The Malka Penn Award is given annually to the authors of an outstanding children’s book addressing human rights issues or themes such as discrimination, equity, poverty, justice, war, peace, slavery or freedom.
Named in honor of author Michele Palmer, who writes under the pseudonym Malka Penn, the award recognizes works of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, memoir, or biography which are written for children from preschool to high school. Within these larger themes, the award committee is particularly eager to recognize stories about individuals – real or fictional, children or adults – who have been affected by social injustices, and who, by confronting them, have made a difference in their lives or the lives of others.
2026 Malka Penn Award Winners
Winning Novel
The Teacher of Nomad Land: A World War II Story
By Daniel Nayeri
Published by Levine Querido
Set in 1941, The Teacher of Nomad Land tells the story of two orphaned siblings who set out on a perilous journey across Iran – a neutral country occupied by British forces on one side and Soviet forces on the other – in a race for survival set against the backdrop of World War II.
Winning Picture Book
Coming Home: A Hopi Resistance Story
By Mavasta Honyouti
Published by Levine Querido
In Coming Home, master Hopi woodcarver Honyouti shares the story of his grandfather’s experience at a residential boarding school and how he returned home to pass their traditions down to future generations. Written in both English and Hopi, the book features 16 original painted wood carvings and a testament to one man rising above a painful piece of history to keep his culture alive.
2026 Honor Books
Wings to Soar
By Tina Athaide
Published by Charlesbridge Moves
A story of resilience and friendship set in 1972, an Indian family expelled from Uganda and sent to a resettlement camp in England waits to be reunited with their father while grappling with the unwelcome treatment they experience in their new community.
Song of a Blackbird
By Maria van Lieshout
Published by First Second
In this graphic novel, two timelines – one set in 1943 and the other in 2011, both in Amsterdam – reveal how art, in the face of political upheaval and nearly insurmountable adversity, can become our greatest lifeline.
Kindred Spirits: Shilombish Ittibachvffa
By Leslie Stall Widener, illustrated by Johnson Yazzie
Published by Charlesbridge
This nonfiction book bridges two continents, 175 years, and two events in history – connecting Ireland, the Choctaw Nation, the Navajo Nation, and the Hopi Tribe – in a story about paying it forward.
Call Me Gray
By Andrew Larsen and Bells Larsen, illustrated by Tallulah Fontaine
Published by Kids Can Press
A child shares feelings about their identity with their father in this illustrated story about change, acceptance, and love.
About Michele Palmer
Author Michele Palmer’s generous gift helped establish The Malka Penn Award. Ms. Palmer has written over a dozen books for children and adults. Three of those books were children’s literature: The Miracle of the Potato Latkes, The Hanukkah Ghosts, and Ghosts and Golems. As an oral historian at UConn’s Center for Oral History, her most exciting project was co-director of “Witnesses to Nuremberg: An Oral History of the War Crimes Trials,” in conjunction with the opening of The Dodd Center in 1995. Ms. Palmer has also curated numerous art, book, and history exhibits at UConn and elsewhere. One of her exhibits at The Dodd Center – “After Anne Frank: Children’s Books About the Holocaust” – led to her establishing the Malka Penn Collection of Children’s Books on Human Rights in the Archives and Special Collections at The Dodd Center for Human Rights.
Award Committee
Eileen Angelini
Holocaust Educator and Scholar
Alice Bauer
Author
Ery Caswell
Student Success & Engagement Librarian, UConn Library
Shea Charles
Ph.D. Student, Educational Psychology
Vanessa Garcia
Access & Visitor Services Associate, UConn Library
Douglas Kaufman
Associate Professor, Curriculum & Instruction
Tracey-Ann Lafayette
Third Grade Teacher
Michele Palmer
Author
Susannah Richards
Professor of Education, Eastern Connecticut State University
Jodie Sadowsky
Author
Kiedra Taylor
Ph.D. Student, English
Amber Weinstock
Ph.D. Student, English
Bina Williams
Librarian, Bridgeport Library