You have to be in it: The 2013 Samsung K–12 “Return on Intelligence” Gift Programs have been announced by Samsung Techwin, a manufacturer of document cameras. The Superhero Program competition encourages students to prepare a 1–3 minute digital video (camera phone quality is acceptable) in which they portray their favorite historical character. The deadline for entries is May 31. The contest is opened to students in grades K–12 and the video will be judged on presentation performance, character and content accuracy, and content quality. The winner will receive $500 and the student’s class will get a SAMCAM 760 document camera.

To enter the Scholarship Program, high school students must write an essay of no more than 300 words in response to the question: What do you think about technology advancements and how they will change the way we learn in the future? Is it for the better? The deadline for submissions is May 15. Essays will be judged on the basis of original thinking, relevance to the real world, and writing quality. All applicants must be sponsored by a teacher. Five winners will be announced on May 31 and will receive a $1,000 award.

Under its 2013 Grant Program, ten teachers will each have the opportunity to win a SAMCAM 760 document camera for use in school by writing a fun lesson plan of 100 words or less in which they use the camera. The deadline for submissions is May 1, The top 20 finalists will then have to submit a video showing their lesson in the classroom using the SAMCAM 760. Ten winners will be selected on June, and their school district will also keep the camera.

Freebies

Teaching guide: Hurry up and get your free copy of Brother Sam and All That: Historical Context and Literary Analysis of the Novels of James and Christopher Collier (Clearwater Pr., 1999) from AudioGO. The lessons compiled in this companion teaching guide provide teachers and librarians with information about how to use historical fiction in the classroom—just what the Common Core Standards require—and tips for teaching the novels by James and Christopher Collier. AudioGO publishes audiobook and ebook versions of more than 50 novels by James and Christopher Collier, including the classroom favorite, My Brother Sam Is Dead. The first 100 people to email michell.cobb@audiogo.com will receive this teaching guide at no cost.

Publishing News

Trade picture books: This spring, Capstone Young Readers, an imprint of Capstone, is launching a collection of fully illustrated picture books. “We are excited to introduce a range of picture books in both paper-over-board and trade paperback formats,” says Ashley Andersen Zantop, Group Publisher and General Manager. “We believe that quality illustrated titles provide an important stepping stone to reading and an opportunity to inspire imagination, creativity, and a love for good books.” The titles and series scheduled for publication in February 2013 are: Flood by Alvara F. Villa, “Princess Heart” series written and illustrated by Molly Martin, “The Other Side of the Story” series by Nancy Loewen (classic fairy tales), and Charlotte Gullain’s “Animal Fairy Tales” series.

And more picture books: Hank Finds an Egg (ages 3–8) written and illustrated by Rebecca Dudley will be published by Peter Pauper Press in May 2013 as their initial venture into publishing children’s trade picture books for children. The wordless picture book tells the story of a young boy who finds an egg on the forest floor, helps it return to its home in a tree, and is rewarded by his new forest friends. Three additional titles are scheduled for publication: Bruce Arant’s Sheep Won’t Go to Sleep! (Fall 2013), Digby Differs by Miriam Koch (Fall 2013), and Sarra J. Roth’s Not the Quitting Kind (Spring 2014). If you’re a picture book author, Peter Pauper Press is accepting unsolicited submissions online, or you can send your manuscript to Mara Conlon, Senior Editor, Peter Pauper Press, 202 Mamaroneck Ave., White Plains, NY 10601.

Peter Pauper Press has been publishing gift books, references, travel guides, children’s activity books, and other products for adults since it was founded in 1928.

Children’s Lit Conference

Digital Lit: Librarians, teachers, and others who love books are invited to attend e-Looking Glass: Children’s Literature in the Digital Age, a full-day conference to be held at Carthage College Hedberg Library in Kenosha, WI, on April 13, that will explore “how books are being reinvented to create visual and interactive experiences that printed books cannot provide.”  Topics will include the changing landscape of texts (interactive ebooks, book apps, learning products, and online communities), how to integrate this new technology into the classroom, and the design and development of these new types of books. Among the speakers are Brandon Oldenburg, award-winning illustrator and co-founder of Moonbot Studios; Umesh Shukla, animation director and founder of Auryn, a digital publisher of apps; Denise Johnson, author of The Joy of Children’s Literature; William H. Teale, Professor of Education at the University of Illinois at Chicago; and others. Undergraduate continuing professional education credit is available. The cost to attend the conference is $65, and $40 for students. You can register online. The cost of one credit hour is $50; to view the syllabus, contact Marilyn Ward at mward@carthage.edu.

The album, inspired by their canoe trip down the Mississippi River, features original mostly folk, country, and bluegrass numbers enhanced by virtuoso performances on a variety of instruments, including accordion, auto-harp, rhumba box, fiddle, udu, drums, pots and pans, tuba, trombone, and many others. According to a recent review in School Library Journal, “this unique, outstanding musical performance should have a place in every library.”

The two childhood friends took a month-long journey on the Mississippi, but never dreamed that their voyage would take them to the Grammys. About to board a plane home to Minnesota, Mailander told SLJ, “We are thrilled that the recording academy chose our album to represent the quality music that’s being made in the children’s genre right now. All the nominees were deserving and we’re honored to be in such great company.”

Four other children’s albums were nominated for a Grammy this year by the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences in the Best Children’s Album category: Bill Harley’s High Dive and Other Things That Could Have Happened (Round River); the JumpinJazz Kids’s A Swinging Jungle Tale (JumpinJazzKids), narrated by James Murray and featuring Dee Dee Bridgewater, Al Jarreau, Hubert Laws, and various artists; Little Seed: Songs for Children by Woody Guthrie (Smithsonian Folkways), re-imagined renditions of classic Guthrie favorites by Elizabeth Mitchell; and the Pop Ups’s (Brooklyn-based music duo Jason Rabinowitz and Jacob Stein) Radio Jungle (CDBaby.com).

In recognition of the Caldecott Medal’s 75th anniversary, librarians at School Library Journal‘s Leadership Summit shared their favorite winners and discuss beloved picture books that were overlooked for this honor but still stand the test of time.

American Indian Lit Awards: The American Indian Library Association, an affiliate of the American Library Association, has announced the winners of the 2013 American Indian Youth Literature Award in three categories—picture book, middle school, and young adult. The books selected “present American Indians in the fullness of their humanity in the present and past contexts.” The top Picture Book award went to The Christmas Coat: Memories of My Sioux Childhood (Holiday House, 2011) written by Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve and illustrated by Ellen Beier. The Honor awards in that category were nabbed by Saltypie: A Choctaw Journey from Darkness into Light (Cinco Puntos, 2010) written by Tim Tingle and illustrated by Karen Clarkson, Kohala Kuamo’o: Nae’ole’s Race to Save a King (2010) written by Kekauleleana’ole Kawai’ae’a and illustrated by Aaron Kawai’ae’a, Mohala Mai ‘O Hau = How Hau Became Hau’ula (2011, both Kamehameha Schools Pr.) by Robert Lono ‘Ikuwa with pictures by Matthew Kawika Ortiz, and I See Me (Theytus Books, 2009) by Margaret Manuel.

In the Middle Grade category, the award went to Free Throw (1999) and Triple Threat (1999, both Lorimer), by Jacqueline Guest, while Jordin Tootoo: The Highs and Lows in the Journey of the First Inuit to Play in the NHL (Lorimer, 2011) by Melanie Florence, and Awesiinyensag: Dibaajimowinan Ji-Gikinoo’amaageng (Wiigwaas Pr., 2010) by Anton Treuer et al. received Honors. Adam Fortunate Eagle’s Pipestone: My Life in an Indian Boarding School (Univ. of Oklahoma Pr., 2010) won in the Young Adult category, with Native Defenders of the Environment (7th Generation, 2011) by Victor Schilling (and others in the series) taking the Honor award.

Established in 2006 and given in even years, the award was created to honor the best writing and illustrations by and about American Indians. Be sure to check out the evaluation criteria and previous winners of the award.

2013 Gryphon Awards: Jason Chin’s Island: A Story of the Galapagos (Roaring Brook, 2012) has received the 2013 Gryphon Award, sponsored by the Center for Children’s Books at the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The book presents the story of the evolution of an island and its plant and animal life over six million years. The $1,000 award, given annually, recognizes “an English-language work of fiction or nonfiction for which the primary audience is children in kindergarten through grade 4. The title chosen best exemplifies those qualities that successfully bridge the gap in difficulty between books for reading aloud to children and books for practical readers.” Two Honor books were also announced: Little Dog Lost: The True Story of a Dog Named Baltic (Penguin/Nancy Paulsen Bks., 2012), written and illustrated by Monica Carnesi, and Kate DeCamillo and Alison McGhee’s Bink and Gollie: Two for One (Candlewick, 2012), illustrated by Tony Fucile.

Children’s Book Committee Awards: The Bank Street College of Education announced the winners of the 2013 Children’s Book Committee Awards. Wonder by R. J. Palacio (Knopf, 2012) was received the Josette Frank Award. Palacio’s memorable story about ten-year-old Auggie, a boy with facial abnormalities, who attends public school for the first time, shows how the experience changes him as well as all of those he encounters. The Award, given annually since 1943 (originally called the Children’s Book Award) honors an outstanding fiction title “in which children or young people deal in a positive and realistic way with difficulties in their world and grow emotionally and morally.”

The Flora Stieglitz Straus Award for a nonfiction title was given to Doreen Rappaport’s Beyond Courage: The Untold Story of Jewish Resistance During the Holocaust (Candlewick, 2012), a chronicle of 21 courageous acts of defiance. National Geographic Book of Animal Poetry: 2000 Poems with Photographs that Squeak, Soar, and Roar! by J. Patrick Lewis, “an exuberant celebration of the animal kingdom and a beautiful introduction to this genre of literature,” won the Claudia Lewis Award. Established in 1998, the award is given for the best poetry book of the year.

The Children’s Book Committee is a nonprofit affiliate of Bank Street College of Education. The Committee was founded 75 years ago to “guide librarians, educators and parents to the best books for children published each year.”

Scholarships

The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA) is offering two scholarships to students pursuing a master’s or advanced degree in children’s librarianship. The ALSC Bound to Stay Bound Books Scholarship, funded by Bound-to-Stay Bound Books, is an award of $7,000 that will be given to four candidates. The ALSC Frederic G.Melcher Scholarship, funded by contributions from librarians and others in the book world as a tribute to Melcher, consists of two $6,000 awards. Applicants must demonstrate academic excellence and leadership, be enrolled at an ALA accredited library school (U.S. or Canada) that offers a full range of courses in children’s materials and library services to children, must not have earned more than 12 semester hours towards an MLS/MLIS, and must take a position in the field of library service to children for at least one year after graduation. The deadline for applying for these two scholarships is March 1. Be sure to check out requirements and complete an application. The recipients will be announced at the ALA Annual conference in June.

Rare Books

First editions: The J.Willard Marriott Library’s Rare Book Division, Special Collections at the University of Utah has received first editions of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There (1872) from an anonymous donor. The books are valued at $30,000. Charles Lutwidge Dodgson first made up the story of Alice’s adventures for Alice Liddell and her sisters and gave her the manuscript in 1864. His friend and novelist, Henry Kingsley, encouraged the author to publish the book. He expanded the manuscript from 18,000 words to 35,000 words and published it under the Lewis Carroll pseudonym. Four thousand copies were printed.

SÁENZ , Benjamin Alire. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe. S & S. 2012. ISBN 9781442408920. JLG Level: YM : Mature Young Adults (Grades 11 & up).

Winner of three Youth Media Awards (a Printz Honor, a Stonewall, and a Pura Belpré), Saenz’s coming-of-age novel is about two very different 15-year-old boys with contrasting lives―Aristotle, who seems angry at the world, and Dante, who takes life for what it is. Aristotle talks to his mother, but his father, who’s a Vietnam War veteran, rarely has anything to say. On the other hand, Dante’s family talks about everything. When the two become friends at the community pool, their worlds collide, causing both the boys and their families to change. A car accident that injures Aristotle draws Dante even closer to him, but only causes Ari to feel more anger. A sudden move to Chicago allows Dante to write about his romantic feelings for his friend. Ari, like his father, closes off his emotions, even refusing to write back. In the dramatic end, a gay-bashing attack puts Dante in the hospital and forces Ari to realize his true feelings. Slow-paced and poignant, the story addresses issues of homosexuality, identity, war, family responsibility, and friendship. This multifaceted award-winner is sure to withstand the test of time.

BLUMENTHAL, Karen. Steve Jobs: The Man Who Thought Different. Feiwel & Friends. 2012. ISBN 9781250015570. JLG Level: C : Advanced Readers (Grades 6-9).

Against all the odds, a man who was given away at birth, dropped out of college, and fired from the company that he created became the man who transformed the computer, music, and movie industries. In 2005, Steve Jobs delivered a commencement speech at Stanford University. It would be a tale told in three parts. Blumenthal uses that thread to weave her story for teen readers. “The journey is the reward,” says Jobs. Adopted as an infant, Jobs’s new parents had to sign an agreement that they would send him to college. Frequently in trouble at school, Jobs dropped out of college after one year. He was reclusive, picky about eating, and had poor hygiene habits. In spite of that, he and his friend, Steve Wosniak, created the first Apple computer in his parents’ garage. The Cinderella story builds from there―and includes fascinating information about Jobs’s involvement with Pixar, Macintosh, and iProducts. In spite of (or maybe because of) Jobs’s tantrums, lack of social graces, and empathy for others, his products made millions and continue to do so. Informative sidebars, copious footnotes, and black-and-white photographs support this unauthorized biography. Finalist for the YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults.

HOPKINSON, Deborah. Titanic: Voices from the Disaster. Scholastic. 2012. ISBN 9780545116749. JLG Level: NE : Nonfiction Elementary (Grades 2-6).

Though interest in the Titanic disaster never seems to fade, its 100th anniversary has brought several new amazing titles to our shelves. Hopkinson examines primary source documents and presents surviving characters from each social class on the ship, as well as the crew. From the construction of the ship to the harrowing rescue of its passengers, readers will find fascinating new details in their never-ceasing hunger for information about the tragedy. Complete with photographs, artwork, and maps, this oft-told story will have teens riveted to the pages. Sibert Honor and Finalist for the YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults.

LEVINSON, Cynthia. We’ve Got a Job: The 1963 Birmingham Children’s March. Peachtree. 2012. ISBN 9781561456277. JLG Level: NM : Nonfiction Middle & HS (Grades 7-11).

Based on interviews with children who marched in Birmingham, AL, in 1963, Levinson delivers a narrative that chronicles a momentous event in the history of civil rights. Told through the eyes of four young people, history comes to life in a painful and sobering retelling of children willing to stand up to adults for their freedom. Nine-year-old Audrey Hendricks saw an elderly black couple walking in the park. When a police officer allowed a dog to attack them, she decided she had to do more than just attend meetings. Afraid he would fight back, James Stewart chose to march instead of sit. Washington Booker III thought the marches were crazy; he spent his time playing with friends. Arnetta Streeter joined the Peace Ponies and signed a pledge of nonviolence. These four young people were among the thousands who participated in the Birmingham’s Children’s March. Meticulously footnoted with bibliographical information and index, this volume will certainly meet research needs. Finalist for the YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults.

TURNAGE, Shelia. Three Times Lucky. Dial. 2012. ISBN 9780803736702. JLG Level: C : Advanced Readers (Grades 6-9).

“Trouble cruised into Tupelo Landing at exactly seven minutes past noon on Wednesday, the third of June, flashing a gold badge and driving a Chevy Impala the color of dirt. Almost before the dust had settled, Mr. Jesse turned up dead and life in Tupelo Landing turned upside down.” Full of quick wit and humor, mystery and mayhem, this novel for young teens will have readers turning pages. Plenty of trouble awaits Mo(ses) and Dale (Earnhardt Johnson III) and there are lots of red herrings to steer them astray. Mo is an orphan who washed up in a storm 11 years ago and was found by “The Colonel,” who has lost his memory. When Mr. Jesse is found dead, Mo and Dale decide to solve the murder themselves. After Dale becomes a suspect and The Colonel goes missing, things just get complicated. Mo will steal your heart and give you a laugh along the way. Newbery Honor Winner.

For these and other fabulous books for teens, search Junior Library Guild.

Junior Library Guild is a collection development service that helps school and public libraries acquire the best new children’s and young adult books. Season after season, year after year, Junior Library Guild book selections go on to win awards, collect starred or favorable reviews, and earn industry honors. You can visit them at www.JuniorLibraryGuild.com.

Photo credit: D. Feingold

In addition to best-selling mysteries and thrillers for adults, James Patterson also writes for young readers, and he’s extremely proud of his “Middle School” series. The latest entry, I Funny, is told from the point of view of a middle schooler who uses humor to help him cope with a physical handicap and the loss of his family. In this case, laughter really is the best medicine for Jamie Grimm, the narrator of I Funny.

Your series for young adults, like “Maximum Ride” and “Daniel X,” have been checked out so many times from my library that they’re falling apart. What makes them so popular with teens?

Well, when my 14-year-old son, Jack, was younger, I told him that I expected him to read every day during his summer break. Jack was never a huge reader, but his mother and I told him that we would make sure he had really cool books to read. Cool books are ones that he wouldn’t put down and when he got done he would ask for another one. When kids are younger, we want them to read, read, read, and they will only do that if they like what they read. Kids in middle school need books with stories that move along, stories that they love, and pages that practically turn themselves so kids won’t pick up a  book and say that they don’t like it and they don’t like reading. I think that books need a lot of meat in them. For example, Maximum Ride is really about a couple of things beyond the story line like dealing with being different. It is really about kids taking responsibility for their own lives. My most popular books are the Middle School books.

Why did you create the website Read Kiddo Read? Has it made a difference in kids’ lives?

Absolutely! Part of my interest in creating the website was watching Jack grow up and watching his attitude toward books.  Even with his friends who are very bright, it has always been a struggle to get them to read at least on their own time. That is a big stimulus for me. As individuals we cannot do much to help the health care crisis, budget situation, or global warming. Unfortunately, we spend a lot of time just talking about these things, which doesn’t help anything, and I am big on doing stuff. As individuals, we can most times get the kids in our houses reading or our grandchildren reading, or we can even help our local school get more books. So doing something to get kids reading is a big deal for me. I have been trying other things too, like working with independent bookstores to hold essay contests, where kids write about a book that most affected them. I have set up over a 100 scholarships at different colleges across the U.S., and they are all for teachers.  We plan to double this number in the coming year. We have even set up a program at Vanderbilt University to bring in kids every Saturday to help improve their reading skills. I am testing an after-school program in four middle schools in Palm Beach County to get kids help with their reading, and we pumped 700 to 1,000 books in all these schools. If we can get a cadre of kids reading, the teachers will notice when their reading improves and more kids will start reading and over time this will improve the neighborhoods. I do all of this because I can. We must help kids build good habits and break down bad ones. Getting kids to read will not happen overnight. We must keep at it and get the right books into the right hands.

Why does the “Middle School” series focus on humor?

Humor is one of the ways to get to kids. Combining the prose and illustrations makes the book more like a movie, and that’s a cool thing. All the Middle School books are good stories. I think that I Funny is my best.

I like I Funny‘s  main character, Jamie Grimm. Could the story have played out the same way if he wasn’t in a wheelchair? Are you worried that some people might be offended because he makes fun of his handicap?

I like the idea of a kid having a terrible break in life, rising above it with comedy, but yes the story would still be valid if Jamie didn’t have a handicap. Nobody should be offended by this book.  I am not big on political and social correctness, because I think it is more important to be a good human being.

Which gets us to the contest for the Funniest Kid in America. What kind of response are you hoping for? How does the contest relate to your literacy work?

Some kids are going to be brave enough to submit videos, but we are going to put a lot of videos up on the website for kids to watch and that should be fun. I recorded a bunch of short pieces with Zach Gordon, who was in the Wimpy Kid movies, to introduce the idea of the contest. We want to get kids attention and hopefully this will help them start building the habit of reading.

Elizabeth Kahn is the librarian at Patrick F. Taylor Science and Technology Academy in Jefferson, LA. She writes reviews for School Library Journal and Library Media Connection as well as a blog to chronicle the happenings in her school library at Tales from a Loud Librarian.

(John) Newbery Medal
The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate
HarperCollins Children’s Books
Fuse #8: Review of the Day

Honors:
Splendors and Glooms by Laura Amy Schlitz
Candlewick
Curriculum Connections: An Apprentice to Dickens: An Interview with Laura Amy Schlitz

Tall Tale: Laura Amy Schlitz (2008 profile)

Bomb: The Race to Build—and Steal—the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon by Steve Sheinkin
Flash Point/Roaring Brook
Curriculum Connections: Steve Sheinkin Writes a Thriller: An Interview with Steve Sheinkin

Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage
Dial/Penguin Young Readers
Heavy Medal: Three Times Lucky

(Randolph) Caldecott Medal
This Is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen
Candlewick Press
This Is Not My Sequel: Just Wait Till You See This New Book from Jon Klassen: Under Cover Interview

Honors:
Creepy Carrots! illus. by Peter Brown, written by Aaron Reynolds
Simon & Schuster
Fuse #8: Review of the Day: Creepy Carrots!

Extra Yarn illus. by Jon Klassen, written by Mac Barnett
HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray
SLJ Review of the Day

Green by Laura Vaccaro Seeger
Neal Porter Books/Roaring Brook
Fuse #8: Review of the Day: Green

One Cool Friend illus. by David Small, written by Toni Buzzeo
Dial/Penguin Young Readers
Book Verdict Review

Sleep Like a Tiger, illus. by Pamela Zagarenski, written by Mary Logue
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Review of the Day

Theodore Seuss Geisel Award
Up, Tall and High by Ethan Long
G. P. Putnam’s Sons

Honors:
Let’s Go for a Drive! by Mo Willems
Hyperion/Disney
Highlighted in Curriculum Connections: Fun and Fresh: Books for Emergent Readers

Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons by Eric Litwin, created and illus. by James Dean
HarperCollins
Book Verdict Review

Rabbit & Robot: The Sleepover written and illus. by Cece Bell
Candlewick
Fuse #8: Review of the Day

(Laura Ingalls) Wilder Award
Katherine Paterson
Katherine Paterson Named National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature in 2010

Katherine the Great: There couldn’t be a better choice for our new kids’ book ambassador than Katherine Paterson

Andrew Carnegie Medal
Anna, Emma and the Condors
Produced by Katja Torneman
Book Verdict Review

Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal
Bomb: The Race to Build—and Steal—the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon by Steve Sheinkin
Flash Point/Roaring Brook
Curriculum Connections: Steve Sheinkin Writes a Thriller: An Interview with Steve Sheinkin

Honors:
Electric Ben: The Amazing Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin by Robert Byrd
Dial/Penguin Young Readers
Book Verdict Review

Moonbird: A Year on the Wind with the Great Survivor B95 by Phillip M. Hoose
Farrar
A Chair, a Fireplace and a Tea Cozy: Review

Jonathan Hunt’s assessment on Heavy Medal

Titanic: Voices from the Disaster by Deborah Hopkinson
Scholastic
Someday My Printz Will Come: Titanic: Voices from the Disaster (Is Not a Disaster)

Mildred L. Batchelder Award
My Family for the War by Anne C. Voorhoeve
Dial/Penguin Young Readers
Book Verdict Review

Honors:
A Game for Swallows: To Die, to Leave, to Return by Zeina Abirached, tr. by Edward Gauvin
Graphic Universe/Lerner
SLJ Pick of the Day

Son of a Gun, written and tr. by Anne de Graaf
Eerdmans
Book Verdict Review

May Hill Arbuthnot Honor Lecture Award
Andrea Davis Pinkney
Celebration Time: Black History Month by Andrea Davis Pinkney
Teacher Appreciation Week: Andrea Davis Pinkney’s Letter to Mr. Dwyer

Pura Belpré Awards
Author: Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
Simon & Schuster
SLJ Review

Honor:
The Revolution of Evelyn Serrano by Sonia Manzano
Scholastic
Book Verdict Review

Illustrator: Martín de Porres: The Rose in the Desert
Illus. by David Diaz, written by Gary D. Schmidt
Clarion

Michael L. Printz Award
In Darkness by Nick Lake
Bloomsbury
Pick of the Day

Honors:
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
Simon & Schuster
SLJ Review

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
Hyperion/Disney
A Chair, a Fireplace and a Tea Cozy: Review

Dodger by Terry Pratchett
HarperCollins Children’s Books
Someday My Printz Will Come: Review

The White Bicycle by Beverley Brenna
Red Deer Press

Odyssey Award
The Fault in Our Stars, written by John Green, narrated by Kate Rudd
Produced by Brilliance Audio
SLJ Review

Honors:
Artemis Fowl: The Last Guardian, produced by Listening Library, written by Eoin Colfer and narrated by
Nathaniel Parker

Ghost Knight, produced by Listening Library, written by Cornelia Funke and narrated by Elliot Hill

Monstrous Beauty, produced by Macmillian Audio, written by Elizabeth Fama and narrated by Katherine Kellgren

YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults
Bomb: The Race to Build—and Steal—the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon by Steve Sheinkin
Flash Point/Roaring Brook
Curriculum Connections: Steve Sheinkin Writes a Thriller: An Interview with Steve Sheinkin

Finalists:
Steve Jobs: The Man Who Thought Different by Karen Blumenthal
Feiwel & Friends
Curriculum Connections: Karen Blumenthal Connects the Dots: Interview

Moonbird: A Year on the Wind with the Great Survivor B95 by Phillip Hoose
Farrar
Heavy Medal: Black Hole and Moonbird

Titanic: Voices from the Disaster by Deborah Hopkinson
Scholastic
Someday My Printz Will Come

We’ve Got a Job: The 1963 Birmingham Children’s March by Cynthia Levinson
Peachtree Publishers
Practically Paradise: Nonfiction Monday

William C. Morris Award
Seraphina by Rachel Hartman
Random House
Someday My Printz Will Come: Seraphina

Finalists:
Wonder Show by Hannah Barnaby
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Books
A Chair, a Fireplace and a Tea Cozy

Love and Other Perishable Items by Laura Buzo
Knopf/Random House

After the Snow by S. D. Crockett
Feiwel and Friends
SLJ Review

The Miseducation of Cameron Post by emily m. danforth
Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins
Someday My Printz Will Come

Margaret A. Edwards Award:
Tamora Pierce for her “Song of the Lioness” series

Coretta Scott King Book Awards
Author: Hand in Hand: Ten Black Men Who Changed America by Andrea Davis Pinkney, illus. by Brian Pinkney
Hyperion/Disney
Books to Celebrate the Everyday Heroes of the Civil Rights Movement

Honors:
Each Kindness by Jacqueline Woodson, illus. by E. B. Lewis
Nancy Paulsen Books/Penguin Young Readers
Interview with Jacqueline Woodson

No Crystal Stair: A Documentary Novel of the Life and Work of Lewis Michaux, Harlem Bookseller by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson, illustrated by R. Gregory Christie
Carolrhoda Lab/Lerner
Heavy Medal

Illustrator: I, Too, Am America
illus. by Bryan Collier, written by Langston Hughes
Simon & Schuster

Honors:
H. O. R. S. E., illus. & written by Christopher Myers (listed in this interview highlighting the hottest books of Fall 2012)
Egmont USA
Included in Interview: JLG’s Susan Marson Talks About the Hottest Upcoming Books for Fall 2012

Ellen’s Broom, illus. by Daniel Minter, written by Kelly Starling Lyons
Putnam/Penguin Young Readers
Included in Black History Month 2012

I Have a Dream: Martin Luther King, Jr., illus. by Kadir Nelson, written by Martin Luther King, Jr. Schwartz & Wade/Random House (listed in this compilation of books for celebrating MLK Day
Included in Great Books for Celebrating Martin Luther King Day

Virginia Hamilton: Demetria Tucker
Practitioner Award for Lifetime achievement

Stonewall Book Award
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
Simon & Schuster
SLJ Review

Honors:
Drama by Raina Telgemeier
Graphix/Scholastic Inc.
Good Comics for Kids

Gone, Gone, Gone by Hannah Moskowitz
Simon Pulse/Simon & Schuster

October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard by Lesléa Newman
Candlewick
Interview with Lesléa Newman

Sparks: The Epic, Completely True Blue, (Almost) Holy Quest of Debbie, by S. J. Adams
Flux

Listed below are the SLJ reviews for the top prizes:

Newbery Medal
APPLEGATE, Katherine. The One and Only Ivan. illus. by Patricia Castelao. 305p. CIP. HarperCollins/Harper. Jan. 2012. Tr $16.99. ISBN 978-0-06-199225-4; ebook $9.99. ISBN 978-0-06-210198-3. LC 2011010034.
Gr 3-7—This tender tale of friendship and hope is narrated by a silverback gorilla living at The Big Top Mall, a shabby, circus-themed roadside attraction. For years, Ivan was passively content. He had his art, unlimited bananas, and his friends: Stella (an elephant), Bob (a stray dog), and Julia (a human child). Ivan’s eyes are finally opened to his deplorable surroundings when he loses a friend due to neglect. The last straw is when he witnesses the attraction’s owner abusing Ruby, a newly acquired baby elephant. Thus, Ivan is inspired to take action. With some help from his human friends, his dream of a better life for all the Big Top’s animals just might come true. The character of Ivan, as explained in an author’s note, is inspired by a real gorilla that lived through similar conditions before being adopted by Zoo Atlanta. Applegate makes a powerful statement about the treatment of animals—especially those living in captivity—and reminds readers that all creatures deserve a safe place to call home. Castelao’s delightful illustrations enhance this lovely story, and the characters will capture readers’ hearts and never let go. A must-have.—Alissa J. LeMerise, Oxford Public Library, MI

Caldecott Medal
KLASSEN, Jon. This Is Not My Hat. illus. by author. 40p. Candlewick. Oct. 2012. RTE $15.99. ISBN 978-0-7636-5599-0.
PreS-Gr 1–With this new creation, Klassen repeats the theme from I Want My Hat Back (Candlewick, 2011), but with a twist. The narrator here is the thief–a small, self-confident fish who has pilfered a little blue bowler from a big sleeping fish. He wastes no time or words in confessing his crime as he swims across the page announcing, “This hat is not mine. I just stole it.” He continues his narrative with no regrets, but with a bit of rationalizing (“It was too small for him anyway.”) as he swims to his hiding place, unaware that the big fish is in quiet pursuit. Readers, of course, are in on this little secret. When the two disappear into a spread filled with seaweed, the narration goes silent, and youngsters can easily surmise what happens as the big fish reemerges with the tiny blue bowler atop his head. Simplicity is key in both text and illustrations. The black underwater provides the perfect background for the mostly gray-toned fish and seaweed while the monochromatic palette strips the artwork down to essential, yet exquisite design. Movement is indicated with a trail of small white bubbles. This not-to-be-missed title will delight children again and again.–Carolyn Janssen, Public Library of Cincinnati & Hamilton County, Cincinnati, OH

Theodore Geisel Medal
LONG, Ethan. Up, Tall and High! illus. by author. unpaged. CIP. Putnam. Feb. 2012. RTE $15.99. ISBN 978-0-399-25611-0. LC 2011003291.
PreS-K—Long borrows from the Mo Willems school of minimalist humor in this early reader about a flock of funny birds trying to outdo one another. The three stories utilize repetition of very few words (“I am tall.” “You are not tall.” “I may not be tall. But I am not small”), but the accompanying illustrations greatly enrich the spare text with bright colors and charming cartoons, making this a fun first venture into reading alone. The book has one shortcoming: the pages are flimsy and do not lie flat, so the flaps catch when opened or closed, so longevity is definitely a concern. Otherwise, the silly birds and their games of one-upmanship are definitely giggle-worthy.—Alyson Low, Fayetteville Public Library, AR

Carnegie Medal
Anna, Emma and the Condors. DVD. 20 min. Green Planet Films. 2012. ISBN unavail. $49.
Gr 5 Up–Viewers will be captivated by this charming and gorgeously photographed look at the life of an environmental biologist and his family as they work to save the California Condor. Chris Parrish is the director of the Condor Project for the Peregrine Fund at Vermilion Cliffs National Park in Arizona, and his wife, Ellen, is a teacher for Roots and Shoots, an organization founded by Jane Goodall. They home school their two daughters, Anna and Emma, allowing the girls to work with them in their species conservation efforts. There is no story or plot to the film, and not a lot of scientific details either. Rather, the film showcases the stunning landscapes of the Vermillion Cliffs in Arizona, and offers many breathtaking images of condors—in flight, at rest, eating, and mating. The family is shown tracking the birds, taking blood samples, feeding them (not for the faint of heart, condors are scavengers and these eat dead calves), and in an emotional moment, releasing a young condor back into the wild. There are many images of the family hiking, camping and riding horses, while in voice-overs they discuss living with respect for the environment. Parrish is also shown singing several songs with his guitar. This short sketch might make a nice supplemental film for an environmental studies class.–Geri Diorio, Ridgefield Library, CT

Sibert Medal, YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction, Newbery Honor
SHEINKIN, Steve. Bomb: The Race to Build–and Steal–the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon. Roaring Brook/Neal Porter. Tr $19.99. ISBN 978-1-59643-487-5; ebook $9.99. ISBN 978-1-59643-861-3.
Gr 5 Up–“Harry Gold was right: This is a big story.” So begins this depiction of the “creation–and theft–of the deadliest weapon ever invented.” As he did in The Notorious Benedict Arnold (Roaring Brook, 2010), Sheinkin has again brought his superior talent for storytelling to bear in what is truly a gripping account of discovery, espionage, and revolutionary changes in both physics and the modern world. This fascinating tale, packed with a wide cast of characters, focuses mainly on three individuals: spy for the Soviets Harry Gold, leader of the Manhattan Project J. Robert Oppenheimer, and Knut Haukelid, who sabotaged German bomb efforts while working for the Norwegian resistance. Sheinkin skillfully combines lucid, conversational snapshots of the science behind the atomic bomb with a fast-paced narrative of the remarkable people who made it possible and attempted to steal it. Handsomely designed and loaded with archival photos and primary-source documents, the accessible volume lays out how the bomb was envisioned and brought to fruition. While the historical information and hard facts presented here will likely be new to the intended audience, they in no way overwhelm readers or detract from the thoroughly researched, well-documented account. It reads like an international spy thriller, and that’s the beauty of it.–Brian Odom, Pelham Public Library, AL

Batchelder Medal
VOORHOEVE, Anne C. My Family for the War. tr. from German by Tammi Reichel. Dial. p. 124.
Gr 7 Up—In 1938 Berlin, 10-year-old Ziska and her best friend run from classmates-turned-bullies who torment them for being Jewish, even though Ziska’s family converted in the last century and she knows nothing of the Jewish religion or culture. When her father is beaten during a brutal midnight raid on their apartment and imprisoned, Ziska earns a position on the kindertransport to England, where she begins a new life as Frances, foster daughter to an Orthodox London “family for the war.” In an engaging, honest voice, she relates her fears, triumphs, and revelations as she learns English and the rituals of Judaism, adapts to a new life, and copes with guilt about her growing love for her new family. She tries in vain to acquire permits for her parents to join her while they keep up a soon spotty, strained correspondence that brings increasingly heartbreaking news of those left behind. By war’s end, Frances, now 17, has experienced evacuation to the English countryside and another foster home, air raids, bomb shelters, and first love with page-turning immediacy despite the sense that the story is told by a much older, reflective Frances looking back. Events and facts are expertly woven into the girl’s emotional growth, and changing relationships—especially those with her complex, fading mother and differently complex foster mother—provide a rich exploration of identity and self. Like Frances, the mostly Jewish cast of secondary characters is varied, multidimensional, and sometimes unlikable. With a compelling main character and taut and insightful story line, this novel is sure to find no shortage of readers, and it adds a valuable perspective to collections of World War II fiction.—Riva Pollard, Prospect Sierra Middle School, El Cerrito, CA

Pura Belpré Author Award, Stonewall Medal, Printz Honor
SÁENZ, Benjamin Alire. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe. 358p. CIP. S & S. Feb. 2012. Tr $16.99. ISBN 978-1-4424-0892-0; ebook $9.99. ISBN 978-1-4424-0894-4. LC 2010033649.
Gr 9 Up-In the summer of 1987 in El Paso, TX, two 15-year-old loners meet when Dante offers to teach Ari to swim, and they have a laugh over their unusual names. Though polar opposites in most aspects other than age and Mexican heritage, the teens form an instant bond and become inseparable. This poetic novel takes Ari, brooding and quiet, and with a brother in prison, and Dante, open and intellectual, through a year and a half of change, discovering secrets, and crossing borders from which there is no return. Two incidents, one in which Ari saves Dante’s life and his family’s temporary move to Chicago, help Dante understand that he is gay and in love with his friend. Yet, Ari can’t cross that line, and not until Dante is hospitalized in a gay-bashing incident does he begin to realize the true depth of the love he has for him. With the help of his formerly distant, Vietnam-damaged father, Ari is finally able to shed his shame—the shame of his anger, of his incarcerated brother, of being different—and transition from boy to man. While this novel is a bit too literary at times for some readers, its authentic teen and Latino dialogue should make it a popular choice.—Betty S. Evans, Missouri State University, Springfield

Pura Belpré Illustrator Award
SCHMIDT, Gary D. Martín de Porres: The Rose in the Desert. illus. by David Diaz. 32p. CIP. Clarion. 2012. RTE $16.99. ISBN 978-0-547-61218-8. LC 2011025721.
Gr 2–4—Picture-book biographies of Catholic saints are usually limited to those best known, like Patrick, Francis, Joan of Arc, and Blessed Mother Teresa. Martín de Porres was the first black saint of the Americas, and he has a story as inspiring and evocative of Christian virtue as any other. Born the illegitimate son of a former slave and a Spanish conquistador in 1579 in Lima, Peru, he lived with his mother and sister in abject poverty until he was claimed by his father and eventually apprenticed to a surgeon and found to have healing powers that matched his great piety. He was accepted to be a servant at a Dominican monastery, with the explicit understanding that he, a mulatto, would never become a priest. He showed compassion for all people and animals and was said to have miraculous gifts. But it is his extreme humility that resonates with most biographers, including Schmidt, who tells the story of St. Martín’s life in simple and eloquent language, emphasizing his humble servitude and great empathy. Diaz’s multimedia illustrations are lush and beautiful, reinforcing the narrative and frequently using iconic images and stylized shapes that evoke stained glass. Some drawings of Martín, however, are inconsistent. His age occasionally seems to shift out of sequence, and the changing shape of his nose and eyes in particular results in some visual dissonance for young readers. Nonetheless, this is an artful and reverent portrait of a little-known figure.—Lisa Egly Lehmuller, St. Patrick’s Catholic School, Charlotte, NC

Odyssey Medal
The Fault in Our Stars (unabr.). 6 CDs. 7:19 hrs. Brilliance Audio. 2012. ISBN 978-1-4558-6987-9. $59.97.
Gr 9 Up–John Green’s compelling, engaging novel (Dutton, 2012) is about life, and love, and death. Hazel was diagnosed with terminal cancer at the age of 13. Three years later, she is still alive. However, her life is turned upside down when she meets Augustus Waters at a support group for teens with cancer. They embark on a relationship that has the potential to become an emotional grenade. Gus uses his “last wish” granted to sick children by the Genie Foundation to take Hazel to Amsterdam in order to meet Peter Van Houten, the author of her favorite book about a girl who has cancer. She believes there is more to the story and wants the author to give her additional information. Van Houten’s response is disappointing, but in the end Hazel allows herself to love Gus. Kate Rudd narrates in a relaxed style, perfectly voicing all of Green’s well-developed characters. This novel doesn’t pull any punches, and listeners’ emotions will run the gamut from laughing out loud to sobbing with joy or grief. A strong choice for young adult collections.–Elizabeth L. Kenyon, Merrillville High School, IN

Printz Medal

LAKE, Nick. In Darkness. 352p. Bloomsbury. 2012. Tr $17.99. ISBN 978-1-59990-743-7; ebook $9.99. ISBN 978-1-59990-820-5. LC 2011022350.
Gr 9 Up–Trapped in the rubble of Haiti’s massive 2010 earthquake, teenage Shorty desperately waits for rescue. While in darkness, events of his traumatic, violent life replay in his head. He is haunted by his father’s brutal murder, his twin sister’s disappearance, and the armed gang activity that has been his means of survival in Site Soléy (Cite Soleil), a very real and dangerous slum. As he faces death and struggles to understand the external forces that have shaped him, Shorty gradually feels the uplifting spiritual presence of revered slave liberator Toussaint L’Ouverture and draws strength and hope from the man’s extraordinary life, determination, and idealism. The pervasive Haitian voodoo belief in spirit transfer empowers Shorty and connects him with Touissant across time. In alternating chapters of “Now” and “Then,” Shorty’s and Toussaint’s stories unfold. The relentless oppression, poverty, violence, and instability of the country is vividly conveyed through Shorty’s stark, graphic narrative. Toussaint’s story provides historical background for the socioeconomic and political conflicts that continue today. As the author notes, he portrays the essential spirit and history of Touissant with some omissions and simplifications. For example, Touissant learned to read as a boy, and not late in life, but this factual inaccuracy does not diminish the account of his charisma and significance. The entangled actions of gangs and government, the complicated relationship between Haitians and foreign-aid organizations, and the rich mix of Creole and French patois provide insight and authenticity. A striking cast of characters, compelling tension as Shorty confronts his own death, and the reality and immediacy of Haiti’s precarious existence will captivate secondary readers.–Gerry Larson, formerly at Durham School of the Arts, NC

Coretta Scott King Book Awards
Author Award:
PINKNEY , Andrea Davis. Hand in Hand: Ten Black Men Who Changed America. illus. by Brian Pinkney. 244p. bibliog. chron. further reading. index. CIP. Disney/Jump at the Sun. 2012. Tr $19.99. ISBN 978-1-4231-4257-7. LC 2011051348.
Gr 5–8—This book is similar in scope to the author’s Let It Shine: Stories of Black Women Freedom Fighters (Harcourt, 2000). The subjects here include Benjamin Banneker, Frederick Douglass, Booker T. Washington, W.E.B. DuBois, A. Philip Randolph, Thurgood Marshall, Jackie Robinson, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Barack Obama, all introduced in the author’s characteristically lively prose (“Black students kept on keeping on with dog-eared textbooks and dog-tired feet”; Malcolm Little’s hair was transformed from “pretty-boy cotton-kink to slick-daddy bone-straight”). The distinct experiences that shaped each man are ably delineated-the childhood events, the hardships faced, the richly deserved victories won-and the results are, without exception, compelling. The large font size is perfect for the middle-grade audience, but too many blocks of unbroken text may turn away less-confident readers. Thankfully, Brian Pinkney’s magnificent portraits and spot art throughout each profile help to amplify each man’s story. A must-have for all libraries serving young people. Sam Bloom, Blue Ash Library, Cincinnati, OH

Illustrator Award:
HUGHES, Langston. I, Too, Am America . illus. by Bryan Collier. CIP. S & S. 2012. Tr $16.99. ISBN 978-1-4424-2008-3. LC 2011002879.
K-Gr 5—Hughes’s poem of burgeoning pride in one’s African American identity, written at the height of the Harlem Renaissance in 1925, is interpreted anew in this striking picture book.Collier has visualized the message of the sparely written poem, barely 60 words in length, through the lens of a Pullman porter. “I, too, sing America” proclaims the opening spread that depicts a passenger rail car whizzing by; then, “I am the darker brother” shows an African American young man in the porter’s uniform gazing squarely at readers through a faint, translucent overlay of the American flag, a recurring motif. As the porter cleans up the club car and examines the detritus—newspapers, magazines, blues, and jazz albums left by the train’s well-heeled passengers—he impulsively flings it all from the caboose, scattering this knowledge to those who will willingly learn from it. Wafting through time and space, these items fall into the hands of a young female field worker in the long-ago South as well as residents in a contemporary northern urban landscape. The poem’s powerful conclusion—”I, too, am America”—depicts a young boy on the subway with his mother, peering out the window through a readily visible flag toward his unknown but hopeful future. Collier’s signature mixed-media collages create bold, textured images that give tangible expression to the poet’s potent words. A memorable and multilayered volume for all libraries.—Kathleen Finn, St. Francis Xavier School, Winooski, VT

William C. Morris Award
HARTMAN, Rachel. Seraphina. Random. Tr $17.99. ISBN 978-0-375-86656-2; PLB $20.99. ISBN 978-0-375-96656-9; ebook $10.99. ISBN 978-0-375-89658-3. LC 2011003015.
Gr 7 Up–For nearly 40 years, the treaty between the humans of Goredd and the dragons of dragonkind has held strong. Humans must not enter dragonkind territory and dragons, upon entering human lands, must take their human shape, or saarantrai. In Goredd, Seraphina’s human father, a high offical, needs her to stay anonymous. The dark secret that she must hide is that her mother was a dragon. Because of her musical talents, Seraphina becomes Goredd’s music assistant, helping prepare for the anniversary celebration. Layers of clothing disguise the scales on her arms and stomach, but unlike dragons, her blood runs red, not silver. Also, to keep from having fainting spells in which she relives her deceased mother’s experiences, Seraphina must clear her head each night. She calls the figures in her vision grotesques, and each night, she must ensure all is calm in her mind-garden. When the decapitated body of Prince Rufus is found just days before the anniversary festivities, many humans are quick to accuse a dragon of breaking the pact. Seraphina’s grotesques begin acting strangely, and the whole court is investigating the murder. When the celebrations are in full swing, all hell breaks loose as the rogue dragon that killed the prince enters Goredd in his dragon form and attempts to take control. Seraphina must risk revealing her true identity (and that of her fellow hybrids) in an attempt to save the kingdom. Hartman creates a rich story layered with intriguing characters and descriptive settings. Seraphina is a complex and fully developed protagonist. Although long, this unique novel (left open for a sequel) will surely appeal to fans of Christopher Paolini’s “Eragon” books (Knopf) and wherever readers enjoy fantasies. Lauren Newman

Schneider Family Book Award
For Middle Grade Readers:
LEAN, Sarah. A Dog Called Homeless. 198p. HarperCollins/Katherine Tegen. 2012. Tr $16.99. ISBN 978-0-06-212220-9; ebook $9.99. ISBN 978-0-06-212222-3. LC 2011044628.
Gr 4–7—Cally Fisher hasn’t spoken for 31 days. As she explains in the prologue, “Talking doesn’t always make things happen, however much you want it to.” She knows that talking won’t bring her mother back to life or keep her dad from selling their home in exchange for a small apartment so what’s the point in saying anything. But when her mother appears one day wearing a bright red raincoat and the only other soul that sees her is a big scraggly dog, the girl knows she must find a way to convince her father that the dog is the only thing connecting them to her mother. But her father’s growing depression continues to separate the family and Cally struggles to keep her mother from becoming a distant memory. When she meets Sam, who lives downstairs, the friendship that forms between the blind boy and silent girl manages to reunite a family, and each character benefits from the bond. Truly a lesson in the power of love and loss, this story shows that learning how to listen is more important than what’s being said. This is a thought-provoking story that will speak to readers of all ages.—Cheryl Ashton, Amherst Public Library, OH

For Younger Readers:
ALEXANDER, Claire. Back to Front and Upside Down. illus. by author. 26p. Eerdmans. Sept. 2012. Tr $16. ISBN 978-0-8028-5414-8.
PreS-Gr 1–Stan, a small anthropomorphic puppy, faces a big problem–his class is making birthday cards for the principal, but he just can’t get the hang of writing. He is despondent until a friend suggests that he approach their teacher for help. Gathering up some courage, Stan approaches Miss Catnip and discovers that he’s not the only one having trouble. After “lots and lots and lots of practice,” Stan’s writing improves and he not only creates a great card, but learns that he should always ask for help when he is struggling. Alexander’s mostly full-page illustrations of Stan and his animal friends are bright and cheerful. Though cartoonish, they expressively depict the change in Stan’s emotions–from isolation and sadness to accomplishment and happiness. The story is a tad didactic, but it teaches a good lesson. Students should have no trouble sympathizing with Stan’s learning difficulties and cheer for his success.–Yelena Alekseyeva-Popova, formerly at Chappaqua Library, NY

The audience erupted in cheers Monday morning after “Animorphs” (Scholastic) author Katherine Applegate was named the winner of the Newbery Medal for her heartfelt and unforgettable story The One and Only Ivan (HarperCollins), and Jon Klassen was awarded the Caldecott Medal for This Is Not My Hat (Candlewick) at the American Library Association’s Youth Media Awards for 2012, which were announced during ALA‘s annual Midwinter Meeting in Seattle, WA. Another Klassen project, Mac Barnett’s picture book Extra Yarn (HarperCollins), was named a Caldecott Honor book.

Katherine Applegate

The Newbery for The One and Only Ivan, Applegate’s uniquely creative, fictional take on the true story of a silverback gorilla who once lived in glass enclosure in a shopping mall, surprised many attendees who had not shortlisted it for the win. Nevertheless, the book had many enthusiastic fans among the crowd in Seattle, who agreed that it was—and would continue to be—a hugely popular choice with kids.

California resident Applegate was visiting relatives in Virginia when she was surprised by the call from the Newbery committee this morning, only an hour and a half before the YMAs presentation began, she tells SLJ. ”I was stunned, totally delighted but speechless,” she says. “The speechlessness went on for a while, then I screamed, and my family marched in at that, and there were a lot of screams! Then we watched the webcast and it was great. It was fun to watch with no anxiety, because they had called me already.”

Applegate credits her win in part to a large community of online fans, especially on Twitter, who have been championing the book and who have conducted huge amounts of outreach to middle readers, including John Schumacher and The Nerdy Book Club. “I have gotten so much support from different communities,” she says. “They have helped tremendously in how visible the book was to readers.”

Adds Applegate, “It’s just surreal! I know what a lottery it is because there were so many good books this year. It’s a huge honor but it could have been any one of them.”

Jon Klassen

And although This Is Not My Hat was a Caldecott favorite going into the awards, “I was actually very, very surprised,” Klassen tells SLJ. “I had done a pretty good job of convincing myself not to think about it, so it came out of the blue. It’s such a big thing to think that you were going to get mentioned at all, (the dual win) didn’t register. I’m still getting used to the idea that people are looking at these books, much less giving them the distinction.”

The crowd was also ecstatic to learn that the Margaret A. Edwards Award, which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year, will be presented to Tamora Pierce for her significant and lasting contributions to YA literature via her “Song of the Lioness” series. The award is sponsored by SLJ.

Other big winners of the day were Bomb: The Race to Build—and Steal—the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon (Roaring Brook Press) by Steve Sheinkin, which scored the YALSA nonfiction award, the Sibert Informational Book Medal, and a Newbery Honor; and Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe (Simon & Schuster) by Benjamin Alire Sáenz, which also was selected three times: for the Stonewall Award, the Belpré Author Award, and a Printz Honor.

Although Sheinkin knew Bomb was a strong contender for the YALSA nonfiction award, he was “really surprised by the other awards—happily so,” he tells SLJ.

In fact, after the YALSA committee informed him of his win for the nonfiction award on Saturday night, he turned off his phone before the Sibert committee was able to reach him. ”They tried to call me many times last night,” he says, “but then they left a message. But that was cool, too.” (Now he has the message saved, he says.)

Sheinkin hopes his cross-category wins might signal a trend of growing popularity for exciting young adult nonfiction overall among kids.

“It’s really cool to break out of just the nonfiction category,” he says. “That’s my biggest thing—I’m a big proponent of history for kids, of nonfiction, but also trying to win over people who just want to read a good book. To prove to young readers that this kind of book can be fun also is a really big thing. A lot of kids know it (some kids are into history) but some kids are scared of it.”

Benjamin Alire Sáenz

Meanwhile, Sáenz, after hearing of his three wins across categories “had a frantic and beautiful morning, was in class all afternoon and then quietly celebrated by taking a walk in the desert,” he tells SLJ, adding that the Stonewall award was a “complete surprise” and the Printz honor left him “stunned.”

He notes, “the Belpré people called me the night before and I was absolutely thrilled. They were all on speakerphone and I could hear them screaming. They were very sweet and I didn’t know what to say. I don’t know that we as authors should expect awards; they are gifts to us. I get really choked up. I’m just grateful for the gifts. I would hope my mother raised a gracious man, who knows how to say thank you.”

He also notes that the book’s cross-category recognition is a testament to how well it was marketed by Simon & Schuster as well as the word of mouth of reviewers and librarians who recommended it. “They felt that everybody should read this book, they put it into everybody’s hands,” he says. “It takes a village to take the book out into the world. We had a great village.”

The prolific author—who writes poetry, children’s books, and adult novels in addition to YA literature—somehow found the time to write Aristotle and Dante while teaching bilingual creative writing and acting as MFA department chair at the University of Texas at El Paso. He is already deep into his next project, another dramatic YA novel. “I’m always writing,” he says.

* * *

Here is the list of winners of the ALA’s Youth Media Awards:

(John) Newbery Medal
The One and Only Ivan. Katherine Applegate. HarperCollins.

Honors:
Splendors and Glooms. Laura Amy Schlitz. Candlewick.

Bomb: The Race to Build—and Steal—the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon. Steve Sheinkin. Flash Point/Roaring Brook.

Three Times Lucky. Sheila Turnage. Dial/Penguin Young Readers.

(Randolph) Caldecott Medal
This Is Not My Hat. Jon Klassen. Candlewick Press.

Honors:
Creepy Carrots! Aaron Reynolds. Illus. by Peter Brown.
Simon & Schuster.

Extra Yarn. Mac Barnett. Illus. by Jon Klassen.
HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray.

Green. Laura Vaccaro Seeger. Neal Porter Books/Roaring Brook.

One Cool Friend. Toni Buzzeo. Illus. by David Small. Dial/Penguin Young Readers.

Sleep Like a Tiger. Mary Logue. Illus. by Pamela Zagarenski. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Theodore Seuss Geisel Award
Up, Tall and High. Ethan Long. G. P. Putnam’s Sons.

Honors:
Let’s Go for a Drive! Mo Willems. Hyperion/Disney.

Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons. Eric Litwin. Illus. by James Dean. HarperCollins.

Rabbit & Robot: The Sleepover. Cece Bell. Candlewick.

(Laura Ingalls) Wilder Award
Katherine Paterson

Andrew Carnegie Medal
Anna, Emma and the Condors. Produced by Katja Torneman.

Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal
Bomb: The Race to Build—and Steal—the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon. Steve Sheinkin. Flash Point/Roaring Brook

Honors:
Electric Ben: The Amazing Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin. Robert Byrd. Dial/Penguin Young Readers.

Moonbird: A Year on the Wind with the Great Survivor B95. Phillip M. Hoose. Farrar.

Titanic: Voices from the Disaster. Deborah Hopkinson. Scholastic.

Mildred L. Batchelder Award
My Family for the War. Anne C. Voorhoeve. Dial/Penguin Young Readers.

Honors:
A Game for Swallows: To Die, to Leave, to Return. Zeina Abirached.
Tr. by Edward Gauvin. Graphic Universe/Lerner.

Son of a Gun. Anne de Graaf. Eerdmans.

May Hill Arbuthnot Honor Lecture Award
Andrea Davis Pinkney

Pura Belpré Awards
Author: Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe. Benjamin Alire Sáenz.
Simon & Schuster.

Honor: The Revolution of Evelyn Serrano. Sonia Manzano. Scholastic.

Illustrator: Martín de Porres: The Rose in the Desert. Gary D. Schmidt. Illus. by David Diaz. Clarion.

Michael L. Printz Award
In Darkness. Nick Lake. Bloomsbury. 

Honors:
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe. Benjamin Alire Sáenz. Simon & Schuster.

Code Name Verity. Elizabeth Wein. Hyperion/Disney.

Dodger. Terry Pratchett. HarperCollins Children’s Books

The White Bicycle. Beverley Brenna. Red Deer Press.

Odyssey Award
The Fault in Our Stars. John Green. Narrated by Kate Rudd. Brilliance Audio.

Honors:
Artemis Fowl: The Last Guardian. Eoin Colfer. Narrated by Nathaniel Parker. Listening Library.

Ghost Knight. Cornelia Funke. Narrated by Elliot Hill. Listening Library.

Monstrous Beauty. Elizabeth Fama. Narrated by Katherine Kellgren. Macmillian Audio.

YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults
Bomb: The Race to Build—and Steal—the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon. Steve Sheinkin
Flash Point/Roaring Brook

Finalists:
Steve Jobs: The Man Who Thought Different. Karen Blumenthal. Feiwel & Friends.

Moonbird: A Year on the Wind with the Great Survivor B95. Phillip Hoose. Farrar

Titanic: Voices from the Disaster. Deborah Hopkinson. Scholastic.

We’ve Got a Job: The 1963 Birmingham Children’s March. Cynthia Levinson. Peachtree Publishers.

William C. Morris Award
Seraphina. Rachel Hartman. Random House.

Finalists:
Wonder Show. Hannah Barnaby. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Books.

Love and Other Perishable Items. Laura Buzo. Knopf/Random House.

After the Snow. S. D. Crockett. Feiwel and Friends.

The Miseducation of Cameron Post. emily m. danforth. Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins

Margaret A. Edwards Award
Tamora Pierce for her “Song of the Lioness” series

Coretta Scott King Book Awards
Author: Hand in Hand: Ten Black Men Who Changed America. Andrea Davis Pinkney. Illus. by Brian Pinkney. Hyperion/Disney.

Honors: Each Kindness. Jacqueline Woodson. Illus. by E. B. Lewis.
Nancy Paulsen Books/Penguin Young Readers.

No Crystal Stair: A Documentary Novel of the Life and Work of Lewis Michaux, Harlem Bookseller 
Vaunda Micheaux Nelson. Illustrated by R. Gregory Christie. Carolrhoda Lab/Lerner.

Illustrator: I, Too, Am America. Langston Hughes. Illus. by Bryan Collier. Simon & Schuster.

Honors: H. O. R. S. E.. Christopher Myers. Egmont USA.

Ellen’s Broom. Kelly Starling Lyons. Illus. by Daniel Minter. Putnam/Penguin Young Readers.

I Have a Dream: Martin Luther King, Jr. Ilus. by Kadir Nelson. Schwartz & Wade/Random House.

Virginia Hamilton: Demetria Tucker
Practitioner Award for Lifetime achievement

Stonewall Book Award
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe. Benjamin Alire Sáenz. Simon & Schuster.

Honors:
Drama. Raina Telgemeier. Graphix/Scholastic Inc.

Gone, Gone, Gone. Hannah Moskowitz. Simon Pulse/Simon & Schuster.

October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard. Lesléa Newman. Candlewick.

Sparks: The Epic, Completely True Blue, (Almost) Holy Quest of Debbie. S. J. Adams. Flux.

Schneider Family Book Award
Teen: Somebody, Please Tell Me Who I Am. Harry Mazer and Peter Lerangis. Simon & Schuster.

Middle Grade: A Dog Called Homeless. Sarah Lean. HarperCollins/Katherine Tegen Book.

Children: Back to Front and Upside Down! Claire Alexander. Eerdmans.

Watch Nathan Water’s video on textbook censorship, a book banning for the modern era. Nathan’s short film is one of the semifinalists in the National Coalition Against Censorship‘s 2012 Youth Free Expression Project Film Contest.

School Library Journal

Over a 3-week period, our high-powered panel of 15 judges—including some of the world’s top writers for children and teens—will each read two titles and determine which book advances to the next round. SLJ will post these judges’ carefully considered decisions daily, and announce the grand prize winner on April 1. The judges’ identities will be revealed beginning on Wednesday, February 6.

BOB began in 2009 as the brainchild of educators Monica Edinger and Roxanne Feldman of the Dalton School in New York City, and Jonathan Hunt, a school librarian in Modesto, CA. The literary smack-down was inspired by the Morning News’s Tournament of Books, a competition that features the previous year’s best novels for adults. Over the years, many leading authors of kids’ books have taken part in BOB, including Lois Lowry, M. T. Anderson, and national ambassadors for young people’s literature Jon Scieszka, Katherine Paterson, and Walter Dean Myers.

We’re just a few days away from the most important announcement in the world of children’s literature. Awarded every year by the American Library Association, honors like the Newbery and Caldecott Medals are highly coveted by kid lit authors and illustrators. And while libraries all over the country have organized mock awards programs in recent months where participants choose their favorite books as possible Newbery and Caldecott winners, not much has been heard about the other top prizes that will bestowed early on January 28. School Library Journal editors and contributors took a stab at naming a few titles that might just win one of these—lesser publicized, yet still highly sought after—Youth Media Awards.

The Coretta Scott King Awards are given annually to one outstanding African-American author and to one African-American illustrator of books for children and young adults who demonstrate an appreciation of African-American culture and universal human values.

“Two possibilities for the Coretta Scott King illustrator award—for their sheer stunningness and timeliness—are Shane W. Evans for his We March (Roaring Brook), and Kadir Nelson for his artistic representation of Martin Luther King Jr.’s I Have a Dream speech (Random),” effusively says Joy Fleishhacker, former SLJ book review editor and frequent contributor.

For the author award, Daryl Grabarek, editor of SLJ’s Curriculum Connections newsletter and SLJ’s “Touch & Go” blog, has great hopes for Vaunda Micheaux Nelson’s No Crystal Stair: A Novel in Documents, Based on the Life and Work of Lewis Michaux, Harlem Bookseller, illustrated by R. Gregory Christie (Carolrhoda). “This stunner is a lens onto New York City and African-American history, but so much more, including a look at feisty individual whose life was changed by his books, and whose work in turn, helped others realize their dreams,” she says.

Already a Boston Globe-Horn Book Award winner, it could be a shoe-in for a Coretta Scott King—and possibly even a Newbery, Grabarek notes.

The Odyssey Award is given to the producer of the best audiobook for children and/or young adults, available in English in the United States. Phyllis Levy Mandell, SLJ managing editor and Multimedia Review editor, has her heart set on the audiobook versions of Libba Bray’s The Diviners (Listening Library) or Laura Amy Schlitz’s Splendors and Gloom (Recorded Books). Both titles are serious contenders, she says.

The Pura Belpré Awards are presented to one Latino/Latina writer and one Latino/Latina illustrator whose work best portrays, affirms, and celebrates the Latino cultural experience in outstanding works of literature for children and youth.

Shelley Diaz, assistant editor of SLJ’s Book Review anticipates that narrative award will go to either Guadalupe McCall Garcia for her Odyssey retelling, Summer of the Mariposas (Lee & Low) or Margarita Engle’s novel in verse The Wild Book (Houghton Harcourt), both past Belpré winners. Diaz adds, however, that The Revolution of Evelyn Serrano (Scholastic), written by Sonia Manzano (best known as Sesame Street’s “Maria”) might surprise everyone.

The Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal is awarded to the author(s) and illustrator(s) of the most distinguished informational book published in the United States in English.

SLJ Executive Editor Rick Margolis and Contributing Editor Rocco Staino both think that Steve Sheinkin’s Bomb (Roaring Brook) could take this top nonfiction award. Barbara Kerley’s Those Rebels, John & Tom (Scholastic) also made Staino’s contender list.

Mahnaz Dar, editorial assistant of SLJ’s Book Review, is going the slithery slimy route, choosing Nic Bishop Snakes (Scholastic) for the Sibert. “Bishop also deserves some kudos for his dedication—he was actually bitten several times while photographing his subjects,” she says. “How many nonfiction writers can boast about bite marks in the service of their craft?”

The Schneider Family Book Award is presented to an author or illustrator for a book that embodies an artistic expression of the disability experience for child and adolescent audiences.

The title that automatically comes to mind when discussing this award, hand down, is Wonder by R. J. Palacio (Random), Grabarek says.  An SLJ Best Book of 2012, the touching middle grade novel has tugged kids’ heartstrings since its publication date. Grabarek also chose it as her school library’s book club pick; now there’s a waiting list read it, with more copies on order. “The writing and characterizations are superb, and there’s a lot here for kids to ponder and talk about—which they’re eager to do,” she argues.

Staino also says Jepp, Who Defied the Stars (Hyperion) by Katherine Marsh might have a shot.

The Stonewall Book Award recognizes works with exceptional merit relating to the gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender experience.

Diaz and Dar are in agreement when it comes to the novel that will dominate this category: A. S. King’s Ask the Passengers (Little, Brown). “It captures the voice of a smart, sensitive teen perfectly,” says Dar. Diaz adds, “This novel is not only about romantic love, but loves of all kinds: for your family, for your friends, for even strangers. Most importantly, it’s about loving yourself, even though you’re still not sure who that self is yet.”

Other SLJ favorites for the category include two debut works, E. M. Kokie’s Personal Effects (Candlewick) and Emily M. Danforth’s The Miseducation of Cameron Post (HarperCollins). Chelsey Philpot, SLJ’s associate editor of Book Review, is crossing her fingers that the latter will pull ahead for the win.

The Theodore Seuss Geisel Award goes to the author(s) and illustrator(s) of the most distinguished American book for beginning readers published in English in the United States

Mo Willems usually walks away with this prize, and his Let’s Go for a Drive! (Hyperion) just might take it again this year, staffers say. But there are a few fervent fans for beloved author/illustrator Kevin Henkes. “I can’t think of a more charming introduction to reading than Penny and Her Doll. Penny is an endearing, appealing character whom children will adore,” shares Dar.

Fleishhacker can’t decide between the two. “I really like both of these titles for their solid writing, the way that the artwork and the narrative work in harmony to tell the story, their originality, and the way that they are both entertaining and extremely accessible for beginning readers,” she says. “Both of these titles will encourage and stand up to repeated reads—certainly an essential element for a beginning reader.” Diaz hopes that the dark horse, Sonya Hartnett’s pitch-perfect Sadie and Ratz (Candlewick) will be the last easy reader left standing.

Stay tuned to the live streaming webcast announcements on Monday, January 28. Or check our Youth Media Award coverage via Twitter and SLJ.com.

“This project highlights that the library is not just about access to information, but the place in the community where teenagers can become savvy consumers of news and information in all its formats,” says Library Director Ramiro S. Salazar.

Over the summer, participating teens in San Antonio will work with librarians, journalists, and news ethicists to learn and to create materials that will be shared online. The initiative is funded by the Open Society Foundations and administered by the ALA’s Office of Intellectual Freedom.

Training for the kids will be led by the News Literacy Project Inc. The library has also partnered with Nowcast SA to serve as the initiative’s local new media/journalism component.

Recruitment of interested teens will begin in the spring.

“The San Antonio Public Library is excited to bring this national program to San Antonio,” Salazar says. ‘[It’s] a tremendous privilege and we look forward to being a part of this. I thank the ALA for this honor and I congratulate the Teen Services department for creating a submission worthy of this distinction.”

Presented since 1968, the Taylor awards encourage the publication and widespread use of quality Judaic literature. Gold medals, the top awards, are presented in the three categories, with Honor Books awarded silver medals, and Notable Books also being named in each age category.

Sydney Taylor Honor Books
For Younger Readers
Zayde Comes to Live. Sheri Sinykin. Ilus. by Kristina Swarner. Peachtree Publishers.
The Elijah Door: A Passover Tale. Linda Leopold Strauss. Illus. by Alexi Natchev. Holiday House.

For Older Readers
The Wooden Sword: A Jewish Folktale from Afghanistan. Ann Redisch Stampler. Illus. by Carol Liddiment. Albert Whitman & Co.

For Teen Readers
Beyond Courage: The Untold Story of Jewish Resistance During the Holocaust. Doreen Rappaport. Candlewick Press.

Sydney Taylor Notable Books
For Younger Readers
Sadie and the Big Mountain. Jamie Korngold. Illus. by Julie Fortenberry. Lerner/Kar-Ben.
The Schmutzy Family. Madelyn Rosenberg. Illus. by Paul Meisel. Holiday House.
A Song for My Sister. Lesley Simpson. Illus. by Tatjana Mai-Wyss. Random House.
Speak Up, Tommy! Jacqueline Dembar Greene. Illus. by Deborah Melmon. Lerner/Kar-Ben.
A Sweet Passover. Lesléa Newman. Illus. by David Slonim. Abrams/Amulet.

For Older Readers
Hereville: How Mirka Met a Meteorite. Barry Deutsch. Abrams/Amulet.
Looking for Me. Betsy R. Rosenthal. Houghton Mifflin.
Sami’s Sleepaway Summer. Jenny Myerhoff. Scholastic.
Small Medium at Large. Joanne Levy. Bloomsbury.
Whole Story of Half a Girl. Veera Hiranandani. Random House/Delacorte.

For Teens
The Last Song. Eva Wiseman. Tundra Books.
Now. Morris Gleitzman. Henry Holt.
Rachel’s Secret. Shelly Sanders. Second Story Press.

The awards, which memorialize Sydney Taylor, author of the classic All-of-a-Kind Family series, will be presented at the Association of Jewish Libraries Conference in Houston this June.

BEST JUVENILE FICTION
Fake Mustache: Or, How Jodie O’Rodeo and Her Wonder Horse (and Some Nerdy Kid) Saved the U.S. Presidential Election from a Mad Genius Criminal Mastermind. Tom Angleberger. Abrams/Amulet Books.

13 Hangmen. Art Corriveau. Abrams/Amulet Books.

The Quick Fix. Jack D. Ferraiolo. Abrams/Amulet Books.

Spy School. Stuart Gibbs. Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.

Three Times Lucky. Sheila Turnage. Penguin/Dial Books for Young Readers.

BEST YOUNG ADULT FICTION
Emily’s Dress and Other Missing Thing. Kathryn Burak. Macmillan/Roaring Brook Press.

The Edge of Nowhere. Elizabeth George. Penguin/Viking.

Crusher. Niall Leonard. Random House/Delacorte.

Amelia Anne is Dead and Gone. Kat Rosenfield. Penguin/Dutton.

Code Name Verity. Elizabeth Wein. Disney/Hyperion.

The Edgar® Awards will be presented to the winners at the group’s 67th Gala Banquet May 2, 2013, at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, New York City.

HARTMAN, Rachel. Seraphina. Random, 2012. ISBN 9780375966569. JLG Level: FH: Fantasy/Science Fiction. High (Grades 9-12).

Newcomer Rachel Hartman brings an exciting dragon adventure to the list of possible contenders. Already a winner on numerous best lists, Seraphina is a fantasy novel about a half-dragon heroine who lives in a land where a treaty was made with the dragons 40 years ago. When the prince is found beheaded, villagers are quick to blame the powerful creatures. Seraphina must risk revealing her own identity in order to save the kingdom from those who wish the peaceable agreement to end. Romance, political thriller, mystery, and coming-of-age genres combine in this high fantasy.

Leaving the ending open for a sequel, readers of all kinds will devour this new addition to the star-studded year.

KELLY, Jacqueline. Return to the Willows. illus. by Clint G. Young. Holt. 2012. ISBN 9780805094138. JLG Level: A+ : Intermediate Readers (Grades 3-5).

Over a hundred years after its original publication, Kenneth Grahame’s Wind in the Willows (Methuen, 1908) gets a sequel. Written in an amazingly-similar style, Kelly brings back some of our favorite characters in one hilarious adventure after the other. Supplemented by footnotes to translate the English language into American, readers will cheer when Toad is saved once again, and worry as his friends encounter trouble after trouble. New characters enter the Willows (Toad’s nephew) and a once-enemy (Sammy the weasel). The whole story leads to a rousing and satisfying conclusion. Young’s gorgeous illustrations complement the tale.

Kelly begins with an admonishment to read the original before you start. Check your shelves to be sure you have it for your students who will certainly want to read it after they read Kelly’s homage―if not before.

LIN, Grace. Starry River of the Sky. Little, Brown. 2012. ISBN 9780316125956. JLG Level: A+ : Intermediate Readers (Grades 3-5).

A companion to Where the Mountain Meets the Moon (Little, Brown, 2009), Starry River of the Sky begins with a runaway boy who finds work in a village inn. Rendi is harboring secret troubles, but he seems to be the only one who notices that the moon is missing from the village’s sky. He begins to piece things together―missing moon, and also missing sons. When a mysterious guest visits, Rendi joins in her nightly storytelling, and he finds a way to make peace and restore the things that are lost.

Beautiful illustrations, stories-within-stories, and a flowing narrative make Starry River a standout. Though fans of the first work may jump at the chance to read Lin’s latest, newcomers will want to read this one too. Perfect for reading aloud.

MACLACHLAN, Patricia. Kindred Souls. HarperCollins/Katherine Tegen Bks. 2012. ISBN 9780060522988. JLG Level: A : Intermediate Readers (Grades 3-5).

Long known for her heart-wrenching stories, MacLachlan doesn’t disappoint with her newest prairie story. Eighty-eight-year-old Billy has a special bond with his ten-year-old grandson, Jake. Every day they walk the farm where Billy grew up. “Kindred souls, we are,” he says. One day a stray dog makes himself at home with Billy―just about the time that he gets sick. Before he goes to the hospital, Jake promises to rebuild his grandfather’s sod house. The whole family joins in the project, binding them together and granting Billy’s request.

Though the sad ending is inevitable, the magic of the dog’s appearance and the joy found in rebuilding the sod house keep the story from being too painful for young readers. MacLachlan gives the reader hope.

For ideas about how to use these books and links to supportive sites, check out the Junior Library Guild blog, Shelf Life.

Junior Library Guild is a collection development service that helps school and public libraries acquire the best new children’s and young adult books. Season after season, year after year, Junior Library Guild book selections go on to win awards, collect starred or favorable reviews, and earn industry honors. Visit us at www.JuniorLibraryGuild.com.

Each Kindness, a poignant story about the big impact of small acts of kindness, was edited by Nancy Paulsen and published in the United States in 2012 by Nancy Paulsen Books / Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

Woodson is the sixteenth winner of the annual award from the CCBC, a library of the School of Education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Established in 1998, the Charlotte Zolotow Award honors the work of Charlotte Zolotow, a distinguished children’s book editor for 38 years with Harper Junior Books, and author of more than 70 picture books, including Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present (Harper, 1962) and William’s Doll (Harper, 1972). Ms. Zolotow attended the University of Wisconsin in Madison from 1933 to 1936 on a writing scholarship.

Flabbersmashed About You was written by Rachel Vail, illustrated by Yumi Heo, edited by Liz Szabla, and published by Feiwel and Friends / Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group. Me and Momma and Big John was written by Mara Rockliff, illustrated by William Low, edited by Karen Lotz, and published by Candlewick Press. Sleep Like a Tiger was written by Mary Logue, illustrated by Pamela Zagarenski, edited by Ann Rider, and published by Houghton Mifflin.

The Zolotow Award committee has also cited nine picture book titles as Highly Commended: Auntie Yang’s Great Soybean Picnic, written by Ginnie Lo and illustrated by Beth Lo (Lee & Low Books); Helen’s Big World: The Life of Helen Keller, written by Doreen Rappaport and illustrated by Matt Tavares (Disney / Hyperion); Monet Paints a Day, written by Julie Danneberg and illustrated by Caitlin Heimerl (Charlesbridge); No Go Sleep! written by Kate Feiffer and illustrated by Jules Feiffer (A Paula Wiseman Book / Simon & Schuster); Oh, No! written by Candace Fleming and illustrated by Eric Rohmann (Schwartz & Wade); Spike, the Mixed-up Monster, written by Susan Hood and illustrated by Melissa Sweet (A Paula Wiseman Book / Simon & Schuster); Tea Cakes for Tosh, written by Kelly Starling Lyons and illustrated by E. B. Lewis (Putnam); Underground, written and illustrated by Denise Fleming (Beach Lane); and We March, written and illustrated by Shane W. Evans (A Neal Porter Book / Roaring Brook Press).

The Members of the 2013 Zolotow Award committee were: Merri Lindgren, chair (Librarian, Cooperative Children’s Book Center, Madison, Wisconsin); Amy Alt (Early Childhood Specialist, 4-C, Community Coordinated Child Care, Madison, Wisconsin); Lynn Montague (Youth Services Librarian, Sun Prairie Public Library, Sun Prairie, Wisconsin); Duy Nguyen (Teacher, Franklin Elementary School, Madison, Wisconsin); and Kristine Wildner (Librarian, Holy Apostles School, New Berlin, Wisconsin).