Michael L. Printz Award

The Michael L. Printz Award honors the book judged the best example of literary writing for teenagers each year. It is named for Michael L. Printz, a school librarian from Topeka, Kansas, who was active in the Young Adult Library Services Association and known for matching students with the right books.

First presented in 2000, the award is chosen by a YALSA committee and sponsored by Booklist magazine. Fiction, nonfiction, poetry and anthologies all qualify, as do books first published abroad once an American edition appears. Each January the committee names one winner and may name up to four honor books.

Books written for readers aged 12 to 18 and published in the United States during the previous year, including American editions of books first published elsewhere. Adult books are not eligible.