The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art has revealed the recipients of its 2025 Carle Honors, who will be fêted at an event this fall. This year’s honorees were selected by a jury chaired by Leonard S. Marcus, children’s literature historian and founder of the Carle Honors Committee.
Children’s book illustrator and designer George Ford was selected as the Artist Honoree, in recognition of his career-long focus on “inspiring Black people, and especially Black children, with reflections of their own excellence.” Ford was the first recipient of the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award, in 1974, for Ray Charles, written by Sharon Bell Mathis. A past president of the Council on Interracial Books for Children, he was an active member of the organization Black Creators for Children.
Cooperative Children’s Book Center, lauded for its “engagement with and critical thinking about children’s and young adult literature” and efforts in supporting intellectual freedom and diversity, has been named the Angel Honoree. Founded in 1963 as part of the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Education, the CCBC is a research hub serving librarians and educators in Wisconsin and beyond through bibliographies, book lists, its annual Diversity Statistics, and more.
Seattle Children’s Theatre is this year’s Bridge. Celebrating its 50th anniversary, SCT has produced nearly 300 shows, many based on young people’s literature, and has reached more than four million audience members. In the words of the Carle Honors Committee, “Through bold productions, innovative education programs, and community-driven initiatives, SCT creates spaces where every child feels seen, heard, and valued.”
The 2025 Mentor is Andrea Davis Pinkney, for “her deep commitment to improving the quality of children’s lives by illuminating culturally relevant stories and depictions” over the course of her 30-year career as a publishing executive, editor, and author. Pinkney’s many accolades include the Coretta Scott King Book Award, the Boston Globe/Horn Book Honor, the Kerlan Award, and the American Library Association’s Children’s Literature Lecture Award.
The awards will be presented at a benefit gala on September 25 at the New York Historical in New York City, hosted by National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature Mac Barnett.
