The Missouri Building Block Picture Book Award, sponsored and selected by the Youth Services Community of Interest (YSCI), is presented annually to the author and illustrator of the picture book voted most popular by preschool children in Missouri's public libraries and is designed to encourage reading aloud to children from birth through kindergarten age. 

Designed to encourage reading aloud to children from birth through kindergarten age, the award was first given in 1996. Parents and other caregivers are encouraged to read aloud to children from a list of ten titles selected annually by a group of Missouri children's librarians. Colorful posters, bookmarks, activity sheets, and a manual of great ideas add to the fun. 

See the Missouri Building Block Picture Book Award Procedures and the Missouri Building Block Picture Book Award Committee Handbook in Appendix G of the MLA Handbook for details. 

Awards Chair: Ariel Doggendorf (adoggendorf@slcl.org)

Members of the Building Block Award subgroup of YSCI are listed on the YSCI page. 

2026 Nominees (activity sheets COMING SOON):

TITLE	AUTHOR	ILLUSTRATOR
EVERY MONDAY MABEL	AWAN, JASHER	AWAN, JASHER
POP! Goes the Nursery Rhyme	Bird, Betsy	Tsurumi, Andrea
Broken	Fang, X.	Fang, X.
Let's Be Bees	Harris, Shawn	Harris, Shawn
I Hate Everything!	Henn, Sophy	Henn, Sophy
Go Go Dodo!	Jones, Huw Lewis	Blunt, Fred
Schmoof	McKinnon, Heidi	McKinnon, Heidi
Rory the Remarkable Dragon	Rammell, Kathryn	Rammell, Kathryn
The Man Who Didn't Like Animals	Underwood, Deborah	Pham, LeUyen
E-I-UFO	Von Zonk, Zach	Chaud, Benjamin

PREVIOUS AWARD WINNERS AND NOMINEES

Building Block Award Winners, 1996-2025

Building Block Award Nominees, 1996-2025