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I’ve been privy to lots of interesting conversations about our most recent ALA winners this week.  And since it’s Friday and we’re all now able to step back and take into account what all just happened, here is a quick summary of some of the discussions, topics, and random facts surrounding the Youth Media Awards of 2016.  Just so that you’re playing along at home, here is the announcement of who the winners were.  First up . . .

Newbery

We’ll begin with the most surprising choice.  Last Stop on Market Street, a picture book, won the Newbery.  The question was then whether or not it is the first picture book to win the award.  After all, A Visit to William Blake’s Inn won back in 1982, yes?  And it also won a Caldecott Honor, just like Market Street.  Yet William Blake’s Inn was poetry first, and picture book second.  Market Street is straight up picture book text, context, you name it.  So, in some ways, it is the first award winner, yes.

Next, there was a question as to whether or not Matt de la Pena is the first Latino to win the Newbery Award (not Honor but Award).  And it was Roger Sutton who pointed out that maybe not.  Remember, if you will, Paula Fox.  As he wrote, “from Augusta Baker’s profile of Fox, written for The Horn Book to accompany her Newbery speech in 1974: ‘Paula Fox knew her share of pain as a child. A New Yorker by birth, half-Spanish, half-Irish-English, she was sent at the age of eight to live with her grandmother in Cuba’.”  This is not something I’d heard before.  Thank you, Roger!

Jon Scieszka tweeted this during the week as well:

You can read more about that night here, if you like.  My sole regret is that the evening wasn’t taped.  Matt killed in that tux.

Moving on, while Matt may not be the first Latino Award winner of the Newbery, it is certainly true that 2016 was the first time that there was a Latino winner of the Award and a Latino winner of an Honor in the same year.  Echo by Pam Munoz Ryan was an early favorite in 2015.  I remember the book well and I also remember its swag.  Many galleys were sent out with little harmonicas.  In my office, just because of who works there, we received about four of five of these harmonicas.  They were cute but we weren’t entirely certain what to do with them.  Someone should write a middle grade called A Confusion of Harmonicas.

Someone should also tap Norton Juster to play a harmonica at the Newbery/Caldecott Banquet the way he did the year Raschka’s The Hello, Goodbye Window won a Caldecott.

Many were quite thrilled that The War That Saved My Life received recognition, including myself.  You can find my review of it here.  It was particularly gratifying since back in the day I wanted her to win an award for Jefferson’s Sons.

Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson was a surprise win for many.  If folks thought El Deafo‘s win last year was a fluke, Victoria’s latest Honor drills home that graphic novels are here to stay.  It also means that the push for a separate Graphic Novel award may fall by the wayside.  After all, they can apparently win Newberys now.  For fun, take a trip in the wayback machine to 2009 when Victoria solicited cool children’s literature-related roller derby names on this site.  My favorite remains Jacob Have I Shoved (with special honors going to Winnie-the-Pow!).

And speaking of Winnie . . .

Caldecott

I’m going to level with you.  When I read Finding Winnie I had a lot to say about it.  And though it was being published in October, I reviewed in May. I loved it so.

Sophie appeared at a Spring Little Brown & Company preview in early March of 2015 to talk about the book, as it happens.  While doing so she showed a lot of the research she conducted for the art.  Here are some of the tweets from that time:

On his post on The Relative Surprise-iness of the 2016 Youth Media Awards, Travis Jonker points out that Trombone Shorty wasn’t one of those books that made it onto a lot Mock Award lists.  Looking at the ALSC blog that collects these Mock Awards, it wasn’t shut out.  The 43rd annual Caldecott Read-In was held on January 9th at the Main Library for the Toledo-Lucas County Public Library (Ohio) predicted its Honor.  It was also the Award winner on December 21, 2015, when over 900 students in grades K-5 voted for the Mock Caldecott at Falmouth Elementary School in Falmouth, Maine.  Well done to both!

Far more people were familiar with Voice of Freedom:  Fannie Lou Hamer, Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement, illustrated by Ekua Holmes, written by Carole Boston Weatherford. Now there’s a book that could have won a Newbery as easily as a Caldecott as well.  The writing is so superb.  I’m happy to report that both this book AND Trombone Shorty appeared on New York Public Library’s 100 Books for Reading and Sharing list for the year as well.  Those NYPL librarians.  They’ve got their fingers on the pulse.

As for Waiting by Kevin Henkes, note this screenshot from a Harper Collins preview on December 29, 2014:

Nailed It!  Or, to be more precise, Somewhat Nailed It!  I wasn’t entirely off anyway.

Other awards were interesting as well.  For example, the recent Printz Award winner spoke at LENGTH on this site about her soon-to-be-award winning book.  Here, I’ll save you the trouble.  Voila:

On the Coretta Scott King side of things, Rita Williams-Garcia was kind enough to talk about her book here:

For further final fun, do be so good as to read Travis Jonker’s post on  as well as the reaction tweets.  Also consider the Heavy Medal thoughts on the Newbery Award winner and their commenters thoughts on all the winners here.  And Calling Caldecott did the same here.

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With ALA slamming up at breakneck speed, I feel the need to make sure I connect to each and every one of you who come to Chicago.  Logistics tell me I'm nuts. But then again, it's worth the try.

Although there are some great social events in the offing, I think another youth services blogger and readers of blogs and twitter -peeps gathering would be fun to do especially if you're thinking of being at the Newbery/Caldecott awards banquet on Sunday June 30 at the Sheraton or the speeches after! It struck me that lots of us would be hanging around this premier youth services celebration, so...

....if you plan attend the banquet or just drop by the speeches after the dinner (there are chairs set up and you can listen to the speeches free and gaze upon the glitterati in the audience!), we can do a meet-up!

Traditionally, at the conclusion of the banquet, a receiving line with the honorees takes place right after the speeches outside the hall. There is always a cash bar. It's a great spot to gather and chat late night (caffeinate early to be up late!).

So consider this for your schedule and say hi!

Post N/C Youth Blogger/Blog Reader/Tweep Meet-up
Sunday June 30
Sheraton Chicago banquet area
10:30-11pm-ish start (or whenever N/C speeches end)
 

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I served on the 1995 Newbery and 2002 Caldecott committees. These remain two special moments in my career. Like dessert, it was sweet. But I can't have that diet all the time - that's why I love the meat and potatoes of the many "process" committees I serve on. I wish the experience of being on an award committee to each and every ALSC and YALSA member at least once in their careers and I hope that each member, having served once or twice on a prestigious award committee, makes room for others who wish to have the experience.

It's the night before the American Library Association's Youth Media Awards announcements. By now the discussion, the deliberation, the voting and the annotations are done.  The frisson of excitement within each committee as the top honored book, recording or film has been determined is palpable. The committee members are as proud as new parents at their award titles and honorees. But it's still secret.

Roommates teasingly pry; spouses look for hints; colleagues wonder and give an extra squeeze to hands and shoulders of committee members, knowing the intense work of the past year. The committee members, though excited, appear serene. The decision that will echo through youth literature down through the ensuing years is done. It's finished. Often committee members spend some time together after the final meeting just to have people to talk with. Hearts are very full.

The ALA Public Information Office has kicked into high gear. They are reaching out to obtain phone numbers; writing press releases and press conference scripts; determining if there are immediate media opportunities for winners; scheduling committees for their Monday morning phone calls - yes, the honorees are called by the committee chairs backed by their committees prior to the press conference. In Seattle, it will be at a blessedly decent time - when at an east coast ALA midwinter, west coasters often get the call pre-dawn.

There is a little note of trepidation in many a committee person's heart on this night. How will the crowd of 500 librarians, publishers and booksellers present at the press conference and the audience of teachers, librarians, book creators, and makers and sellers around the world react to their committee's choice - with screams of approbation or the gasp of in-taken breath? I have heard both. That moment when the committee stands to face the dais, back to the audience, and have their choices announced is nerve-wracking.

But that's tomorrow. Tonight, there is the sweet feeling of a job well done; a challenge met and and the camaraderie of a group of people who have read, pored over, reflected and discussed books together in a rarefied atmosphere to winnow and seek that golden best. And that is enough.

For more insights on the award process, stop at this Nerdy Book Club post and read Monica Edinger's outstanding post myth-busting the Newbery Committee process 

Image: 'Poesia'  http://www.flickr.com/photos/58929717@N00/93235624 Found on flickrcc.net
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Earlier this morning the American Library Association (ALA) announced the 2012 youth media awards winners. A full list of the winners can be found here.

Highlights from the list include:

John Newbery Medal for the most outstanding contribution to children’s literature: Dead End in Norvelt, written by Jack Gantos.

Two Newbery Honor Books also were named: Inside Out and Back Again, written by Thanhha Lai; and Breaking Stalin’s Nose, written and illustrated by Eugene Yelchin.

Randolph Caldecott Medal for the most distinguished American picture book for children: A Ball for Daisy, illustrated and written by Chris Raschka.

Three Caldecott Honor Books also were named: Blackout, illustrated and written by John Rocco; Grandpa Green, illustrated and written by Lane Smith; and Me … Jane, illustrated and written by Patrick McDonnell.

Coretta Scott King (Author) Book Award recognizing an African American author and illustrator of outstanding books for children and young adults: Kadir Nelson, author and illustrator of  Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans.

Two King Author Honor Book recipients were selected: Eloise Greenfield, author of The Great Migration: Journey to the North,  illustrated by Jan Spivey Gilchrist; and Patricia C. McKissack, author of Never Forgotten,  illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon.

Coretta Scott King (Illustrator) Book Award: Shane W. Evans, illustrator and author of Underground: Finding the Light to Freedom.

One King Illustrator Honor Book recipient was selected: Kadir Nelson, illustrator and author of Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans.

Coretta Scott King – Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement: Ashley Bryan.

Pura Belpré (Illustrator) Award honoring a Latino writer and illustrator whose children’s books best portray, affirm and celebrate the Latino cultural experience: Diego Rivera: His World and Ours, written and  illustrated by Duncan Tonatiuh.

Two Belpré Illustrator Honor Books were selected: The Cazuela that the Farm Maiden Stirred illustrated by Rafael López, written by Samantha R. Vamos; and Marisol McDonald Doesn’t Match /Marisol McDonald no combina, illustrated by Sara Palacios, written by Monica Brown.

Pura Belpré (Author) Award: Under the Mesquite written by Guadalupe Garcia McCall.

Two Belpré Author Honor Books were named: Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck written by Margarita Engle; and Maximilian and the Mystery of the Guardian Angel: A Bilingual Lucha Libre Thriller, written by Xavier Garza.

 

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I am back from sunny San Diego and the ALA Mid Winter meeting.  This is a time of committee meeting on top of committee meeting, and the drama of the announcements of the Youth Media Awards.

Highlights of this trip for me, were catching up with old friends, meeting new friends, passing Neil Gaiman on the street, awarding a grant to a very deserving program, and dipping my toes in Newbery work.

As I've stated before, this year the blog will feature older titles, what the kids are reading, and some author highlights.  I am thinking of profiling some tween readers as well. 

I look forward to reading all of your blogs to see what is catching your eyes and hearts this year!

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There is nothing quite as exciting as attending the ALA’s Youth Media Awards. When I woke up this morning, I considered staying in bed an hour longer, and then heading down to the hotel lobby to watch it on the webcast. Thankfully, my roommate Karyn rallied me, and we made our way across Boston to the BCEC and got in line to enter into the ballroom.

There’s always a buzz in the room, and I found myself getting nervous about the lists. I decided not to watch my twitter feed the whole time, but enough folks around me had their phones out that I could look over a shoulder and read the comments from around the country as the awards were announced.

In case you haven’t heard, you can follow this link and find the official press release from ALA.

On the tween-y front, this year’s Newbery lists does not disappoint. Personally, I was quite happy to see The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate on the Honor List, and while seeing When You Reach Me wasn’t too much of a surprise when announced, it’s a very fine winner.

So congratulations to Rebecca Stead, Philip Hoose, Jacqueline Kelly, Grace Lin, and Rodman Philbrick!

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Put on your party pajamas, because the kidlit book world has got LOTS to celebrate today. Just a few hours ago, the 2010 ALA Youth Media Awards were announced. Congratulations to all the authors, illustrators, editors, publishers and agents!

The Newbery winner is When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead (Random House, 2010), and the Caldecott winner is The Lion & the Mouse by Jerry Pinkney (Little, Brown, 2010)!! Those in the know, who predicted these books would win the top prizes, were absolutely spot on, so I can't say I was too surprised.

BUT, I was ecstatic, teary-eyed, and crazy happy that some of my online friends were lauded with such well-deserved recognition:

LJ friend, L.K. Madigan, won the William C. Morris Award, which honors a first time YA author, for Flash Burnout (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2010)! We'll be eating more cheese cameras in her honor today.

 

Blog buddy, Tanita S. Davis, who just earned an NAACP Image Award nomination for Mare's War (Knopf, 2010), won a Coretta Scott King Honor Award!! Remember when we celebrated this book's release with red stilettos? This was before I had read it -- but when I finally did, whoa -- I was stunned by the brilliant writing. You know how when you read a good book, you might be thinking to yourself: what a great story! love the characters! good pacing! etc., etc.? Well, this one went way beyond that, way beyond just being a "good read," like many books are. This one, I dare say, is "literature," in the best sense of the word. Deeper, truer, timeless.

Now I have a confession to make. I first read All the World, by Liz Garton Scanlon and Marla Frazee (Beach Lane Books, 2010), in order to celebrate its official release with a Soup of the Day post. As it happens, the more I love a book, the harder it is for me to write about it. One Saturday afternoon, I sat in front of my computer for 6 hours (!) struggling to find the words to do this book justice. No matter what I came up with, it fell short. My words were inadequate, mundane, repetitious. All I could do was gush, gush, gush. Why was I so dumb? Why couldn't I explain how and why this book moved me so much? At the end of the day, I had nothing.



The next day, I met LJ friend, Kelly Fineman, for the first time at

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One of the many program highlights at the annual American Library Association (ALA) Midwinter Meeting will be the 2010 ALA Youth Media Award announcements on 18 January. Recognized worldwide for the high quality they represent, the ALA Youth Media Awards, including but not limited to the prestigious Caldecott, Coretta Scott King Book Awards, Newbery, Pura Belpré and Printz awards, guide parents, educators, librarians and others in selecting the best materials for youth. Selected by committees composed of librarians and other literature and media experts, the awards also encourage original and creative work in the field of children’s and young adult literature and media.

The ALA will provide a free webcast of the Youth Media Award announcements here starting at 7:45am EST! The number of available connections to the Webcast is limited, though, and will be on a first-come, first-served basis.

A new award this year, Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults, will honor the best nonfiction book written for young adults between 1 November 2008 and 31 October 2009. The  five  finalists for this award are:

Almost Astronauts: 13 Women Who Dared to Dream by Tanya Lee Stone

Charles and Emma: The Darwins’ Leap of Faith by Deborah Heiligman

Claudette Colvin: Twice toward Justice by Phillip Hoose

The Great and Only Barnum: The Tremendous and Stupendous Life of the Showman P. T. Barnum by Candace Fleming

Written in Bone: Buried Lives of Jamestown and Colonial Maryland by Sally M. Walker

Angela Carstensen, 2010 Nonfiction committee chair, comments on the short list saying:

The committee is so proud and excited to present a short list of nonfiction books that are full of life and of particular interest and appeal to young adults.  These authors represent the very best in nonfiction scholarship, presentation and writing, while satisfying a variety of interests including forensic archaeology, show business, civil rights history, space exploration, science and even a little romance. All of these books deserve a wide, enthusiastic readership, and we look forward to publishing the full list of nominated titles in January after the winning title is announced.

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I watched the awards with my boss, and (personal feelings aside) we were much relieved that we have plenty of copies of both the Caldecott - The House in the Night by Swanson, illustrated by Krommes - and the Newbery - The Graveyard Book by Gaimon - in our library collection. That the latter is currently in our YA collection only is a small matter, easily rectified. Last year, we only had a few copies of that dark horse Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! and had to scramble madly to meet demand.

On to personal feelings - notice that my post on award hopes failed to make the mark in any category (although I scored honors for the Newbery and the Printz). No matter! The Graveyard Book is a honey of a choice, sure to win the hearts of thousands of kids, and no one could argue with The House in the Night, or at least I won't.

Now at the top of my must-read list - Marchetta's Jellicoe Road and Engle's The Surrender Tree, Printz and Newbery Honor/Pura Belpre author award winners respectively.

I was surprised that neither Green's Paper Towns nor Collins' Hunger Games garnered any awards, but it's no use wondering at what isn't there, when there is so much to celebrate about the books that did receive awards.

More thoughts later! Time to put a special awards order sheet together for our stalwart children's librarians... Read the rest of this post

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