By Kara Yorio

Individual award committees seek the best book that meets the criteria they've been handed. But, in the context of the times, the 2022 Youth Media Awards winners list made a collective statement to those across the country trying to ban books.

Chin's watercolor illustrations of Andrea Wang's personal text about a Chinese immigrant family picking watercress by an Ohio roadside earned the prestigious award.

Higuera's novel, which combines Mexican American folklore with science fiction, earned her the 100th Newbery Medal and the Pura Belpré Youth Author Award.

The Native American author had the idea for Firekeeper's Daughter, a modern-day thriller, nearly 40 years ago.

Donna Barba Higuera's Newbery win was just one of multiple awards for her novel, while Watercress, Firekeeper's Daughter, Unspeakable, and Last Night at the Telegraph Club also had a big day at the 2022 Youth Media Awards.

As attacks on library collections escalate, school boards and parents circumvent the established process.

The Front Desk author tweeted a call to action to her colleagues, as she tries to "motivate and mobilize" people to fight coordinated efforts to remove books from schools and libraries.

Margarita Engle, Meg Medina, Yuyi Morales, and Raúl the Third are just some of the children's literature creators set to take part in the free, virtual festival.

A Twitter campaign organized by #FReadom prompted authors—including Cynthia Leitich Smith, Laurie Halse Anderson, Alex Gino, Jarrett J. Krosoczka, and others—to share the heartfelt messages they have received from young people who connected with their books.