Andersen Picture Book Center (APBC) is home to the books written or illustrated by candidates for the Hans Christian Andersen Award. This award is given every two years to a living author and illustrator whose complete works have made a lasting contribution to children’s literature.

These awards are considered to be the top prizes in the field and are regarded as the most distinguished international honor for children’s literature. APBC is unique in that it not only is a place where these books will be kept but also a place that offers researchers the opportunity to study all of these outstanding works in one location. APBC was established with a donation of books received from the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY), which initially received the books from authors around the world as part of the selection process for the winners of the Hans Christian Andersen Awards. In addition to the books of the Hans Christian Andersen Award nominees, APBC also exhibits books by the winning illustrators of the biennial Nami Concours, the Bologna Ragazzi Awards and The Biennial of Illustrations Bratislava (BIB) in order to promote the study of writers, illustrators and trends in the world of picture books.