The Assembly on Literature for Adolescents (ALAN) of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) is pleased and proud to announce the 2026 Amelia Elizabeth Walden Book Award for Young Adult Fiction finalists. Established in 2008 to honor the wishes of young adult author Amelia Elizabeth Walden, the award allows for a monetary prize to be presented annually to the author of a young adult title selected by the ALAN Amelia Elizabeth Walden Book Award Committee as demonstrating a positive approach to life, widespread teen appeal, and literary merit.
The finalists are:
All the Noise at Once by DeAndra Davis (Atheneum Books for Young Readers/Simon & Shuster)
All the Tomorrow’s After by Joanna Yi (Atheneum Books for Young Readers/ Simon & Shuster)
Song of a Blackbird by Maria Van Lieshout (First Second/ Roaring Book Press)
It’s You Every Time by Charlene Thomas (Scholastic Press)
The winning title and finalists will be honored at the 2026 ALAN Workshop on Monday, November 24th in Philadelphia, PA, and the authors will be invited to participate in a panel discussion. The winner will be announced Friday, May 6th.
The 2026 Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award Committee would like to thank: the Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award Foundation, the ALAN Executive Council, the ALAN Board of Directors, NCTE, and the many publishers who submitted titles for consideration.
The 2026 Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award Committee considered over 300 young adult titles throughout the process. The committee was comprised of eleven members representing the university, K-12 school, and library communities. They are:
T. Hunter Strickland, Ph.D., Committee Chair, Assistant Professor of Adolescent Literacy, Augusta University, Augusta, GA
Jung Kim, Ph.D., Past Committee Chair, Professor of Literacy, Lewis University, Romeoville, IL
Liz Deskins, University Professor, Hilliard City Schools, Columbus, OH
Christian Gregory, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Education, Saint Anselm College, Goffstown, NH
Chris Lewis, Ph.D., English Learner Teacher on Special Assignment, Mountain View High School, El Monte, CA
Lori Lieberman, Librarian, Lincoln High School, Portland, OR
Kate Hoppenrath, Librarian, West High School, Knoxville, TN
Jessica Lorentz Smith, Librarian, Bend Senior High School, Bend, OR
Liz Carr, Teacher, Academically Talented Youth Program, WMU, Kalamazoo, MI
Maggie Wilson, Teacher, Belton Middle School, Belton, SC
Renee Stites Kruep, Clinical Teaching Professor, University of Missouri, Columbia MO
For more information on the award, please visit ALAN Online: The Official Site of the Assembly on Literature for Adolescents http://www.alan-ya.org/awards/walden-award/