2026 Pacific Book Awards Winners & Finalists

Best Adventure

WINNER

Beyond Superhero School
By: Gracie Dix

FINALIST

The Goodflyers
By: John J Domina

Best Biography

WINNER

Masters of the Ocean Sea
By: Andrei Romanov

FINALIST

Journey and Deep Song
By: Joon Kim

Best Business

WINNER

The Doubt Loop
By: Adam Crawshaw

FINALIST

The Asia Code
By: Gadi Sznajder

Best Illustrated Children’s Book

WINNER

The Weird, Wild and Wonderful Adventures of Austin the Zookeeper 
By: Tammy Gegel

FINALIST

Confessions of a Corgi Doodler
By: Nancy Kondos

Best Children’s Picture Book 5 and Younger

WINNER

Burly the Squirrel: The Counting Game
By: S.C. Burklund

FINALIST

Gigglet the Happy Little Piglet Goes to School 
By: A.M. Berkowitz

Best Children’s Picture Book 6 and Older

WINNER

Time to Shine
By: Stephanie Vivit Lehmann

FINALIST

Wagon of Worries  
By: Ruthie Godfrey

Best Children’s Fiction

WINNER

Pitty the Kitty – Pitty’s Big Adventure 
By: Mary Nielsen

FINALIST

Yoey Does It Her Way
By: Mary Nielsen

Best Political & Current Events 

WINNER

Voir Dire
By: Santiago Camarena

FINALIST

Chairman Biden and Dr. Fauci’s Monster
By: Ronald Alfred Weitzman 

Best Education

WINNER

Greenback’s Book of Law
By: Ted Sutton, Esq.

FINALIST

Apricot Tree Academy Dyslexia Intention Curriculum
By: Sandra Dallon M.Ed & Cynthia Glänt M.Ed

Best Fantasy

WINNER

Fly Stone, Fly
By: Dust Kunkel 

FINALIST

Quantum Mortality
By: Jenesis Prioleau

 

Best Epic Fantasy

WINNER

Escala’s Wish
By: David James 

FINALIST

Stone and Flesh
By: Tamara S. Harker

Best Fiction

WINNER

We Chose Resistance 
By: Margie Bucheit

FINALIST

Lots of Luck Noblesse Oblige Rentier
By: Marilynne McKenzie & Ron Matejka

Best New Fiction

WINNER

Freya the Deer
By: Meg Richman

FINALIST

John B. Peoples
By: Michael Cowan

Best Historical Fiction

WINNER

Red Anemones
By: Paula Dáil 

FINALIST

Therein Lies the Pearl
By: Catherine Hughes

Best Health

WINNER

Become an Empowered Patient
By: Deane Waldman, MD MBA & Vance Ginn, PhD

FINALIST

I Can-Cer Vive
By: Monya Williams

Best History

WINNER

When the World Dies
By: D.E. Davis

FINALIST

Warrior, Queen, Scientist, Activist
By: Jan-Benedict Steenkamp

Best Humor

WINNER

Conniption Creek
By: Earl L Carlson

FINALIST

60 Dates in Six Months
By: Maureen Anne Meehan 

Best Inspirational 

WINNER

Reach Out with Acts of Kindness
By: Letitia E. Hart

FINALIST

The Grand Mother’s Journey
By: Marion Gertrud Mensing

Best Memoir

WINNER

Denver to Mumbai
By: Hemangi Sawant

FINALIST

Unreal
By: James Serven

Best Motivational

WINNER

Uncertainty Advantage
By: Gary S. Lynch

FINALIST

The Character Route Tree
By: Marc R. Schneider, OCD*  

Best Mystery

WINNER

Losing Lenore
By: Joe Klingler 

FINALIST

Inherited Death
By: Jeanne Rietzke

Best Non-Fiction

WINNER

Between Flights
By: Wendy Walker

FINALIST

Pain, Master of Life
By: Lourdes Ruan

Best Parenting & Family 

WINNER

Unspoken Signals
By: Yarona Boster

FINALIST

A Parent’s Guide for Educational Success for their Children 
By: Joann Falciani

Best Philosophy

WINNER

The History of the Future
By: Paul M. Steidl

FINALIST

Donahue Pass 
By: Charles Weeden

Best Psychology

WINNER

Why Rampage Killers Emerge
By: S. Lee Funk, Ed.D

FINALIST

Human Moral Behavior
By: Marian Hillar

Best Reference

WINNER

From Mess to Message
By: Kim Wells Eley

FINALIST

A.W.A.R.E
By: S. Gale Bleth

Best Religion

WINNER

My Rosary
By:  Jennifer Moorcroft

FINALIST

When Trumpets Ring The Battle
By: Gregory Hetzer

Best Romance

WINNER

Detective Lucian
By: Neri Lopez 

FINALIST

A is for Amy
By: Steven Crandell 

Best Science Fiction

WINNER

Beyond the Light of the Willow Tree
By: Daniel E. Chambrello

FINALIST

Ascendants 
By: Don Schechter

Best Dystopian Science Fiction

WINNER

Magic in the Hub 
By: Macintosh Steele 

FINALIST

Abu Omar Ha’akeem
By: D L Davies 

Best Self Help

WINNER

Unstuck Yourself
By: Laura Cardwell & Meghan O’Malley, M.S. 

FINALIST

Answering the Hard Questions
By: Devin Fish

Best Short Stories

WINNER

Bad Americans – Part I
By: Tejas Desai

FINALIST

Signs of the Fall
By: Sean M. Price

Best Sociology

WINNER

Native Africans vs Blacks in Americans
By: Dr. Sylvester Caraway, Jr.

FINALIST

Politics, Gangs, and Vodou
By:  Yvon Milien 

Best Suspense

WINNER

Tread Lightly
By: Elizabeth Kemp 

FINALIST

To Know Good and Evil
By: Daniel V. Meier, Jr. 

Best Spirituality

WINNER

Looking Into the Mind of a Lost but Found Soul 
By: Dwight McGarrah Sr

FINALIST

The Magic and Secrets of the Spiritual Realm
By: Moana Leanne Kirikino 

Best Thriller

WINNER

Enemy at the Helm
By: Mark Dickson

FINALIST

Toxic Minds
By: Anthony Lee 

Best Travel

WINNER

A Taste of Madagascar
By: Emmanuel Laroche

FINALIST

Chasing Legends
By: Aaron Pufal

Best Young Adult

WINNER

Sam and James the Missing Teen
By: AA Freda

FINALIST

Mercutio and Juliet
By: Michael Rossi

Best Westerns

WINNER

So, You Want to Be a Cowboy?
By: Pleze Raybon 

FINALIST

A Story About a Man Called Ants Once a Cowboy
By: Gary E. J. Kain