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BATON ROUGE, La. — Celebrating a quarter-century of instilling a love of reading among Louisiana students, the Louisiana Readers’ Choice program is excited to announce the 2025-2026 nominated titles.
Since the program began in 1999, almost half a million students have read nearly 1.5 million books.
Students from kindergarten through senior year vote every year for their favorite books from a list curated by librarians from across the state who serve on the Louisiana Young Readers’ Choice and Louisiana Teen Readers’ Choice committees. Many students cast their ballots on real voting machines supplied by the Secretary of State’s Voter Outreach Division.
“This is a state with so much potential, but we need to make sure our young people are properly educated. We’re starting to see some progress when it comes to our schools,” said Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser. “The Louisiana Readers’ Choice program is an important part of keeping those trends moving in the right direction.”
The 2025-2026 Louisiana Readers’ Choice nominated titles include 52 combined starred reviews, 18 Junior Library Guild selections, five Young Adult Library Services Association Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers, eight Association for Library Service to Children Notable Children’s Books, and a combined 44 Best of the Year titles. They also include a Kirkus Prize Winner, Morris Award winner, a Newberry Honor book, a Sydney Taylor Honor book, an Eisner Award nominee, and a National Book Award Finalist.
The genres include early readers, fiction and nonfiction picture books, fantasy, horror, thriller, historical fiction, romance, mystery, realistic fiction, graphic novels and graphic memoirs, and sci-fi.
“We genuinely believe fostering a lifelong love of reading will contribute to the state's overall economic growth and quality of life,” said State Librarian Meg Placke. “And we know that students will love this year’s nominated books.”
Visit the Louisiana Readers' Choice Awards Program webpage for information about the program, including this year’s nominated titles, previous winners, how to participate, and additional resources such as free bookmarks, posters, and study guides.
The Louisiana Center for the Book in the State Library of Louisiana is the state affiliate for the National Center for the Book in the Library of Congress. Its mission includes nurturing a love of reading in Louisiana’s children by motivating them to participate in the recognition of outstanding books.