | The Sun Is a Golden Earring | Honor | Holt, Rinehart and Wintson | |
| Maurice Sendak | Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present | Honor | Harper & Row | |
| 1964 | Maurice Sendak | Where the Wild Things Are | Winner | Harper & Row |
| Leo Lionni | Swimmy | Honor | Pantheon | |
| Evaline Ness | All in the Morning Early | Honor | Holt Rinehart & Winston | |
| Philip Reed | Mother Goose and Nursery Rhymes | Honor | Atheneum Books | |
| 1965 | Beni Montresor | May I Bring a Friend? | Winner | Atheneum Books |
| Marvin Bileck | Rain Makes Applesauce | Honor | Holiday House | |
| Blair Lent | The Wave | Honor | Houghton Mifflin | |
| Evaline Ness | A Pocketful of Cricket | Honor | Holt Rinehart & Winston | |
| 1966 | Nonny Hogrogian | Always Room for One More | Winner | Holt, Rinehart and Winston |
| Roger Duvoisin | Hide and Seek Fog | Honor | Lothrop, Lee & Shepard | |
| Marie Hall Ets | Just Me | Honor | Viking Press | |
| Evaline Ness | Tom Tit Tot | Honor | Holt Rinehart & Winston | |
| 1967 | Evaline Ness | Sam, Bangs & Moonshine | Winner | Holt Rinehart & Winston |
| Ed Emberley | One Wide River to Cross | Honor | Englewood Cliffs | |
| 1968 | Ed Emberley | Drummer Hoff | Winner | Prentice-Hall |
| Leo Lionni | Frederick | Honor | Pantheon Books | |
| Taro Yashima | Seashore Story | Honor | The Viking Press | |
| Ed Young | The Emperor and the Kite | Honor | Putnam and Grosset | |
| 1969 | Uri Shulevitz | The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship | Winner | Farrar, Straus and Giroux |
| Blair Lent | Why the Sun and the Moon Live in the Sky | Honor | Houghton Mifflin | |
| 1970 | William Steig | Sylvester and the Magic Pebble | Winner | Simon & Schuster |
| Ezra Jack Keats | Goggles! | Honor | Macmillan | |
| Leo Lionni | Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse | Honor | Pantheon Books | |
| Robert Andrew Parker | Pop Corn & Ma Goodness | Honor | Viking Press | |
| Brinton Turkle | Thy Friend, Obadiah | Honor | Viking Press | |
| Margot Zemach | The Judge: An Untrue Tale | Honor | Farrar, Straus and Giroux | |
| 1971 | Gail E. Haley | A Story a Story | Winner | Atheneum |
| Blair Lent | The Angry Moon | Honor | Little Brown & Co | |
| Arnold Lobel | Frog and Toad Are Friends | Honor | Harper & Row | |
| Maurice Sendak | In the Night Kitchen | Honor | Harper & Row | |
| 1972 | Nonny Hogrogian | One Fine Day | Winner | Macmillan Publishers |
| Arnold Lobel | Hildilid's Night | Honor | Harper & Row | |
| Janina Domanska | If All the Seas Were One Sea | Honor | MacMillan | |
| Tom Feelings | Moja Means One: Swahili Counting Book | Honor | Dial Press | |
| 1973 | Blair Lent | The Funny Little Woman | Winner | E. P. Dutton |
| Gerald McDermott | Anansi the Spider: A Tale from the Ashanti | Honor | Henry Holt & Co. | |
| Leonard Baskin | Hosie's Alphabet | Honor | The Viking Press | |
| Nancy Ekholm Burkert | Snow-White and the Seven Dwarfs | Honor | Farrar, Straus & Giroux, | |
| Tom Bahti | When Clay Sings | Honor | Charles Scribner's Sons | |
| 1974 | Margot Zemach | Duffy and the Devil | Winner | Farrar, Straus and Giroux |
| Susan Jeffers | Three Jovial Huntsmen | Honor | Bradbury Press | |
| David Macaulay | Cathedral | Honor | Houghton Mifflin | |
| 1975 | Gerald McDermott | Arrow to the Sun | Winner | Viking Press |
| Tom Feelings | Jambo Means Hello: A Swahili Alphabet Book | Honor | Dial Press | |
| 1976 | Leo and Diane Dillon | Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears | Winner | Dial Books |
| Peter Parnall | The Desert Is Theirs | Honor | Charles Scribner's Sons | |
| Tomie dePaola | Strega Nona | Honor | Prentice Hall | |
| 1977 | Leo and Diane Dillon | Ashanti to Zulu: African Traditions | Winner | Dial Books |
| William Steig | The Amazing Bone | Honor | Farrar, Straus and Giroux | |
| Nonny Hogrogian | The Contest | Honor | ||
| M. B. Goffstein | Fish for Supper | Honor | Dial Press | |
| Beverly Brodsky McDermott | The Golem: A Jewish Legend | Honor | Lippincott | |
| Peter Parnall | Hawk, I'm Your Brother | Honor | Charles Scribner's Sons | |
| 1978 | Peter Spier | Noah's Ark | Winner | Doubleday |
| David Macaulay | Castle | Honor | Houghton Mifflin | |
| Margot Zemach | It Could Always Be Worse | Honor | Farrar, Strauss and Giroux | |
| 1979 | Paul Goble | The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses | Winner | Bradbury Press, Simon & Schuster |
| Donald Crews | Freight Train | Honor | Greenwillow Books | |
| Peter Parnall | The Way to Start a Day | Honor | Charles Scribner's Sons | |
| 1980 | Barbara Cooney | Ox-Cart Man | Winner | Viking Press |
| Rachel Isadora | Ben's Trumpet | Honor | Greenwillow Books | |
| Chris Van Allsburg | The Garden of Abdul Gasazi | Honor | Houghton Mifflin | |
| Uri Shulevitz | The Treasure | Honor | Farrar, Straus, Giroux | |
| 1981 | Arnold Lobel | Fables | Winner | Harper & Row |
| Ilse Plume | The Bremen-Town Musicians | Honor | Doubleday Books | |
| Molly Bang | The Grey Lady and the Strawberry Snatcher | Honor | Four Winds | |
| Joseph Low | Mice Twice | Honor | Atheneum | |
| Donald Crews | Truck | Honor | Greenwillow Books | |
| 1982 | Chris Van Allsburg | Jumanji | Winner | Houghton Mifflin |
| Stephen Gammell | Where the Buffaloes Begin | Honor | Puffin Books | |
| Anita Lobel | On Market Street | Honor | Greenwillow Books | |
| Maurice Sendak | Outside Over There | Honor | Lothrop, Lee and Shepard Books | |
| Alice and Martin Provensen | A Visit to William Blake's Inn: Poems for Innocent and Experienced Travelers | Honor | Harcourt Brace | |
| 1983 | Marcia Brown | Shadow | Winner | Charles Scribner's Sons |
| Vera B. Williams | A Chair for My Mother | Honor | Greenwillow Books | |
| Diane Goode | When I Was Young in the Mountains | Honor | Puffin Books | |
| 1984 | Alice and Martin Provensen | The Glorious Flight: Across the Channel with Louis Bleriot | Winner | Viking Press |
| Trina Schart Hyman | Little Red Riding Hood | Honor | Holiday House | |
| Molly Bang | Ten, Nine, Eight | Honor | Greenwillow Books | |
| 1985 | Trina Schart Hyman | Saint George and the Dragon | Winner | Little, Brown |
| Paul O. Zelinsky | Hansel and Gretel | Honor | G.P. Putnam's Sons | |
| Nancy Tafuri | Have You Seen My Duckling? | Honor | Greenwillow Books | |
| John Steptoe | The Story of Jumping Mouse: A Native American Legend | Honor | Lohrop, Lee & Shepard | |
| 1986 | Chris Van Allsburg | The Polar Express | Winner | Houghton Mifflin |
| Stephen Gammell | The Relatives Came | Honor | Bradbury Press | |
| Don Wood | King Bidgood's in the Bathtub | Honor | Houghton Mifflin Harcourt | |
| 1987 | Richard Egielski | Hey, Al | Winner | Farrar Strauss Giroux Press |
| Ann Grifalconi | The Village of Round and Square Houses | Honor | Little Brown Co. | |
| Suse MacDonald | Alphabatics | Honor | Simon & Schuster | |
| Paul O. Zelinsky | Rumpelstiltskin | Honor | EP Dutton | |
| 1988 | John Schoenherr | Owl Moon | Winner | Philomel Books |
| John Steptoe | Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters: An African Tale | Honor | Amistad | |
| 1989 | Stephen Gammell | Song and Dance Man | Winner | Alfred A. Knopf |
| Allen Say | The Boy of the Three-Year Nap | Honor | Houghton Mifflin | |
| David Wiesner | Free Fall | Honor | Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books | |
| James Marshall | Goldilocks and the Three Bears | Honor | Dial Books | |
| Jerry Pinkney | Mirandy and Brother Wind | Honor | Alfred A. Knopf | |
| 1990 | Ed Young | Lon Po Po: A Red-Riding Hood Story from China | Winner | Philomel |
| Bill Peet | Bill Peet: An Autobiography | Honor | Houghton Mifflin | |
| Lois Ehlert | Color Zoo | Honor | HarperCollins | |
| Jerry Pinkney | The Talking Eggs: A Folktale from the American South | Honor | Dial Press | |
| Trina Schart Hyman | Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins | Honor | Holiday House | |
| 1991 | David Macaulay | Black and White | Winner | Houghton Mifflin |
| Fred Marcellino | Puss in Boots | Honor | Farrar, Straus & Giroux | |
| Vera B. Williams | "More More More," Said the Baby: Three Love Stories | Honor | Greenwillow Books | |
| 1992 | David Wiesner | Tuesday | Winner | Clarion Books |
| Faith Ringgold | Tar Beach | Honor | Crown Publishers, Inc. | |
| 1993 | Emily Arnold McCully | Mirette on the High Wire | Winner | Putnam Books |
| Lane Smith | The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales | Honor | Viking Press | |
| Ed Young | Seven Blind Mice | Honor | Philomel Books | |
| Carole Byard | Working Cotton | Honor | Harcourt Brace Jovanovich | |
| 1994 | Allen Say | Grandfather's Journey | Winner | Houghton Mifflin |
| Ted Lewin | Peppe the Lamplighter | Honor | Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Co. | |
| Denise Fleming | In the Small, Small Pond | Honor | Square Fish | |
| Gerald McDermott | Raven: A Trickster Tale From The Pacific Northwest | Honor | Voyager Books | |
| Kevin Henkes | Owen | Honor | Greenwillow Books | |
| Chris Raschka | Yo! Yes? | Honor | Scranton | |
| 1995 | David Diaz | Smoky Night | Winner | Harcourt Brace |
| Jerry Pinkney | John Henry | Honor | Dial Press | |
| Paul O. Zelinsky | Swamp Angel | Honor | EP Dutton | |
| Eric Rohmann | Time Flies | Honor | ||
| 1996 | Peggy Rathmann | Officer Buckle and Gloria | Winner | GP Putnam's Sons |
| Stephen T. Johnson | Alphabet City | Honor | Viking Press | |
| Marjorie Priceman | Zin! Zin! Zin! a Violin | Honor | Simon & Schuster | |
| Brian Pinkney | The Faithful Friend | Honor | Turtleback Books | |
| Janet Stevens | Tops & Bottoms | Honor | Harcourt Brace | |
| 1997 | David Wisniewski | Golem | Winner | Clarion Books |
| Holly Meade | Hush!: A Thai Lullaby | Honor | Orchard Books | |
| David Pelletier | The Graphic Alphabet | Honor | Orchard Books | |
| Dav Pilkey | The Paperboy | Honor | Orchard Books | |
| Peter Sís | Starry Messenger | Honor | Farrar Straus and Giroux | |
| 1998 | Paul O. Zelinsky | Rapunzel | Winner | EP Dutton |
| David Small | The Gardener | Honor | Farrar, Straus & Giroux | |
| Christopher Myers | Harlem | Honor | Scholastic Press | |
| Simms Taback | There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly | Honor | Penguin Putnam Books | |
| 1999 | Mary Azarian | Snowflake Bentley | Winner | Houghton Mifflin |
| Brian Pinkney | Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra | Honor | Hyperion | |
| David Shannon | No, David! | Honor | Blue Sky Press | |
| Uri Shulevitz | Snow | Honor | Farrar, Straus and Giroux | |
| Peter Sís | Tibet Through the Red Box | Honor | Farrar Straus & Giroux | |
| 2000 | Simms Taback | Joseph Had a Little Overcoat | Winner | Viking Press |
| Trina Schart Hyman | A Child's Calendar | Honor | Holiday House | |
| David Wiesner | Sector 7 | Honor | Clarion Books | |
| Molly Bang | When Sophie Gets Angry-Really, Really Angry | Honor | Blue Sky Press | |
| Jerry Pinkney | The Ugly Duckling | Honor | William Morrow Junior Books | |
| 2001 | David Small | So You Want to Be President? | Winner | Philomel Books |
| Christopher Bing | Casey at the Bat | Honor | Handprint Books | |
| Betsy Lewin | Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type | Honor | Simon & Schuster | |
| Ian Falconer | Olivia | Honor | Atheneum Books | |
| 2002 | David Wiesner | The Three Pigs | Winner | Clarion/Houghton Mifflin |
| Brian Selznick | The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins | Honor | Scholastic Press | |
| Bryan Collier | Martin's Big Words: the Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. | Honor | Hyperion Books | |
| Marc Simont | The Stray Dog | Honor | HarperCollins | |
| 2003 | Eric Rohmann | My Friend Rabbit | Winner | Millbrook Press |
| Tony DiTerlizzi | The Spider and the Fly | Honor | Simon & Schuster | |
| Peter McCarty | Hondo & Fabian | Honor | Henry Holt & Co. | |
| Jerry Pinkney | Noah's Ark | Honor | SeaStar Books | |
| 2004 | Mordicai Gerstein | The Man Who Walked Between the Towers | Winner | Millbrook Press |
| Margaret Chodos-Irvine | Ella Sarah Gets Dressed | Honor | Harcourt | |
| Steve Jenkins and Robin Page | What Do You Do with a Tail Like This? | Honor | Houghton Mifflin | |
| Mo Willems | Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! | Honor | Hyperion Books | |
| 2005 | Kevin Henkes | Kitten's First Full Moon | Winner | Greenwillow Books |
| Barbara Lehman | The Red Book | Honor | Houghton Mifflin | |
| E. B. Lewis | Coming on Home Soon | Honor | G.P. Putnam's Sons | |
| Mo Willems | Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale | Honor | Hyperion Books | |
| 2006 | Chris Raschka | The Hello, Goodbye Window | Winner | Michael Di Capua Books/Hyperion Books |
| Bryan Collier | Rosa | Honor | Henry Holt and Co. | |
| Jon J. Muth | Zen Shorts | Honor | Scholastic Press | |
| Marjorie Priceman | Hot Air: The (Mostly) True Story of the First Hot-Air Balloon Ride | Honor | Atheneum | |
| Beckie Prange | Song of the Water Boatman and Other Pond Poems | Honor | Houghton Mifflin | |
| 2007 | David Wiesner | Flotsam | Winner | Clarion/Houghton Mifflin |
| David McLimans | Gone Wild: An Endangered Animal Alphabet | Honor | Walker and Co. | |
| Kadir Nelson | Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom | Honor | Hyperion Books | |
| 2008 | Brian Selznick | The Invention of Hugo Cabret | Winner | Scholastic Press |
| Kadir Nelson | Henry's Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad | Honor | Hyperion Books | |
| Laura Vaccaro Seeger | First the Egg | Honor | Roaring Brook Press | |
| Peter Sís | The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain | Honor | Farrar, Straus and Giroux | |
| Mo Willems | Knuffle Bunny Too: A Case of Mistaken Identity | Honor | Hyperion Books | |
| 2009 | Beth Krommes | The House in the Night | Winner | Houghton Mifflin |
| Marla Frazee | A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever | Honor | Harcourt Children's Books | |
| Uri Shulevitz | How I Learned Geography | Honor | Farrar Straus Giroux | |
| Melissa Sweet | A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams | Honor | Eerdmans Books | |
| 2010 | Jerry Pinkney | The Lion & the Mouse | Winner | Little, Brown Books for Young Readers |
| Marla Frazee | All the World | Honor | Beach Lane Books | |
| Pamela Zagarenski | Red Sings from Treetops: A Year in Colors | Honor | ||
| 2011 | Erin E. Stead | A Sick Day for Amos McGee | Winner | Roaring Brook Press |
| Bryan Collier | Dave the Potter: Artist, Poet, Slave | Honor | Little, Brown and Co. | |
| David Ezra Stein | Interrupting Chicken | Honor | Candlewick Press | |
| 2012 | Chris Raschka | A Ball for Daisy | Winner | Schwartz & Wade |
| John Rocco | Blackout | Honor | Disney Hyperion | |
| Lane Smith | Grandpa Green | Honor | Roaring Brook Press | |
| Patrick McDonnell | Me...Jane | Honor | Little Brown | |
| 2013 | Jon Klassen | This is Not My Hat | Winner | Candlewick Press |
| Peter Brown | Creepy Carrots! | Honor | Simon & Schuster | |
| Jon Klassen | Extra Yarn | Honor | ||
| Laura Vaccaro Seeger | Green | Honor | ||
| David Small | One Cool Friend | Honor | ||
| Pamela Zagarenski | Sleep Like a Tiger | Honor | ||
| 2014 | Brian Floca | Locomotive | Winner | |
| Aaron Becker | Journey | Honor | ||
| Molly Idle | Flora and the Flamingo | Honor | ||
| David Wiesner | Mr. Wuffles! | Honor | ||
| 2015 | Dan Santat | The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend | Winner | Little, Brown |
| Lauren Castillo | Nana in the City | Honor | Houghton Mifflin Harcourt | |
| Mary GrandPré | The Noisy Paint Box: The Colors and Sounds of Kandinsky’s Abstract Art | Honor | ||
| Jon Klassen | Sam & Dave Dig a Hole | Honor | Candlewick Books | |
| Yuyi Morales | Viva Frida | Honor | Roaring Brook Press | |
| Melissa Sweet | The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus | Honor | Eerdmans | |
| Jillian Tamaki | This One Summer | Honor | First Second | |
| 2016 | Sophie Blackall | Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World’s Most Famous Bear | Winner | Little, Brown |
| Bryan Collier | Trombone Shorty | Honor | ||
| Kevin Henkes | Waiting | Honor | Harper Collins | |
| Ekua Holmes | Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer, Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement | Honor | Candlewick Press | |
| Christian Robinson | Last Stop on Market Street | Honor | Penguin Books | |
| 2017 | Javaka Steptoe | Radiant Child: The Story of Young Artist Jean-Michel Basquiat | Winner | Little, Brown |
| Vera Brosgol | Leave Me Alone! | Honor | Roaring Book Press | |
| R. Gregory Christie | Freedom in Congo Square | Honor | Little Bee Books | |
| Carson Ellis | Du Iz Tak? | Honor | Candlewick Press | |
| Brendan Wenzel | They All Saw a Cat | Honor | Little, Brown | |
| 2018 | Matthew Cordell | Wolf in the Snow | Winner | Feiwel & Friends |
| Elisha Cooper | Big Cat, little cat | Honor | Roaring Brook Press | |
| Gordon C. James | Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut | Honor | Denene Millner Books, Agate Publishing | |
| Thi Bui | A Different Pond | Honor | Capstone Publishers | |
| Jason Chin | Grand Canyon | Honor | Roaring Brook Press | |
| 2019 | Sophie Blackall | Hello Lighthouse | Winner | Little, Brown |
| Juana Martinez-Neal | Alma and How She Got Her Name | Honor | Candlewick Press | |
| Grace Lin | A Big Mooncake for Little Star | Honor | Little, Brown | |
| Brian Lies | The Rough Patch | Honor | Harper Collins | |
| Oge Mora | Thank You, Omu! | Honor | Little, Brown | |
| 2020 | Kadir Nelson | The Undefeated | Winner | Houghton Mifflin Harcourt |
| Le Uyen Pham | Bear Came Along | Honor | Little, Brown Books for Young Readers | |
| Rudy Gutierrez | Double Bass Blues | Honor | Knopf Books for Young Readers | |
| Daniel Minter | Going Down Home with Daddy | Honor | Peachtree Publishing Co. | |
| 2021 | Michaela Goade | We Are Water Protectors | Winner | Roaring Brook Press |
| Noa Denmon | A Place Inside of Me: A Poem to Heal the Heart | Honor | Farrar Straus Giroux | |
| Yuko Shimizu | The Cat Man of Aleppo | Honor | G.P. Putnam’s Sons | |
| Cozbi A. Cabrera | Me & Mama | Honor | Denene Millner Books/Simon & Schuster Books | |
| Cindy Derby | Outside In | Honor | Houghton Mifflin Harcourt | |
| 2022 | Jason Chin | Watercress | Winner | Neal Porter Books |
| Shawn Harris | Have You Ever Seen a Flower? | Honor | Chronicle Books | |
| Corey R. Tabor | Mel Fell | Honor | Balzer + Bray | |
| Floyd Cooper | Unspeakable: The Tulsa Race Massacre | Honor | Carolrhoda Books | |
| Micha Archer | Wonder Walkers | Honor | Nancy Paulsen Books | |
| 2023 | Doug Salati | Hot Dog | Winner | Alfred A. Knopf |
| Jason Griffin | Ain't Burned All the Bright | Honor | Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books | |
| Michaela Goade | Berry Song | Honor | Little, Brown Books for Young Readers | |
| Janelle Washington | Choosing Brave: How Mamie Till-Mobley and Emmitt Till Sparked the Civil Rights Movement | Honor | Roaring Brook Press | |
| Christopher Denise | Knight Owl | Honor | Christy Ottaviano Books | |
| 2024 | Vashti Harrison | Big | Winner | Little, Brown Books for Young Readers |
| Marla Frazee | In Every Life | Honor | Beach Lane Books | |
| Molly Mendoza | Jovita Wore Pants: The Story of a Mexican Freedom Fighter | Honor | Scholastic Press | |
| Jerome Pumphrey and Jarrett Pumphrey | There Was a Party for Langston | Honor | Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books | |
| Hanna Cha | The Truth About Dragons | Honor | Henry Holt and Co. |
