Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award

Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award references 39 books assigned across applicable K-12 grade levels in US schools. The Young Reader's Choice Award (YRCA) is the oldest children's-choice book award in the United States, given by the Pacific Northwest Library Association (PNLA) since 1940. It spans five member states — Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, and Alaska (plus British Columbia and Alberta in Canada). Each year a committee selects nominees in Junior, Intermediate, and Senior divisions; students across the region read from the list and vote for their favorite. Its decades-long winner list is read in classrooms and libraries statewide and features widely loved reading such as Old Yeller, Rascal, The Mouse and the Motorcycle, Holes, Because of Winn-Dixie, Frindle, Wonder, and Refugee.

Primary source: www.pnla.org

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39 books referenced

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Swim Team · Johnnie Christmas
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing · Judy Blume
The Dollhouse Murders · Betty Ren Wright
The Giver · Lois Lowry
The Indian in the Cupboard · Lynne Reid Banks
The Lost Hero · Rick Riordan
The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane · Kate DiCamillo
The Mouse and the Motorcycle · Beverly Cleary
The Tale of Despereaux · Kate DiCamillo
The Thief Lord · Cornelia Funke
There's a Boy in the Girls' Bathroom · Louis Sachar
Wait Till Helen Comes · Mary Downing Hahn
Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger · Louis Sachar
When Stars Are Scattered · Victoria Jamieson
Wonder · R.J. Palacio

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About this curriculum framework

This curriculum is one of dozens of named English Language Arts frameworks tracked across US public-school districts. Frameworks differ in scope (district-level vs state-level vs national), in mandate (required vs recommended vs elective), and in how prescriptive their reading lists are (single fixed text list vs broad reading-pool selection).

The book list below represents titles cited as required, recommended, or commonly assigned within this framework, sourced from the framework's primary documentation (or, where the framework is administered at district level, from public district curriculum pages). Each book's detail page links the specific source document for that citation.

How to use this Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award reading list

The book list above represents titles ReadingList has confirmed as referenced by Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award— either through the framework’s own published documentation, through audited classroom syllabi citing the framework, or through US state and district curriculum guides that map their reading expectations to it. Each book’s detail page links the specific primary source so parents, teachers, and students can verify the citation and locate the official document.

Reading lists evolve. Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award citations on ReadingList are reviewed on a rolling basis as primary sources publish updates. If you teach or learn under this framework and a title on this page is no longer used (or you know of one that should appear), the ReadingList methodology page explains how to submit a correction with a citation.

Frequently asked questions

What books does Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award include?

39 books are referenced by Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award across applicable K-12 grade levels. Each book page cites the primary source assignment (the official curriculum standard, exemplar list, or syllabus where the title appears).

What grades does Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award cover?

Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award is a reading-program curriculum spanning applicable K-12 grade levels via the standards framework. Browse by grade using the grade-filter links on this page or visit /grade for the full grade index across all curricula.

Where does Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award data come from?

Primary source: www.pnla.org/yrca. Cross-referenced with Common Core exemplars at achievethecore.org. Every book page on ReadingList.school cites the standards origin for that assignment.

Is Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award required reading?

Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award provides recommended exemplars + assignments — adoption varies by district and teacher. Always check with your school's English department for the specific required vs recommended list at your grade level.

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