Congratulations to Dare Coulter, illustrator of Kwame Alexander's An American Story and winner of the 2024 Coretta Scott King Book Award, honoring African American illustrators of outstanding books for children and young adults!

The award was announced today during the American Library Association’s (ALA) LibLearnX: The Library Learning Experience, held January 19–22 in Baltimore.

“Coulter masterfully uses mixed-media, illustrations and clay figures, to differentiate for the reader the story of slavery and present-day reactions of the kids who are learning about this history from their teacher in the narrative. Coulter’s illustrations beautifully yet authentically tell the American story of Black people that although tragic, is a story of triumph,” said Coretta Scott King Book Awards Jury Chair Dr. LaKeshia Darden.

The full press release from ALA can be found here.

Dare will also be joining Kwame as his special guest for our forthcoming Black History Month Author Study, a virtual livestream event for classrooms and libraries taking place on February 27, 2024 at 1pm EST / 10am PST. Check out the event page for additional details and registration info!