2019 Michael Printz Honor Awards

The Michael Printz honors are awarded annually by the American Library Association for significant contribution to teen literature. This year, they all feature young female protagonists struggling to overcome obstacles and move toward a surer sense of identity and self-worth.

2019 Printz Award Winner

In The Poet X, Xiomara Batista is a budding poet and spoken word artist whose maturing body has drawn unwelcome attention - both male and female.  In response she has developed a tough-girl persona. This leads to friction with her mother, a first-generation Dominican immigrant and devout Catholic. This book is the 2019 Printz Award winner.

Printz Honor Books

Three titles have been designated Printz Honor books.

 Damsel, by Elana K. Arnold, is an original fairy tale that begins with a familiar convention – the prince saves the damsel in distress and becomes king. The fairy tale soon turns into a story of patriarchal oppression and sexual violence as Ama, the damsel in question, is subjected to the increasingly brutal whims of the new monarch. This dark but timely fantasy is intended for adults and older teens.

Trauma also lies at the center of A Heart in a Body in the World, by Deb Caletti.  In this realistic novel set in the modern day, 18-year-old Annabelle finds that distance running is the only thing that allows her to deal with memories of a nightmarish event involving someone who was once close to her.  Accompanied by a core group of family and friends, she sets off on a healing run across the United States in a quest to reclaim her place in the world.

Lastly, situated in the modern day is I, Claudia, by Mary McCoy.  Claudia, who begins freshman year at her elite prep school as a wallflower, is elected to a position on the school’s prestigious Honor Council.  Though initially reluctant to assume her seat she soon discovers the heady effects of assuming and wielding power. Claudia dives headlong into the political machinations of the Council, all the while struggling to maintain the purity of her own motivations. 

These titles are available in a variety of electronic and physical formats. Click on the titles to view them on our website.    

Tom S., CADL Okemos