Awards

Freeman Book Awards

Young Adult / High Category Winners

2016

Every Falling Star

Every Falling Star

By Sungju Lee and Susan Elizabeth McClelland (Amulet, an imprint of ABRAMS)
Sachiko: A Nagasaki Bomb Survivor’s Story

Sachiko: A Nagasaki Bomb Survivor’s Story

By Caren Stelson (Carolrhoda Books)

2017

The Forbidden Temptation of Baseball

The Forbidden Temptation of Baseball

By Dori Jones Yang (SparkPress)
Want

Want

By Cindy Pon (Simon & Schuster; Simon Pulse)
Tanabata Wish

Tanabata Wish

By Sara Fujimura (Wishes Enterprises, LLC)

2018

Go: A Coming of Age Novel

Go: A Coming of Age Novel

By Kazuki Kaneshiro, Illustrated by Takami Nieda (AmazonCrossing)
The Astonishing Color of After

The Astonishing Color of After

By Emily X.R.Pan (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)
Girls on the Line

Girls on the Line

By Jennie Liu (Lerner Publishing Group/Carolrhoda Lab)
A Thousand Beginnings and Endings

A Thousand Beginnings and Endings

Edited by Ellen Oh and Elsie Chapman (Harper Collins Publishers)
The Analects: An Illustrated Edition

The Analects: An Illustrated Edition

By Confucius, Adapted and illustrated by C.C. Tsai, With a foreword by Michael Puett (Princeton University Press)
Dragon Ridge Tombs

Dragon Ridge Tombs

By Tianxia Bachang, Translated by Jeremy Tiang (Penguin Random House)

2019

The Weight of Our Sky

The Weight of Our Sky

By Hanna Alkaf (Simon & Schuster, Salaam Reads)
Patron Saints of Nothing

Patron Saints of Nothing

By Randy Ribay (Penguin Young Readers, Kokila)
Indigo Girl

Indigo Girl

By Suzanne Kamata (Gemma Media)

2020

Crossing the Farak River

Crossing the Farak River

By Michelle Aung Thin (Annick Press)
Year of the Rabbit

Year of the Rabbit

By Tian Veasna, Translated by Helge Dascher (Drawn & Quaterly)
The Silence of Bones

The Silence of Bones

By June Hur (Macmillan)
Tiananmen 1989: Our Shattered Hopes

Tiananmen 1989: Our Shattered Hopes

By Lun Zhang and Adrien Gombeaud, Illustrated by Ameziane (IDW Publishing)
Almond

Almond

By Won-pyung Sohn, Translated by Sandy Joosun Lee (Harper Collins)
Like Spilled Water

Like Spilled Water

By Jennie Liu (Lerner Publishing Group)
Banned Book Club

Banned Book Club

By Kim Hyun Sook, Ryan Estrada, Illustrated by Hyung-Ju Ko (Iron Circus Comics)

2021

Tsunami Girl

Tsunami Girl

By Julian Sedgwick, Illustrated by Chie Kutsuwada (Guppy Books)
The Waiting

The Waiting

By Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, Translated by Janet Hong (Drawn and Quarterly)
Colorful

Colorful

By Eto Mori, Translated by Jocelyne Allen (Counterpoint Press)
Freedom Swimmer

Freedom Swimmer

By Wai Chim (Scholastic)
The Minamata Story

The Minamata Story

By Sean Michael Wilson, Illustrated by Akiko Shimojima (Stone Bridge Press)
The Forest of Stolen Girls

The Forest of Stolen Girls

By June Hur (Feiwei & Friends)

2022

The Color of the Sky Is the Shape of the Heart

Chesil, Translated by Takami Nieda (Soho Teen)

K-Pop Revolution

Stephan Lee (Point)

The Red Palace

June Hur (Feiwel & Friends)

Strike the Zither

Joan He (Roaring Brook Press)

2023

An Echo in the City

K. X. Song
(Little, Brown and Company Books for Young Readers)

Catfish Rolling

Clara Kumagai
(Amulet Books)

My Father, the Panda Killer

Jamie Jo Hoang
(Crown Books for Young Readers)

A Little Boy on Ramree Island: A True Story about Growing up on an Island in the Bay of Bengal

Aung Z. Mong and Jill Brock Mong
(Self-published)

Explore Award Winners by Year

Explore Award Winners by Age Group

Children’s Young Adult / Middle Young Adult / High YA Graphic Novels
About the awards

Honoring East And Southeast Asian Titles for Children and Young Adults

National Consortium for Teaching about Asia (NCTA), the Committee on Teaching about Asia (CTA) of the Association for Asian Studies (AAS), and Asia for Educators (AFE) at Columbia University sponsor the annual Freeman Book Awards for new young adult and children’s literature. The awards recognize quality books for children and young adults that contribute meaningfully to an understanding of East and Southeast Asia. Awards are given in two categories: Children’s and Young Adult on the several countries of East and Southeast Asia.

Learn More Submission Guidelines