KIDS CHOOSE THEIR FAVORITES IN MIDDLE GRADE FICTION!
The Cartwheel Book Awards was started locally in 2013 at the Bellingham, MA Public Library, but committee members now are from all around the country. The awards are named after the cartwheel statue that resides outside the library's entrance. The initial purpose of the Cartwheel Book Awards was to connect middle grade readers to good books they might not otherwise have found. We select ten middle grade books in a variety of genres each year for consideration - aspiring to find the right mixture between kid appeal and writing quality. Each chosen book is published during the previous year. For example, books published in 2018 will be considered by the committee members in 2019 and the winners will be awarded 2020 Cartwheel Book Awards in early 2020.

Rather than just the typical voting for Favorite Book, the Cartwheel Book Awards have seven different categories for readers to consider: Favorite Book, Best Written, Favorite Kid (we award two of these), Favorite Grown-Up, Favorite Non-Human, Best Ending, and Favorite Book Cover. After voting is completed, we contact the winning authors/illustrators and ask them to send in acceptance speeches - either via email or video. The overwhelmingly grateful responses we have received from authors has led to an unexpected second purpose of the Cartwheel Book Awards: connecting readers and authors, and particularly reminding the kids that their opinions matter to the authors. We are always looking for new committee members from all over the country. Join now!