Sunshine State Young Readers Award 2026–27: a parent guide to all 15 books

Growing Home

Toasty, a grumpy goldfish, shares a house with Ivy, a self-centered plant. When new friends arrive, they learn his old fish tank is magic.

Queen of the Sea

Caitlin’s dad becomes a cruise ship doctor and takes the kids along. She brings her bearded dragon and works hard to prove she belongs.

Heads-up: Caitlin’s parents are divorced. At one low point, she tries to run away.

Wrath of the Rain God

Twins Emma and Martín, 9, must move from Mexico to Chicago. Abuela’s magic book sends them on a quest for the rain god’s stolen bolt.

Curveball

Elena is the best player on her baseball team, and the only girl. She spends a summer off the field, role-playing adventures with her little brother.

Misfit Mansion

Iris, a young monster, lives hidden away in a mansion full of monsters. When she sneaks into town, most people welcome her.

Heads-up: Monsters and a nightmare creature, but they are more cute than scary.

Punycorn

Punycorn is the puniest, clumsiest unicorn in the kingdom of Carbuncle. With a fireless dragon and a dung beetle, he must stop Sir Ogre’s army.

J vs. K

J draws, K writes, and both fifth graders want to win the storytelling contest. They trade fake tips to sink each other.

The Bug Bandits

Liberty lives above the insect museum her dad runs in Philadelphia. When thieves plan to rob it, she and friends set Home Alone–style traps.

Forever Ripley

Ripley, an old German shepherd, has watched over Charlie since her dad died. Ripley tells the story as the family checks off her bucket list.

Heads-up: Ripley is dying of bone cancer, so have tissues ready. Charlie’s dad died, and a new friend lost his mom.

The Last Resort

After a scary car accident, Lila, 11, starts seeing ghosts. Her grandfather’s ghost says he was murdered, and he needs her help.

Heads-up: Ghosts, murder and some intensely scary scenes. A neighbor dies in a fall, with no gore.

The Sherlock Society

Siblings Alex and Zoe start a summer detective agency in Miami with two friends. Hunting Al Capone’s lost treasure, they uncover toxic dumping in the Everglades.

Heads-up: It opens with an exploding boat, but no one gets hurt. Toxic waste kills birds and alligators.

Swimming with Spies

In 2014 Crimea, Sofiya, 12, helps care for the dolphins at her dad’s dolphinarium. When Russia takes over, its military seizes the dolphins to train them for war.

Heads-up: Real war events, with palpable fear and bullying. A past accident killed a classmate’s mother, and Sofiya’s mom left.

Reasons to Look at the Night Sky

Luna, 11, loves space and wants a spot at NASA space camp. Then a substitute teacher mixes art into science class, and everything starts changing.

The House at the Edge of Magic

Nine, an orphan pickpocket, steals a tiny house that grows into a magic one. She must break its curse before the clock strikes 15.

The Lion of Lark-Hayes Manor

Poppy trades her favorite book to a water nymph for a winged lion cub. Then books start vanishing, and only she remembers them.