Students pick winners of annual Vermont Youth Book Awards
June 4, 2024 | By Waterbury Roundabout 
The Vermont Department of Libraries has announced the winners of this year’s Vermont Youth Book Awards, as decided by more than 17,000 young Vermonters.
The Red Clover Book Award, chosen by students in grades K-4, was awarded to “Who’s Afraid of the Light?” by Anna McGregor.
The Vermont Golden Dome Book Award, selected by readers in grades 4-8, goes to “Lasagna Means I Love You” by Kate O'Shaughnessy.
High school students picked “Where He Can't Find You” by Darcy Coates for the Green Mountain Book Award.
The Vermont Youth Book Awards promote literacy and foster a love of reading and critical thinking skills among Vermont’s children and teens, according to the Vermont Department of Libraries.
The reader-chosen awards are managed by three respective book award committees with the Vermont Department of Libraries providing administrative support, including facilitating student voting.
A total of 17,244 Vermont youth filled out ballots to help select the 2025 award winners.
“It’s wonderful to see young readers engage with quality literature and to celebrate these award-winning authors,” said Jonathan Clark, the department’s Library Consultant for Children and Teen Services. “This would not be possible without the work of each award committee, who diligently read throughout the year to create the nominee lists; the teachers and librarians who assist students in their reading and voting efforts; and, of course, Vermont youth, who are at the core of the Vermont Youth Book Awards.”
Students in each category voted on a list of the best books printed in 2023, as identified by each youth book award committee.
Janette Shaffer, an assistant state librarian, explained that the list of books is compiled from the last calendar year prior to the current school year. All of the books considered were published in 2023 for the 2024-2025 award year, she said. “The committees must select the books for the ballot by reading many titles. Then students receive the ballots and are given time to read the books during the school year, with a voting deadline near the end of the academic year.
As part of the announcement of the awards, each award committee shared comments about the winning title in their category:
Red Clover winner, “Who’s Afraid of the Light?” by Anna McGregor: “This hilarious book sinks deep, deep down to the very bottom of the ocean, where some animals make their own light—and others avoid it. We meet (but can’t see!) Fergus, who assures us he is ‘probably very cute,’ but disappears each time a different glowing deep-sea creature appears. The mystery builds as each new creature disappears in turn, until the narrator remembers they have a camera with a flash, and Fergus’s true identity is revealed.”
Vermont Golden Dome winner, “Lasagna Means I Love You,” by Kate O'Shaughnessy: “After her beloved Nan dies and her wayward Uncle Billy expresses zero interest in being her parent, Mo enters the foster care system. While living with a well-meaning but unsuitable young couple, Mo fulfills Nan’s request that she find a hobby by taking up cooking and collecting family recipes. Armed with these and a few new friends, can Mo cook up a new place to call home?”
Green Mountain Book Award winner, “Where He Can't Find You,” by Darcy Coates: “Doubtful, Illinois, has been haunted for years by a serial killer, or perhaps a monster. Abby Ward and her friends have learned to live by a certain set of rules: Don’t walk alone, don’t stay out late, and don’t close your eyes or The Stitcher will get you. When Jen moves to town, she doesn’t believe the stories, but when Abby’s sister disappears and Jen helps with the search, the things that go bump in the night become all too real.”
Waterbury Public Library Director Rachel Muse said the library has copies of all three winning titles in stock and available to lend.