Awards of Literature
for Children and
Young Adults
Britany Howell
University of West Alabama
LM 506
Awards
 We will discuss 13 different
awards of literature for children
and young adults:
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John Newbery Award
Randolph Caldecott Award
Michael L. Printz Award
Coretta Scott King Award
Schneider Family Honor Book
Award
Geisel Honor Books
Margaret A. Edwards Award
Laura Ingalls Award
Robert F. Sibert Informational
Book Award
Andrew Carenegie Medal for
Excellence in Children’s Video
Mildred L. Batchelder Award
Alex Award
May Hill Arbuthnot Honor
Lecture
 For each award, we will review the
following:
 The purpose of each award
 The selection process of each
award
 Example books that have won
the awards
 A brief summarization of the
book that won each particular
award
John Newbery Award
 The Newbery Medal is awarded
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annually by the American Library
Association for the most
distinguished American
children's book published the
previous year.
The purpose of the Newbery
Medal is to encourage original
creative work in the field of
books for children. It strives to
emphasize to the public that
contributions to the literature
for children deserve similar
recognition to poetry, plays, or
novels. In addition, it gives
those librarians, who make it
their life work to serve children's
reading interests, an opportunity
to encourage good writing in
this field."
 The Award is restricted to
authors who are citizens or
residents of the United States.
 The committee in its
deliberations is to consider
only the books eligible for the
award, as specified in the
terms.
John Newbery Award
 2007 Newbery Award
Winner:
The Higher Power of
Lucky
 2007 Honor Books:
Penny from Heaven
by Jennifer L. Holm
by Susan Patron
In The Higher Power of Lucky,
Patron takes us to the California
desert community of Hard Pan.
Ten-year-old Lucky Trimble
eavesdrops on 12-step program
meetings from her hiding place
behind Hard Pan’s Found Object
Wind Chime Museum & Visitor
Center. Eccentric characters and
quirky details spice up Lucky’s
life just as her guardian
Brigitte’s fresh parsley
embellishes her French cuisine.
Hattie Big Sky
by Kirby Larson
Rules
by Cynthia Lord
Randolph Caldecott Medal
 The Caldecott Medal is
awarded annually by
the Association for Library
Service to Children, a division
of the American Library
Association, to the artist of the
most distinguished American
picture book for children.
 The award shall go to the
artist, who must be a citizen or
resident of the United States,
whether or not he be the
author of the text. Members of
the Newbery Medal Committee
will serve as judges.
 There are no limitations as to
the character of the picture
book except that the
illustrations be original work.
Honor Books may be named.
These shall be books that are
also truly distinguished.
Randolph Caldecott Medal
 2007 Medal Winner:
Flotsam
by David Wiesner
Flotsam is a cinematic
unfolding of discovery. A
vintage camera washed
up on the beach
provides a young boy
with a surprising view of
fantastical images from
the bottom of the sea.
From fish-eye to lenseye, readers see a
frame-by-frame
narrative of lush
marinescapes ebbing
and flowing from the
real to the surreal.
 2007 Honor Books:
Gone Wild: An
Endangered Animal
Alphabet
by David McLimans
Moses: When Harriet
Tubman Led Her
People to Freedom
by Kadir Nelson
Michael L. Printz Award
 The Michael L. Printz
Award is an award for a
book that exemplifies
literary excellence in
young adult literature.
 To be eligible, a title must
have been designated by
its publisher as being
either a young adult book
or one published for the
age range that is defined
as "young adult," i.e., 12
through 18. Adult books
are not eligible.
 In order for a book to be
considered, nominations
are accepted and are
reviewed by the Award
Committee.
Michael L. Printz Award
2007 Award Winner:
2007 Honor Books:
American Born
Chinese
by Gene Luen Yang
Yang draws from
American pop culture and
ancient Chinese
mythology in his
groundbreaking work.
Expertly told in words
and pictures, Yang’s story
in three parts follows a
Chinese American
teenager’s struggle to
define himself against
racial stereotypes.
The Astonishing Life
of Octavian Nothing
by M.T. Anderson
Surrender
by Sonya Hartnett
An Abundance of
Katherines
by John Green
The Book Thief
by Markus Zusak
Coretta Scott King Award
 This award is given to African
American authors and
illustrators for outstanding
inspirational and educational
contributions.
 Promotes understanding and
appreciation of the culture of
all people and their
contribution to the realization
of the American dream.
 The purpose of this award is to
encourage the artistic
expression of the African
American experience through
literature and graphic arts.
 In order to be considered for this
award, the book must portray
some aspect of the African
American experience, must be
written by an African American,
must be published in the U.S.,
must be original work, must be
geared toward the youth
audience, have a motivating title,
and illustrations should reflect
qualitative standards.
Coretta Scott King Award
 2007 Award Winners:
Author Award
Illustrator Award
 2007 Honor Books:
The Road to Paris
by Nikki Grimes
Copper Sun
by Sharon Draper
Copper Sun is a searing
Moses: When Harriet
Tubman Led Her People
to Freedom
work of historical fiction
that imagines a 15-year-old
African girl's journey
through American slavery.
The story begins in Amari's
Ashanti village, but the
idyllic scene explodes in
bloodshed when slavers
arrive and murder her
family.
by Kadir Nelson
This picture book about
Harriet Tubman focuses
mostly on Tubman's
religious inspiration,
with echoes of spirituals
ringing throughout the
spare poetry about her
struggle.
Jazz
by Christopher Myers
Poetry for Young People:
Langston Hughes
by Benny Andrews
Schneider Family Honor Book Award
 The Schneider Family Book
Awards honor an author or
illustrator for a book that
embodies an artistic
expression of the
disability experience for
child and adolescent
audiences.
 In order to qualify for this
award, the book must
portray some aspect of
living with a disability or
that of a friend or family
member, whether the
disability is physical, mental
or emotional.
 Three awards, each
consisting of $5000 and a
framed plaque, are awarded
annually. Age groups of
these awards are birth
through grade school,
middle school, and teens.
Schneider Family Honor Book Award
2007 Award Winners:
The Deaf Musicians
By Pete Seger & Paul DuBois Jacobs
After losing his hearing,
jazzman Lee learns to make
music in a new way. The book’s
upbeat narrative, along with its
bright colors, teaches the
reader that there is more than
one way to do everything, to
never give up on your dreams
and that music can be enjoyed
by all.
Rules
by Cynthia Lord
This story is a realistic depiction of
12-year-old Catherine’s quest to
find her place in a family consumed
by her autistic brother David’s
needs. Catherine copes by
developing rules for herself and for
David. She tries to adhere to these
rules until she meets Jason, a nonverbal paraplegic teen, who
teaches her that rules are
sometimes just excuses.
Small Steps
by Louis Sachar
Armpit’s humorous adventures
portray the unexpected
friendship between a recently
released juvenile delinquent
and 10-year-old Ginny, who has
cerebral palsy, as they help
each other take incremental
steps towards a brighter future.
"Small Steps" shows that
friendship comes in many
shapes, sizes, ages, and
abilities.
Geisel Honor Books
 The Theodor Seuss Geisel
Award recognizes the
author(s) and illustrator(s)
of a book for beginning
readers who, through their
literary and artistic
achievements,
demonstrate creativity
and imagination to
engage children
in reading.
 The Award is restricted to
author(s) and
illustrator(s) who are
citizens or residents of
the United States.
 The committee in its
deliberations is to
consider only the books
eligible for the award, as
specified in the terms.
Geisel Honor Books
2007 Medal Winner:
Zelda and Ivy: The
Runaways
by Laura McGee
Kvasnosky
The popular fox sisters return in
this book with three adventures
precipitated by their need to
avoid the dreaded cucumber
sandwiches dad is preparing.
Strong character development
and a superb book design that
showcases framed gouache
paintings combine to encourage
young readers to reach the trio
of hilarious outcomes.
2007 Honor Books:
Mercy Watson Goes for a Ride
by Kate DiCamillo
Move Over, Rover!
by Karen Beaumont
Not a Box
by Antoinette Portis
Margaret A. Edwards Award
 The Margaret A. Edwards Award
honors a specific author for his or
her lifetime contribution to
young adult literature, and it
also singles out specific works by
that author for special recognition.
 The award will be given annually
to an author whose book or
books, over a period of time, have
 been accepted by young adults as
an authentic voice that continues
to illuminate their experiences and
emotions, giving insight into their
lives.
 The book or books should enable
them to understand themselves,
the world in which they live, and
their relationship with others and
with society.
 The book or books must be in
print at the time of the
nomination.
 A committee of five, including
the chair, will be responsible for
the final selection of the
recipient of the Award. Input
may be solicited from the field,
including librarians and young
adults, but the selection will be
made by the committee.
Margaret A. Edwards Award
2007 Award Winner:
The Giver
by Lois Lowry
The Giver explores a future
where differences have been
erased and strict rules govern
society. The novel tells the
story of Jonas, a young man
designated as the new
Receiver of Memory for his
community. Little by little,
Lowry reveals what is absent
from Jonas’ life: color, pain,
love. Readers, along with
Jonas, discover that lack of
freedom is too heavy a price to
pay for security.
Laura Ingalls Award
 The purpose of the Laura
Ingalls Wilder Award is to
recognize an author or
illustrator whose books,
published in the United
States, have over a
period of years made a
substantial and lasting
contribution to
literature for children.
 A committee composed of
five members selects the
recipient of this award.
The Laura Ingalls Award,
once given every five
years, is now awarded
every three years to the
most deserving recipient.
Laura Ingalls Award
 Author/illustrator
James Marshall
was awarded the
2007 Laura Ingalls
Wilder Award.
 Drawing from a career
that spanned just over 20
years, dozens of
Marshall’s books remain
favorites with audiences
ranging from young
children to college
students and adults.
 Marshall was the
author and illustrator
of the “George and
Martha” books, the
“Fox” easy reader
series, “The Cut-Ups”
and “Goldilocks and
the Three Bears” – a
Caldecott honor
winner in 1989. He
also illustrated the
“Miss Nelson” books
and “The Stupids”
series, written by
Harry Allard. Marshall
died in 1992.
Robert F. Sibert Informational
Book Award
 This award is awarded
annually to the author(s)
and illustrator(s) of the
most distinguished
informational book
published in English
during the preceding
year.
 In identifying the most distinguished
book, committee members consider
important elements and qualities:
a. Excellent, engaging, and
distinctive use of language and
visual presentation.
b. Appropriate organization and
documentation.
c. Clear, accurate, and stimulating
presentation of facts, concepts,
and ideas.
d. Visual material and book
design.
e. Appropriate style of
presentation for subject and for
intended audience.
g. Supportive features (index,
table of contents, maps,
timelines, etc).
h. Respectful and of interest to
children.
Robert F. Sibert Informational
Book Award
2007 Medal Winner:
Team Moon: How 400,000
People Landed Apollo 11
on the Moon
by Catherine Thimmesh
With heart-stopping prose and
stunning NASA photographs,
Thimmesh celebrates the men
and women who solved a series
of unfolding crises that
threatened the mission of
Apollo 11. The animated text
lets the reader experience the
tension of the mission from
multiple vantage points and
takes the reader along as an
active participant. Personal
interviews and oral histories
help recreate the immediacy of
the event for a new generation.
2007 Honor Books:
Freedom Riders: John Lewis
and Jim Zwerg on the Front Lines
of the Civil Rights Movement
by Ann Bausum
Quest for the Tree Kangaroo:
An Expedition to the Cloud
Forest of New Guinea
by Sy Montgomery
To Dance: A Ballerina’s Graphic
Novel
by Siena Cherson Siegel
Andrew Carnegie Medal for
Excellence in Children’s Video
 This medal honors outstanding
video productions for children
released during the previous year.
The annual award is given to the
video's producer by the
Association for Library Service to
Children (ALSC), a division of ALA,
through a Carnegie endowment.
 In judging, committee members
consider the following:
 excellence of execution in the
special techniques of the
medium
 excellence of visual
interpretation of story, theme,
or concept
 excellence in the use of sound
 excellence in the delineation of
plot, theme, characters, mood
setting, or information
presented
 excellence in acting, when
appropriate
 excellence in the
appropriateness of technique or
treatment to the story, theme,
or concept
 excellence of presentation for a
child audience
Andrew Carnegie Medal for
Excellence in Children’s Video
 Author/illustrator Mo
Willems and Weston
Woods Studios, producers
of Knuffle Bunny, are the
2007 recipients of the
Andrew Carnegie Medal for
Excellence in Children’s
Video.
In this DVD, little Trixie, who is
too young to talk, still
manages to put her father
through the wringer when they
return from a trip to the local
Laundromat without her
beloved toy bunny. Intimate
father/daughter reminiscences
bookend this lively
presentation of the Caldecott
Honor–winning tale. Deft
animation against
photographic backgrounds
adds to the humor of this
realistic family experience.
Mildred L. Batchelder Award
 This Award is presented to an
American publisher for a
children's book considered
to be the most outstanding
of those books originally
published in a foreign
language in a foreign
country, and subsequently
translated into English and
published in the United
States.
 The purpose is to encourage
international exchange of
quality children's books by
recognizing United States
publishers of such books in
translation.
 The Award, in the form of
citation, is given annually,
unless no book of that
particular year is deemed
worthy of the honor.
 Criteria evaluated by the
committee includes:
 Focus of attention
 Relationship to original work
 Quality of the United States
book
Mildred L. Batchelder Award
2007 Award Winner:
2007 Honor Books:
Delacorte Press for
The Pull of the Ocean
by Jean-Claude Mourlevat
and translated from the French by Y. Maudet
Originally published in France in
1999 as “L’enfant Océan,” the book
was written by Jean-Claude
Mourlevat and translated by Y.
Maudet. This contemporary
version of the Tom Thumb story
follows charismatic Yann, youngest
and smallest of seven brothers, as
he silently leads his siblings across
the rain-soaked French
countryside. Their harrowing flight
from abusive parents is described
through the recollections of the
boys themselves and through the
distinctive voices of those who
witness or abet their journey.
Delacorte Press for
Hyperion/Miramax for
The Killer’s Tears
by Ann-Laure Bondoux
The Last Dragon
by Silvana De Mari
and translated from the French
by Y. Maudet
and translated from the Italian
by Shaun Whiteside
Alex Award
 The Alex Awards are
given to ten books
written for adults that
have special appeal to
young adults, ages 12
through 18. The
winning titles are selected
from the previous year's
publishing.
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Guidelines to be reviewed for
consideration of this award by the
committee are:
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Published in the calendar year
prior to the announcement.
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Must come from a publisher’s
adult list.
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Works of joint authorship and
editorship will be eligible.
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Books published in another
country in English or in the
United States in translation are
eligible.
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Selected from genres that have
special appeal to young adults.
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Are potentially appealing to
teenagers.
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Are well written and very
readable.
Alex Award
 Ten adult books were selected to receive the 2007 Alex Awards that appeal
to teen readers.
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The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly
The Whistling Season by Ivan Doig
Eagle Blue by Michael D’Orso
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Floor of the Sky by Pamela Carter Joern
Color of the Sea by John Hamamura
The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game by Michael Lewis
Black Swan Green by David Mitchell
The World Made Straight by Ron Rash
The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield
May Hill Arbuthnot
Honor Lecture
 The May Hill Arbuthnot
Honor Lecture Prize is
given yearly to an
author, critic,
librarian, illustrator,
historian or other
individual of
distinction in the field
of children’s literature.
The honoree prepares a
paper and subsequent
lecture that will make a
noteworthy contribution
to the field.
 Once the name is made
public, institutions wishing
to host the lecture may
apply. A library school,
department of education in
college or university, or a
children's library system
may be considered. This
paper is delivered as a
lecture each April, and is
subsequently published in
Children & Libraries, the
journal of the Association
for Library Service to
Children.
May Hill Arbuthnot
Honor Lecture
2008 Prize Winner: 2007 Prize Winner:
David Macaulay
Title TBA
Hosted by TBA
Kevin Henkes
"Books As Shelter: Going Home
Again and Again."
Hosted by the McConnell Center
for the Study of Youth
Literature, University of Kentucky
SLIS