Children’s Book Committee
The Children’s Book Committee (CBC) was founded more than 100 years ago to help parents, teachers, and librarians choose the books that children will find captivating and transforming. Every year it produces comprehensive annotated book lists for children aged infant through 18.
Our Mission
The CBC reviews over 6000 titles each year for accuracy and literary quality and considers their emotional impact on children. It chooses the best 600 books, both fiction and nonfiction, which it lists with annotations according to age and category.
The Children’s Book Committee strives to guide librarians, educators, parents, grandparents, and other interested adults to the best books for children published each year. The list includes more than 600 titles chosen by reviewers for literary quality and excellence of presentation as well as the potential emotional impact of the books on young readers. Other criteria include credibility of characterization and plot, authenticity of time and place, age suitability, positive treatment of ethnic and religious differences, and the absence of stereotypes.
To contact us, please email bookcom@bankstreet.edu.
Children's Book Committee October Pick
Grief-stricken 13-year-old Gonzalo reluctantly joins a road trip with his estranged abuelo and famous fantasy-writer on the final tour to promote his best-selling book series.
Our Young Reviewer Says:
What I loved about A Hero’s Guide to Summer Vacation was how deeply it resonated with me. The road trip setting wasn’t just a backdrop—it felt like a mirror to my own life. Every year, my family takes a long road trip, and those hours in the car are some of my favorite moments. No distractions, just laughter, stories, and quiet togetherness. So when Gonzalo and his grandfather Alberto hit the road, I was instantly hooked… Read more
–Riya, age 13, Mumbai, India.