We wouldn’t be a real award if we didn’t have a whole bunch of complicated rules in tortured lawyerese. So maybe we’re not a real award, because there aren’t any lawyers and only four rules:

1. You (and you can be anybody, even you) may nominate any book published in the contest year in English. This includes bilingual books;
2. The book must be published in the US or Canada. It’s just more aggravation and expense than we can stand to wheedle free copies from foreign publishers;
3. Only one book nomination per category. Get your friends and co-workers in on the act if you can’t make up your mind;
4. Nominations open Sep. 16 and close Sep. 30.

Please also see our frequently asked questions for more eligibility information.

There are a number of criteria a book must meet to be eligible for a CYBILS Award.

• It must be written for a youth audience, including children and teens.
• It must be published in the United States or Canada, and must be widely available through public libraries or online booksellers.
• Books can be in English or bilingual.
• The publication date must be between 10/16 of last year and 10/15 of the current year.
• Books inconsistent with our Inclusivity Initiative will be disqualified.

A title can only be nominated one time. Additionally, you can only nominate one book in a category. We recommend having at least two titles ready to nominate for any given category.  Our nomination form will require the following information:

1. Your Email. 
2. Category Knowledge. Get detailed descriptions for each category here.
3. ISBN. That will pull up the title for you to confirm your nomination.

Last but not least, there are two separate phases for entering books into awards consideration. The public can nominate books for a 2-week period that begins at 12:00 PT on October 1. Immediately following public nominations is a specially designated period for authors and publishers.