Meet the Honorees

Mo Willems

Carl Sandburg Literary Award Honoree

Mo Willems is a number one New York Times bestselling author and illustrator. He has been awarded three Caldecott Honors and an Eisner Award for his picture books, and two Theodor Seuss Geisel Medals and five Geisel Honors for his celebrated ELEPHANT & PIGGIE early readers. His debut picture book, Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! was inducted into the Picture Book Hall of Fame. Mo began his career as a writer and animator on Sesame Street, where he garnered six Emmy Awards. Mo is the cofounder of Hidden Pigeon Company, established in 2023 to extend the reach of Mo Willems characters and stories across multiple platforms.

Gabriel Bump

21st Century Award Honoree

Gabriel Bump grew up in South Shore, Chicago. His debut novel, Everywhere You Don’t Belong, was a New York Times Notable Book of 2020 and has won the Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence, the Great Lakes Colleges Association New Writers Award for Fiction, the Heartland Booksellers Award for Fiction, and the Black Caucus of the American Library Association’s First Novelist Award. His second novel, The New Naturals, was a Washington Post, Boston Globe, and New York Times Notable Book of 2023. His third novel, Don’t Stop Snowing, is forthcoming in November 2026. He teaches for the UMass-Amherst MFA for Poets and Writers, his alma mater.

“Public libraries serve communities better than any other organization. They offer free knowledge, warmth, humor, love, care, and advice to anyone in need. Public libraries in Chicago are some of the best in the world. To receive this honor from one of my favorite institutions is the highlight of my young career. I doubt it will get much better than this: to join a list of honorees that includes friends, heroes, and my third-grade teacher; to accept this in my hometown in front of my family. I will always be a Chicago writer. I will always champion public libraries. Thank you, endlessly, for this gift.”

Gabriel Bump, 2026 21st Century Award Honoree

“My love for libraries stems from one word on the front door: OPEN. Libraries open opportunities to get excited and relax, discover and reminisce, be challenged and comforted. They are the intellectual and emotional subway line of our nation, connected and open to all. It is an honor to see my silly work championed with great seriousness in such a vibrant and essential library system.”

Mo Willems, Carl Sandburg Literary Award Honoree

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Check out previous award honorees from Percival Everett to Toni Morrison to Stephen Sondheim to Amy Tan.

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