2026 YouPer (Young Person) Award

The YouPer (Young Person) Award recognizes and promotes quality literature for youth in chapter book format. First given in 2014, the award is given annually to one chapter book originally published in English during the calendar year that has captured the attention of the youth librarians throughout the State of Michigan for especially commendable quality, venturesome creativity, that reflects and encourages children's interests in exemplary ways.

The winner of the 2025 YouPer Award is Busted by Dan Gemeinhart, published by Henry Holt and Co. 

2026 YouPer (Young Person) Top Ten Titles

• Busted by Dan Gemeinhart
• I’m a Dumbo Octopus! A Graphic Guide to Cephalopods by Anne Lambelet
• Blood in the Water by Tiffany Jackson
• Pocket Bear by Katherine Applegate, illustrated by Charles Santoso
• Will’s Race For Home by Jewell Parker Rhodes, illustrated by Olga Ivanov and Aleksey Ivanov
• The Trouble With Heroes by Kate Messner
• The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest by Aubrey Hartman, illustrated by Marcin Minor
• The Midwatch Institute for Wayward Girls by Judith Rossell
• All the Blues in the Sky by Renée Watson
• Kindred Dragons by Sarah Mensinga

Award Seals

Download the YouPer Award seals to use at your library! Winner, Honor Book and Top Ten Title award seals are available for download here: (To download, right-click on the seal and save it as an image.)