On January 26th, 2026, the American Library Association announced the year’s top books for children and young adults during the Youth Media Awards announcements in Chicago, with Legendary Frybread Drive-In: Intertribal Stories earning one of the event’s highest honors.
Edited by Cynthia Leitich Smith (Muscogee Nation) and published by Heartdrum, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, Legendary Frybread Drive-In: Intertribal Stories received the Michael L. Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature, which recognizes the best book written for teens based solely on literary merit. The anthology’s Printz win also intersected with another major recognition at the ceremony, reflecting the book’s wide-reaching impact across youth literature.
The Youth Media Awards announcements also included the Odyssey Awards, which honor the best audiobooks produced for children and young adults and made available in English in the United States.
The Odyssey Award for Children was awarded to Clack, Clack! Smack! A Cherokee Stickball Story. The audiobook was produced by Arnie Cardillo and Debra Cardillo for Live Oak Media, written by Traci Sorell, illustrated by Joseph Erb, and narrated by the author alongside a full cast. Also honored in the category was Legendary Frybread Drive-In: Intertribal Stories, produced by Sydney Mathieu of Eljin Productions, Inc. for Heartdrum, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers. Edited by Cynthia Leitich Smith (Muscogee Nation), the audiobook features narration by a full cast.
Administered by the American Indian Library Association, an affiliate of ALA, the American Indian Youth Literature Awards were also announced. Presented in even-numbered years, the awards honor outstanding writing and illustration by and about American Indians and Alaska Natives.
The American Indian Youth Literature Award for Best Young Adult Book was awarded to Legendary Frybread Drive-In: Intertribal Stories, marking a significant moment for Indigenous YA literature at this year’s Youth Media Awards.
Young Adult Honor Books included Sheine Lende: A Prequel to Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger (Lipan Apache), illustrated by Rovina Cai and published by Levine Querido; Sisters in the Wind by Angeline Boulley (Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians), published by Henry Holt Books for Young Readers; Super Indian, Volume Three by Arigon Starr (Kickapoo Tribe of Oklahoma), published by Wacky Productions Unlimited; The Unfinished by Cheryl Isaacs (Kanyen’keha), published by Heartdrum; and Where Wolves Don’t Die by Anton Treuer (Ojibwe), published by Levine Querido.
In the Picture Book category, the American Indian Youth Literature Award for Best Picture Book went to Chooch Helped, written by Andrea L. Rogers (Cherokee Nation) and illustrated by Rebecca Lee Kunz (Cherokee Nation), published by Arthur A. Levine, an imprint of Levine Querido.
Picture Book Honor Books included Braided Roots by Pasha Westbrook (Chickasaw Nation and Choctaw Freedman), illustrated by Madelyn Goodnight (Chickasaw Nation) and published by Orchard Books; Fierce Aunties! by Laurel Goodluck (Mandan and Hidatsa and Tsimshian), illustrated by Steph Littlebird (Oregon’s Grand Ronde Confederated Tribes) and published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers; For a Girl Becoming by Joy Harjo (Mvskoke Nation), illustrated by Adriana Garcia and published by Norton Young Readers; Raven’s Ribbons by Tasha Spillett (Cree and Trinidadian), illustrated by Daniel Ramirez (Saginaw Chippewa Tribe of Michigan) and published by Little, Brown and Company; We Weave by Daniel W. Vandever (Navajo and Irish), illustrated by Deonoveigh Mitchell (Navajo and Black American) and published by South of Sunrise Creative.
The American Indian Youth Literature Award for Best Middle Grade Book went to Buffalo Dreamer by Violet Duncan (Plains Cree and Taino from Kehewin Cree Nation), published by Nancy Paulsen Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House.
Middle Grade Honor Books included Jo Jo Makoons: The Super-Scary Sleepover by Dawn Quigley (Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe), illustrated by Tara Audibert (Wolastoquey/French) and published by Heartdrum; Lost at Windy River: A True Story of Survival by Trina Rathgeber (Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation), illustrated by Alina Pete (Little Pine First Nation) and Jillian Dolan (Kapawe’no Cree First Nation) and published by Orca Book Publishers; Outfoxed by Elise McMullen-Ciotti (Cherokee Nation), published by Scholastic; Red Bird Danced by Dawn Quigley, published by Heartdrum; The Ribbon Skirt by Cameron Mukwa (Anishinaabe), published by Graphix; and The Summer of the Bone Horses by Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve (Rosebud Sioux Tribe), illustrated by Steph Littlebird and published by Amulet Books, an imprint of Abrams Books for Young Readers.
Our sincerest congratulations to Cynthia Leitich Smith and contributors to the Legendary Frybread Drive-In: Intertribal Stories, Kaua Mahoe Adams, Marcella Bell, Angeline Boulley, K. A. Cobell, A. J. Eversole, Jen Ferguson, Eric Gansworth, Byron Graves, Kate Hart, Christine Hartman Derr, Karina Iceberg, Cheryl Isaacs, Darcie Little Badger, David A. Robertson, Andrea L. Rogers, and Brian Young. Congratulations to Violet Duncan and Andrea L. Rogers!
This year’s winners and honored books reflect the incredible level of excellence shaping Indigenous storytelling today, offering young readers stories that affirm identity, spark curiosity, and invite imagination.
Discover more from Red Pop! News
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
