From left: Ann E. Burg, Caron Levis, Kobi Yamada, Susan Hood, Joan Bauer, Sally Wern Comport. Photo by Rocco Staino

  Announced at the 68th annual Christoper Awards gala in New York City, the six winning books for young people covered dealing with loss; facing problems head-on; the trials of an enslaved person; a world-renowned orchestra using instruments made of recycled trash; grappling with feelings of inadequacy; and a youngster sidelined from baseball due to a weak heart who restores a town’s morale. They are: Ada’s Violin: The Story of the Recycled Orchestra of Paraguay by Susan Hood. illus. by Sally Wern Comport. (S. & S.) Baby Wren and the Great Gift by Sally Lloyd-Jones. illus. by Jen Corace. (Zonderkidz) Ida, Always by Caron Levis. illus. by Charles Santoso. (S. & S.) Soar by Joan Bauer. (Penguin) Unbound by Ann E. Burg. (Scholastic Press) What Do You Do With a Problem? by Kobi Yamada. illus. by Mae Besom. (Compendium) The Christopher Awards were created in 1949 to celebrate work that “affirms the highest values of the human spirit.”