Kentucky Bluegrass Award Nominees 2024/25 (6th-8th)

Each year, a KBA committee for each grade band chooses ten books that will be featured on each Nominee List (Preschool, K-2, 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12) through a year-long process that requires many volunteer hours. These committees include school librarians, public librarians, academic librarians, and classroom teachers from across the state and represent both public and private schools. Nominee List committees are chaired by KASL members who report to the KBA Coordinator and the KASL Board.

Students vote on their favorite books after reading from the Nominee Lists. The specific voting process is determined at the individual school/library level. All the ballots are counted by an on-site coordinator (usually a teacher or librarian) and the results are transferred to an online tally sheet made available on the KASL website in March of the contest year. Votes are counted after the cutoff date (April 1st) and a winner is declared for each level during the first week of April.

Updated April 30, 2024
M
McCracken County Public Library
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Simon sort of says
Bow, Erin
NEWBERY HONOR AWARD . LONGLISTED FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD . SCHNEIDER FAMILY BOOK AWARD HONOR . FINALIST FOR THE AUDIE AWARD FOR BEST MIDDLE GRADE AUDIOBOOK OF THE YEAR "Funny, poignant and-most important-hopeful." -New York Times Simon O'Keeffe's biggest...
Two degrees
Gratz, Alan
The instant #1 New York Times bestseller! #1 New York Times bestselling author Alan Gratz (Refugee; Ground Zero) is back, tackling the urgent topic of climate change in this breathtaking, action-packed novel that will keep readers turning pages while making...
A work in progress
Lerner, Jarrett
A young boy struggles with body image in this poignant and "perceptive" (Publishers Weekly, starred review) middle grade journey to self-acceptance told through prose, verse, and illustration. Will is the only round kid in a school full of thin ones. So he hides...in baggy...
Once there was
Monsef, Kiyash
A New York Times bestseller! A Morris Award Finalist Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them meets Neil Gaiman in this "striking and heartfelt" (Kirkus Reviews) novel about an Iranian American girl who discovers that her father was secretly a...
Iceberg
Nielsen, Jennifer A.
As disaster looms on the horizon, a young stowaway onboard the Titanic will need all her courage and wits to stay alive. A thrilling tale from New York Times bestselling author Jennifer A. Nielsen! Hazel Rothbury is traveling all alone from her home in England aboard...
A first time for everything : a true story
Santat, Dan
*Winner of the 2023 National Book Award for Young People's Literature* A middle grade graphic memoir based on bestselling author and Caldecott Medalist Dan Santat's awkward middle school years and the trip to Europe that changed his life. Dan's always been...
Bomb : the race to build and steal the world's most dangerous weapon
Sheinkin, Steve.
Perfect for middle grade readers and history enthusiasts, New York Times bestselling author Steve Sheinkin presents the fascinating and frightening true story of the creation behind the most destructive force that birthed the arms race and the Cold War in Bomb: The Race...
Remember me gone
Stokes, Stacy
Lucy Miller's family has the unique ability to remove people's painful memories-but Lucy isn't prepared for truths she will uncover in this twisty speculative thriller, perfect for fans of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Neal Shusterman. People come from...
Mascot
Waters, Charles
What if a school's mascot is seen as racist, but not by everyone? In this compelling middle-grade novel in verse, two best-selling BIPOC authors tackle this hot-button issue. In Rye, Virginia, just outside Washington, DC, people work hard, kids go to school, and football is big...
Bite risk
Wills, S. J. (Children's author)
The Last Kids on Earth gets a lupine twist by way of Margaret Peterson Haddix in this eerie middle grade adventure set in a small town where all the adults are werewolves but the kids begin to suspect something else sinister is putting them at even greater risk. When...

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