The Malka Penn Award for Human Rights in Children’s Literature

Malka Penn Award for Human Rights in Children’s Literature

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.

Join us for the 2024 Award Ceremony

The 2024 Malka Penn Award Ceremony accompanies a robust series of public engagements for both award-winning authors, Ruchira Gupta and Aida Salazar.

At the Hartford Public Library, author Aida Salazar leads an event for local students on the inspiration behind her winning picture book Jovita Wore Pants.

On the UConn Storrs campus, we invite you to join us for a panel addressing sex trafficking, drawing on the winning novel I Kick and I Fly and activism of author Ruchira Gupta.

Join Us

2024 Malka Penn Award Winners

A red and orange book cover reads "I Kick and I Fly" with black letters that allow you to see a woman behind them. Her face looks angry and her hands are in fists near her face. At the bottom of the text are two small figures who hold hands. They appear to be running towards the viewer.

Winning Novel

I Kick and I Fly
By Ruchira Gupta
Published by Scholastic Press

Inspired by Gupta’s experience making an Emmy-winning documentary that exposed the sex trafficking of young women and children from villages in Nepal to the brothels of Mumbai, this story of 14-year old Heera – sold into an unimaginable fate by her father to help feed their family and repay his loans – is an unforgettable story about overcoming adversity.

A blue and pink book cover reads "Jovita Wore Pants, the story of a Mexican freedom fighter." The image shows abstract art of a person running towards the viewer with swirls of bright shades of orange and pinks behind them and with what appears to be chickens at their feet.

Winning Picture Book

Jovita Wore Pants: The Story of a Mexican Freedom Fighter
By Aida Salazar, illustrated by Molly Mendoza
Published by Scholastic Press

In this stunning and lively book, Salazar presents the remarkable true story of a little-known maverick Mexican heroine – her great aunt, Jovita Valdovinos – who disguised herself as a man and commanded a battalion of revolutionaries in a fight for religious freedom.

2024 Honor Books

A book cover reads "The Light She Feels Inside." The cover shows a young girl in overalls holding a pink book that reads "those who came before you." The cover has swirls of vibrant pinks, purples, oranges and yellows all around the girl.

The Light She Feels Inside

By Gwendolyn Wallace, illustrated by Olivia Duchess
Published by Sourcebooks Jabberwocky

Maya learns how to create a brighter world by honoring her own glowing feelings, just like Black women have done throughout history.

A book cover reads "Traveling Shoes" in red font in front of an abstract background of blue and yellow with white swirls that look like clouds. A person is shown jumping with their legs bent under them and their arms spread out to their sides. They are wearing a red headband and a white tank top that reads "USA 226."

Traveling Shoes: The Story of Willye White, US Olympian and Long Jump Champion

By Alice Faye Duncan, illustrated by Keith Mallet
Published by Calkins Creek

The untold story of the Black sprinter and long jumper Willye B. White, who went from picking cotton as a child in Mississippi to competing and winning in the 1956 and 1964 Olympics.

A blue and purple book cover reads "A Long Time Coming, a lyrical biography of race in America from one judge to Barak Obama." There is a woman on the left in a light teal dress holding a baby in one arm, with the other arm outstretched into the air towards a man. The man is on the right side of the cover in a black suit and red tie. He raises one arm in the air towards the woman where he carries a red lantern that shines yellow light.

A Long Time Coming

By Ray Anthony Shepard, illustrated by Gregory Christie
Published by Calkins Creek

A lyrical biography of six important Black Americans from different eras – Ona Judge; Frederick Douglass; Harriet Tubman; Ida B. Wells; Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.; and Barack Obama – that chronicles the diverse ways each fought racism, demonstrating how much and how little has changed for Black Americans since the country’s founding.

A book cover reads "The Cricket War" in stylized text. The text is under green water where there are swirls and a ship of people. Above the water is a beach scene of person looking out at the ocean with palm trees surrounding them and mountains in the distance.

The Cricket War

By Thọ Phạm and Sandra McTavish
Published by Kids Can Press

The gripping story of a boy’s escape from Communist Vietnam by boat, loosely based on Pham’s real-life experience as one of the Vietnamese Boat People – offering a story of hope, courage, and resilience.

A book cover reads "A Bodyguard Unit" in bold font. A woman stands in the forefront of the image with her back to the viewer. In the background, there are armed guards facing her. Signs in the image read "votes for women" and "death to victory."

The Bodyguard Unit: Edith Garrud, Women's Suffrage, and Jujitsu

By Clément Xavier, Lisa Lugrin, and Albertine Ralenti
Published by Graphic Universe

A graphic biography of Edith Garrud, a pioneering self-defense instructor who trained suffragettes in early twentieth century England to fight back against abuse and arrest while pursuing the right to vote.

2024 Special Recognition Book

A blue book cover reads "I Have The Right, an affirmation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child." Four people drawn in cartoon styled art look at the viewer.

I Have the Right

By Reza Dalvand
Published by Scribble US

An illustrated introduction to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

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 Details

Submissions are now invited for the 2026 Malka Penn Award for Human Rights in Children’s Literature. The winning books of the 2026 Malka Penn Award will be announced in the summer of 2026 and a ceremony will be held in the fall of 2026 at The Dodd Center for Human Rights in Storrs, Connecticut. The award winners will receive a bronze medallion and certificate and will be invited to deliver an address to UConn's faculty, students, and the broader community. A committee of UConn faculty, staff, and community members select award winners each year in addition to honorary books as applicable.

Eligibility

Any book for children and young adults originally published in the United States between January 1, 2024 – December 31, 2025 is eligible for consideration for the 2026 Malka Penn Award. The book may be a work of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, memoir, or biography. Books must be published in a physical, print form—e-books are currently ineligible for consideration. The deadline for submission for the 2026 Malka Penn Award is January 16, 2026.

How to Submit

To submit a book for consideration, please send ten copies to:

Malka Penn Award Selection Committee
Dodd Human Rights Impact Programs
The Dodd Center for Human Rights
405 Babbidge Road, U-1205
Storrs, CT 06269-1205
dodd@uconn.edu
1-860-486-5131

Award Committee

Alice Bauer
Author

Ery Caswell
Student Success & Engagement Librarian, UConn Library

Vanessa Garcia
Access & Visitor Services Associate, UConn Library

Sara Harvel
Ph.D. Student, Curriculum & Instruction

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

Martha Simpson
Author & Librarian

Kiedra Taylor
Ph.D. Student, English

Joan Weir
Special Education Faculty, Southern Connecticut State University

Bina Williams
Librarian, Bridgeport Library