Children's literature differs from that of adults in that the content is limited by the experience and understanding of children. Children's books are centered on children; intrinsic personal values are the bases for much of children's literature. Among other values, books provide enjoyment, give vicarious experiences, and develop insight into human behavior. Books also offer educational values such as language development and the development of a sense of story. Thoughtful evaluation of children's literature requires an understanding of criteria for many genres of books. In this chapter, we focus on evaluating the literary elements of plot setting, theme, characterization, style, point of view, illustration, and format. We include guidelines for evaluation of children's fiction and multicultural literature. We also discuss the numerous awards for children's literature; in the United States, the most prestigious prizes are the Newbery and Caldecott awards.