The Mountain Laurel Book Award Committee prepares a master list of 15 titles in each division (Kindergarten to grade 3, Grades 3-6, Grades 6-8, Young Adult) from a list of books that have been suggested by students, librarians, teachers and parents. Interested parties may suggest books on the Mountain Laurel Book Award website.

The books must meet the following criteria:
Criteria for Consideration
1. It must have an original copyright date within five years of the award’s presentation.
2. It must be written by an author currently living in North America.
3. It must be appropriate to the interest, reading and grade level of those students in each grade strand: K-3, 3-6, 6-8, and 9-12.
4. It must receive positive reviews from recognized published sources.
5. It may be any genre: fiction, informational, or poetry, but not anthologies of collected works of multiple authors.

Guidelines and criteria for final selection (Used by the committee)
1. A book must be read and highly recommended by all members of each corresponding grade strand on the committee.
2. The final list must be equally representative of interest to all readers.
3. The final list must strive for a balanced representation of genre, and include both informational and fiction representation.
4. Picture books should be accessible as read-alouds.
5. Selections should consider curriculum connections.
6. Illustrations must complement and enhance text, rather than distract.
7. List is limited to 15 titles in each grade strand selected by consensus of the committee members.