WAB Learns: MS Read: Panda Books

About Panda Book Awards

What is the Panda Book Award?

The Panda Book Award, initiated in 2008 by librarian Nadine Dewit Rosevear, invites students and teachers from participating international schools in China and beyond to vote for their favorite book published in the previous two to three school years.

Titles chosen for the shortlists of the Panda Book Award meet selection criteria that focus on social justice, diversity, and inclusion by up-and-coming authors and illustrators from across the world. There is an added spotlight on titles that feature Asian settings, characters, or creators.

The Panda Book Steering Committee, which includes an international representation of school librarians, is responsible for collecting input from schools, advertising the initiative, and organizing the voting.

There are six separate title lists according to age level:

Early Years Readers (3-5 years) - picture books - Elementary School
Younger Readers (5-8 years) – picture books - Elementary School
Middle Readers (7 to 11 years) – chapter books - Elementary School/Middle School
Middle Readers Graphic Novels (7 to 11 years) - Elementary School/Middle School
Older Readers (11 to 14 years) – Middle School
Mature Readers (15 to 18 years) – High School

The panda was chosen as the program’s mascot as it holds a special place in the hearts of the Chinese people and is a symbol of peace and a token of forging friendly ties.

The Panda Book Award reading program promises to take our students on an exciting reading adventure. Classroom teachers, language arts teachers, and librarians are encouraged to distribute the reading lists to their students and to incorporate them into their daily teaching.

How can schools participate?

Fill out the registration survey (see left-hand side of the page). This will ensure that your school's name will appear on the Panda voting site that you will receive by email in the lead-up to voting.

Your students will have three weeks to cast their votes.

The Panda Award yearly timeline

November - January: nominating titles for next year

Each participating school nominates lists of titles. These lists are discussed by the Panda Book Steering Committee who will take into consideration individual schools’ requests.
The Steering Committee will decide on the final lists and make these public by mid March. This gives participating schools time to order multiple copies of the titles to arrive over the summer.
Obido is the official book supplier for the Panda Book Awards in mainland China.

July – August :

Schools may promote the titles through a summer reading program.

September – Chinese New Year: activities in schools culminating in voting

Schools organize reading promotion activities and plan.
Promotional materials (flyers, posters, bookmarks) are created yearly and available for download.
The Panda Book Steering Committee organizes the student and teacher voting sessions to be done during a period of three weeks after the Chinese New Year holiday

After the voting: the winners are...

The Steering Committee meets to count votes and confirm the winners of the Panda Book Awards.
Winning authors, illustrators, and translators are contacted as soon as possible after winning.

Older Nominees

A Kind of Spark by Elle McNicoll
Call Number: F MCN
ISBN: 9780593374283
Publication Date: 2022-10-11
Perfect for readers of Song for a Whale and Counting by 7s, a neurodivergent girl campaigns for a memorial when she learns that her small Scottish town used to burn witches simply because they were different. "A must-read for students and adults alike." -School Library Journal, Starred Review ; Ever since Ms. Murphy told us about the witch trials that happened centuries ago right here in Juniper, I can't stop thinking about them. Those people weren't magic. They were like me. Different like me. I'm autistic. I see things that others do not. I hear sounds that they can ignore. And sometimes I feel things all at once. I think about the witches, with no one to speak for them. Not everyone in our small town understands. But if I keep trying, maybe someone will. I won't let the witches be forgotten. Because there is more to their story. Just like there is more to mine. Award-winning and neurodivergent author Elle McNicoll delivers an insightful and stirring debut about the European witch trials and a girl who refuses to relent in the fight for what she knows is right.
Daisy Woodworm Changes the World by Melissa Hart
Call Number: F HAR
ISBN: 9781631636370
Publication Date: 2022-11-08
Thirteen-year-old Daisy Woodward loves insects, running track, and hanging out with her older brother, Sorrel, who has Down syndrome and adores men's fashion. When her social studies teacher assigns each student an oral report and project to change the world for the better, Daisy fears the class bully--who calls her Woodworm--will make fun of her lisp. Still, she decides to help Sorrel fulfill his dream of becoming a YouTube fashion celebrity despite their parents' refusal to allow him on social media. With the help of her best friend, Poppy, and Miguel--the most popular boy in school and her former enemy--Daisy launches Sorrel's publicity campaign. But catastrophe strikes when her parents discover him online along with hateful comments from a cyber bully. If Daisy has any hope of changing the world, she'll have to regain her family's trust and face her fears of public speaking to find her own unique and powerful voice. Daisy Woodworm Changes the World includes an author's note and additional resources.
Freestyle: a Graphic Novel by Gale Galligan
Call Number: GN F GAL
ISBN: 9781338045819
Publication Date: 2022-10-18
From New York Times bestselling author Gale Galligan, a fun, high-energy graphic novel about friendship, family, and the last hurrahs of middle school.Cory's dance crew is getting ready for a major competition. It's the last one before they graduate eighth grade and go their separate ways to high schools all over New York City, so they have to make it count! The group starts to have problems as their crew captain gets increasingly intense about nailing the routine, and things go from bad to worse when Cory's parents ground him for not taking his grades seriously. He gets stuck with a new tutor, Sunna, who he dismisses as a boring nerd... until he catches her secretly practicing cool yo-yo tricks. Cory wants to learn the art of yo-yo, and as his friendship with Sunna grows, he ends up missing practice and bailing on his crew -- and they are not happy about it. With mounting pressure coming from all sides, how is Cory supposed to balance the expectations of his parents, school, dance, and his new friend?
Futureland: Battle for the Park by H. D. Hunter; Khadijah Khatib (Illustrator)
Call Number: F HUN
ISBN: 9780593479421
Publication Date: 2022-11-08
When an extraordinary flying theme park arrives above Atlanta, one boy must stop a sinister force from stealing the park's tech and taking over the world. An electrifying illustrated series with the Afrofuturism of Black Panther that took the world by storm. Perfect for fans of Spider-Man- Miles Morales. "Hold on tight, Futureland will be the ride of your life . . . and maybe the last!" -Kwame Mbalia, #1 New York Times bestselling author Welcome to the most spectacular theme park in the world. Everyone wants a ticket to Futureland, where you can literally live out your wildest dreams. Want to step inside your favorite video game? Go pro in a sports arena? Perform at a real live concert? Grab your ticket and come right in. Yet with all its attractions, Futureland has always just been home to Cam Walker, the son of the park's famous creators. And when Futureland arrives at its latest stop, Atlanta, Cam is thrilled for what promises to be the biggest opening ever. . . . But things aren't quite right with the Atlanta opening. Park attractions are glitching. Kids go missing. And when his parents are blamed, Cam must find the missing kids and whoever's trying to take down his family . . . before it's too late.
Goblin by Eric Grissom; Will Perkins (Illustrator)
Call Number: GN F GRI
ISBN: 9781506724720
Publication Date: 2021-06-08
Goblin is a fantasy story about overcoming great odds and about finding light in even the darkest of places. A young, headstrong goblin embarks on a wild journey of danger, loss, self-discovery, and sacrifice in this new graphic novel adventure. One fateful night a sinister human warrior raids the home of the young goblin Rikt and leaves him orphaned. Angry and alone, Rikt vows to avenge the death of his parents and seeks a way to destroy the man who did this. He finds aid from unlikely allies throughout his journey and learns of a secret power hidden in the heart of the First Tree. Will Rikt survive the trials that await him on his perilous journey to the First Tree? And is Rikt truly prepared for what he may find there? "A heartfelt fantasy yarn about finding light in a world filled with darkness. A really great spin on growing up and high fantasy."-Dave Scheidt (Mayor Good Boy, Star Wars, Avatar the Last Airbender) "Goblin is a massive journey of heartbreak and healing in a world so full, every chapter could fill an entire book!"-Marcus Emerson (Ben Braver, Kid Youtuber, Diary of a 6th Grade Ninja) "Grissom and Perkins have created my favorite kind of book. Chock full of strange monsters, big adventure, and a whole lot of heart. The perfect graphic novel for the entire family."-Rafer Roberts (Grumble, Minecraft, Modern Fantasy) "Goblin is exactly what I look for in a fantasy story. Beautiful landscapes, curious creatures, and an adorable hero who rises to the challenge and happens to be a goblin!"-Claire Connelly (Black Eyes, Down with the Ship, The Long Year) "Rikt enjoins us to delight in his triumphs, wallow in his sorrows and take pleasure in the journey that lies ahead. Grissom and Perkins show that even the smallest of us can achieve great things."-Jeff McClelland (The Tick, Honcho, Black Terror)
Hana Hsu and the Ghost Crab Nation by Sylvia Liu
Call Number: F LIU
ISBN: 9780593350393
Publication Date: 2022-06-21
"A refreshing, imaginative take on a cyberpunk future, filled with wickedly cool technology and unraveling intrigue!" -Xiran Jay Zhao, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Iron Widow and Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor Perfect for fans of Dragon Pearl by Yoon Ha Lee, this thrilling, cinematic sci-fi novel follows Hana Hsu's mission to save herself-and her friends-from a dangerous plot to control their minds. Hana Hsu can't wait to be meshed. If she can beat out half her classmates at Start-Up, a tech school for the city's most talented twelve-year-olds, she'll be meshed to the multiweb through a neural implant like her mom and sister. But the competition is fierce, and when her passion for tinkering with bots gets her mixed up with dangerous junkyard rebels, she knows her future in the program is at risk. Even scarier, she starts to notice that something's not right at Start-Up-some of her friends are getting sick, and no matter what she does, her tech never seems to work right. With an ominous warning from her grandmother about being meshed, Hana begins to wonder if getting the implant early is really a good idea. Desperate to figure out what's going on, Hana and her friends find themselves spying on one of the most powerful corporations in the country-and the answers about the mystery at Start-Up could be closer to home than Hana's willing to accept. Will she be able to save her friends-and herself- from a conspiracy that threatens everything she knows?
The First Rule of Climate Club by Carrie Firestone
Call Number: F FIR
ISBN: 9781984816467
Publication Date: 2022-07-05
An eighth grader starts a podcast on climate activism and rallies her friends to create lasting change in their local community and beyond, in this companion to Dress Coded. When Mary Kate Murphy joins a special science pilot program focused on climate change, the class opens her eyes to lots of things she never noticed before about her small suburban town- Kids waste tons of food at school without a second thought. Parents leave their cars running in the pick-up lane all the time. People buy lots of clothes they don't really need. Some of her friends who live in the city and are bused to her school don't always feel included. And the mayor isn't willing to listen to new ideas for fixing it all. Mary Kate and her friends have big plans to bring lasting change to their community and beyond. And now is the time for the young people to lead and the leaders to follow-or get out of the way.
The Ice Cream Machine by Adam Rubin
Call Number: F RUB
ISBN: 9780593325797
Publication Date: 2022-02-15
Don't miss the #1 New York Times bestseller everyone is raving about! From the wild and wonderful imagination of the author of Dragons Love Tacos comes this hilarious, irresistible debut collection of six totally different stories with the same exact name. In these six stories, set in six distinct worlds, you'll meet a boy and his robot nanny traveling the globe in search of the world's tastiest treat, a child mechanical prodigy who invents the freshest dessert ever, and an evil ice cream truck driver who strikes fear in the heart of every kid in town. You'll be transported to a beachside boardwalk with an ice cream stand run by a penguin, a hilltop realm ruled by a king with a sweet tooth, and a giant alien space lab with a lone human subject who longs for a taste of home. Each story features black-and-white interior illustrations from a different artist, including Daniel Salmieri, Charles Santoso, Liniers, Emily Hughes, Nicole Miles, and Seaerra Miller, making this book unlike any you've ever seen. So grab a cup or a cone, and watch out for brain freeze! You'll definitely want to save room for this treat.
The Many Meanings of Meilan by Andrea Wang
Call Number: F WAN
ISBN: 9780593111284
Publication Date: 2021-08-17
"The little girl I was would have been thrilled to encounter Meilan... having found a character who embraces the complexity of being both Chinese and American, I would have been able to echo her words- 'I am not alone.'" -New York Times Book Review by Jean Kwok A family feud before the start of seventh grade propels Meilan from Boston's Chinatown to rural Ohio, where she must tap into her inner strength and sense of justice to make a new place for herself in this resonant debut. Meilan Hua's world is made up of a few key ingredients- her family's beloved matriarch, Nai Nai; the bakery her parents, aunts, and uncles own and run in Boston's Chinatown; and her favorite Chinese fairy tales. After Nai Nai passes, the family has a falling-out that sends Meilan, her parents, and her grieving grandfather on the road in search of a new home. They take a winding path across the country before landing in Redbud, Ohio. Everything in Redbud is the opposite of Chinatown, and Meilan's not quite sure who she is--being renamed at school only makes it worse. She decides she is many Meilans, each inspired by a different Chinese character with the same pronunciation as her name. Sometimes she is Mist, cooling and invisible; other times, she's Basket, carrying her parents' hopes and dreams and her guilt of not living up to them; and occasionally she is bright Blue, the way she feels around her new friend Logan. Meilan keeps her facets separate until an injustice at school shows her the power of bringing her many selves together. The Many Meanings of Meilan, written in stunning prose by Newbery Honor-winning author Andrea Wang, is an exploration of all the things it's possible to grieve, the injustices large and small that make us rage, and the peace that's unlocked when we learn to find home within ourselves.
Thirst by Varsha Bajaj
Call Number: F BAJ
ISBN: 9780593354391
Publication Date: 2022-07-19
A New York Times Bestseller The riveting story of a heroic girl who fights for her belief that water should be for everyone. Minni lives in the poorest part of Mumbai, where access to water is limited to a few hours a day and the communal taps have long lines. Lately, though, even that access is threatened by severe water shortages and thieves who are stealing this precious commodity-an act that Minni accidentally witnesses one night. Meanwhile, in the high-rise building where she just started to work, she discovers that water streams out of every faucet and there's even a rooftop swimming pool. What Minni also discovers there is one of the water mafia bosses. Now she must decide whether to expose him and risk her job and maybe her life. How did something as simple as access to water get so complicated?