OASL is committed to equity, diversity, inclusion, anti-racism, and anti-oppression in our organization, policies, practices,
and educational resources and opportunities. 

(Laura Stewart’s photo of her BCCCA displays at both of her libraries at Charles F. Tigard Elementary and Mary Woodward Elementary in the Tigard-Tualatin School District.)

2025 is BCCCA's 23rd Year! 

This award, sponsored by the Oregon Association of School Libraries (OASL) is named in honor of Oregon born, children’s author Beverly Cleary. April 12^th would have been Beverly Cleary’s 109^th birthday. In her very full life, she brought enjoyment to countless young readers and their parents. We encourage families to celebrate her life by reading her books and to participate in the BCCCA contest, which was created in her honor.

Today, the BCCCA Committee is proud to announce that 1,559 Kindergarten through 5th grade students from Oregon, Idaho and Kansas participated in voting for their favorite 2024-2025 BCCCA title!  A huge shout-out of thanks to all the public, parochial, private schools and public libraries, school library staff and classroom teachers who promoted and encouraged their readers to participate in voting for their favorite Beverly Cleary Children’s Choice Award nominee!

Drumroll please! The 2024-2025 BCCCA Winner is……

Expedition Backyard: Exploring Nature from Country to City by Rosemary Mosco and Binglin Hu.
Each day, two best friends- Mole and Vole venture out into the world – never forgetting their nature journal! – to see what they can find in their own backyard. From pigeons to swamp milkweed, these two explorers get to know every part of their local environment. But after an accidental move from the country to the city, Mole and Vole worry that everything will be different. As they explore, they discover plants to look at and animals to meet in their new home as well. This nonfiction graphic novel uncovers that nature is everywhere- no matter where you live.        

Announcing the 2025-2026 BCCCA Nominees…… 

• Breaking News (Frankie and Friends Book #1) by Christine Platt.

When Mama suddenly needs to leave to cover a breaking news story, Frankie must cope with missing her mom. Frankie imitates her journalist mama by reporting on household news with the help of her older sister, Raven, and an unlikely news crew.

• Henry Like Always (Book #1) by Jenn Bailey.

Henry likes Classroom Ten. He likes how it is always the same. But this week, Henry's class will have a parade, and a parade means having Share Time on the wrong day. A parade means playing instruments that are too loud. A parade means this week is not like always. Join Henry as he navigates the ups and downs of marker missiles, stomach volcanoes, and days that feel a little too orange.

• The Not-So-Nice Neighbor (Shermy & Shake Book #1) by Kirby Larson.

When Shake comes to stay with his grandmother at the house next door, Shermy's plans for a quiet, relaxing summer are completely upended. That's because Shake is nothing like Shermy. And Shermy is nothing like Shake!

• Salma Makes a Home (Salma #1) by Danny Ramadan.

After a year, eleven months, and six days apart, Salma’s dad is finally joining her family in their new home in Canada. Salma is so happy to see her baba–but she’s also worried. What if he misses Syria so much that he leaves them again? She throws herself into showing him around the city and helping him learn English, but as Baba shares memories of Damascus, Salma starts to realize how much she misses the life she had in Syria, too. Can Salma make space in her heart for two homes? And can Baba?

• Search for a Giant Squid: Pick Your Path (Science Explorers Book #1) by Amy Seto Forrester and Andy Chou Musser.  

Take a journey to the ocean's twilight zone in Search for a Giant Squid! An exciting mixture of fiction and nonfiction, this choose-your-own-adventure-style story allows readers to take on the mantle of a teuthologist looking for a giant squid in its natural habitat. Once readers pick their submersible, pilot, and dive site, the adventure begins!

• The Story of Gumluck the Wizard (Gumluck the Wizard #1) by Adam Rex.

This is a story about magic,if you like that kind of thing. It is also a story about a ghost with a memory loss, an unpopular fairy, an ungrateful town, and a wise and helpful raven (who happens to be a pretty good storyteller).
But mostly, it is about a friendly little wizard who lives inside a big hill and really, really, really wants to be a hero. His name is Gumluck, and he is a bumbling noodlehead.

The 2025-2026 BCCCA Slide deck with educational links along with the BCCCA Animoto will be posted soon on https://ola.memberclicks.net/bccca-nominees

The 2025-2026 BCCCA Student Paper Ballot will be shared soon here with voting details. As well as the spine labels, Newberg Public Library’s Amanda Lambs’s BCCCA flyer and BCCCA bookmarks can be found on our Support Materials page. Official voting for the 2025-2026 BCCCA titles opens next year on March 15, 2026 and closes on April 10, 2026. 

Keep on Reading!

With kind thanks,      

Libby Hamler-Dupras   BCCCA Committee Chair

[email protected]

 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

Hello everyone! 

• This award is named in honor of author Beverly Cleary.  In her very full life of 104 years, she brought enjoyment to countless young readers and their parents. The world will miss miss her sorely. We encourage families to celebrate her life by reading her books and to participate in the BCCCA contest, which was created in her honor.
• Find the Nominees for 2024-2025, start reading, listening, and most of all -- enjoy!  

If you have any questions, please contact the BCCCA Chairperson at [email protected].

Enjoy the books and your time together!  

The Beverly Cleary Children's Choice Award (BCCCA) sponsored by OASL (formerly OEMA)  is named in honor of Beverly Cleary, the Oregon born children's book author. Children of all ages may vote each spring for their favorite title from the list of nominated books.  The winning title is announced on Beverly Cleary's birthday, April 12. Nominations include books targeted to the reading ability of 2nd and 3rd graders or a little higher.  Watch the OPB video: Discovering Beverly Cleary

History:

The idea behind the Beverly Cleary Children's Choice Award (BCCCA), sponsored by the Oregon Association of School Libraries (then the Oregon Educational Media Association), began in the summer of 2001 when Jann Tankersley invited some OEMA friends to discuss the possibilities of creating a children's choice award.  Jann is a long-time OASL member and Library Teacher at Dayton Elementary School. This group of friends decided to name the award after Beverly Cleary, the Oregon born author, who wrote books for the age group that was being targeted. With Beverly Cleary’s permission, the award was created.

Links of interest:

Walking with Ramona

Beverly Cleary Sculpture Garden

Follow in the Footsteps of a Beloved Children's Author

Grant Park & Beverly Cleary Sculpture Garden

Timeline:

The BCCCA Committee meets every Spring after reading all of the nominated books. Titles may be nominated by students, teachers, teacher librarians, public librarians and other interested readers. The chair must be a current member of OASL (formerly OEMA) and be a Teacher-Librarian. The committee is composed of teacher librarians and public librarians, classroom teachers, and others interested in Children's literature. 5-10 books are selected for the yearly nominations list. The list will be made available in the Spring of each year.

Book Selection:

Rationale: this award is to encourage reading by highlighting good quality literature (fiction and nonfiction) written at an approximately 2nd – 3^rd grade reading level, taking into account text, format and the illustrations of the books. This contest will encourage books that students may not otherwise find on their own and are not necessarily the popular best sellers.