The 2024 Blue Crab Awards

The 2024 Maryland Blue Crab Young Reader Award committee of the Children's Services Division of the Maryland Library Association has selected winners and honor books in each of four categories to stimulate interest in books for the beginning reader and the emergent independent reader. Titles are selected to encourage young readers to independently choose and read these titles with minimal guidance from the adults in their lives. The award-winning titles were announced on Thursday, April 4 and are all available in the Baltimore County Public Library collection. 

Beginner Fiction

• Winner: "How to Love a Pony" by Michelle Meadows
• "Arfy and the Stinky Smell" by Troy Cummings
• "Elena Rides" by Juana Medina
• "Trim Sets Sail" by Deborah Hopkinson

Beginner Nonfiction

• Winner: "You Are a Raccoon!" by Laurie Ann Thompson
• "It Is Time: The Life of a Caterpillar" by Lizzy Rockwell
• "I Live in a Tree Trunk" by Meg Fleming

Transitional Fiction

• Winner: "The Case of the Missing Tarts" by Christee Curran-Bauer
• "The Skull" by Jon Klassen
• "The Party Diaries: Awesome Orange Birthday" by Mitali Banerjee Ruths

Transitional Nonfiction

• Winner: "Butt or Face?" by Kari Lavelle
• "A World of Dancers" by Ginjer Clarke
• "Wombats Are Pretty Weird" by Abi Cushman
• "How To Eat in Space" by Helen Taylor