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Hot off the press (ala announcements) -- here are the Newbery, Caldecott,
Coretta Scott King, etc. Awards for 1999. Enjoy! Thanks for all the e-mail
messages. I'm much better now and doing needlepoint (it's mindless). Sybil
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Contact: Joyce Kelly or Linda Wallace
at the Pennsylvania Convention Center
215-418-5269, 5268 or 5270
After Feb. 2, call 312-280-5043 or 5042
ALA News Release
For Immediate Release
February 1, 1999=20
American Library Association
announces 1999=20
Newbery, Caldecott medals,
other major awards
PHILADELPHIA - Winners of the 1999 Newbery and
Caldecott awards - the most prestigious awards in
children's literature - are Louis Sachar, author of "Holes,"
and Mary Azarian, illustrator of "Snowflake Bentley."=20
The Newbery and Caldecott medals and other awards
were announced today at the American Library
Association's 1999 Midwinter Meeting in Philadelphia.
Considered the "Academy Awards" of children's book
publishing, the Newbery and Caldecott medals honor
outstanding writing and illustration of works published in
the U.S. during the previous year.=20
Sachar's "Holes," published by Frances Foster Books /
Farrar Straus and Giroux, tells the story of Stanley
Yelnats. The heir to his family's curse of bad luck,
Stanley is convicted of a crime he didn't commit. He
serves his sentence at Camp Green Lake, a dry, flat
wasteland where the warden assigns each inmate the task
of digging one deep hole every day. Hole by hole,
Stanley and his friend Zero, dig their destiny.=20
Committee Chair Virginia McKee said, "'Holes' is
masterfully unified in character, setting and theme. As
timeless and as outrageously funny as a tall tale, 'Holes'
ultimately charts the heroic journey of two very real
boys."=20
"Snowflake Bentley," winner of the Caldecott Medal for
the most distinguished American picture book, was
published by Houghton Mifflin Company. The book
takes children back to the days when farmers worked
with ox and sled and cut the dark with lantern light. It
introduces Wilson Bentley, a boy who loved snow more
than anything in the world and is determined that one day
his camera would capture the extraordinary and unique
beauty of snowflakes.=20
Committee Chair Barbara Barstow said, "'Snowflake
Bentley' has a beautiful and thoughtful design, a poetic
and informative text, distinguished illustrations, universal
appeal and resonance. Mary Azarian, a Vermont artist
who loves snow as much as Wilson Bentley, has created
strong and skillfully carved woodcuts that portray
sensible, sturdy characters and a timeless rural
landscape."=20
One Newbery Honor Book was chosen. Richard Peck
received the distinction for "A Long Way from Chicago,"
published by Dial Books for Young Readers.=20
The Caldecott Committee cited four Honor Book
illustrators. They are: Brian Pinkney for "Duke Ellington:
The Piano Prince and His Orchestra," written by Andrea
Davis Pinkney and published by Hyperion Books for
Children; David Shannon for " No, David!" published by
The Blue Sky Press, an imprint of Scholastic, Inc.; Uri
Shulevitz for "Snow," published by Farrar Straus Giroux;
and Peter S=EDs for "Tibet Through the Red Box," published
by Frances Foster Books/Farrar Straus Giroux.=20
Coretta Scott King Awards=20
The winner of this year's Coretta Scott King Author
Award is Angela Johnson for "Heaven," published by
Simon & Schuster. The Coretta Scott King Illustrator
Award goes to Michele Wood for "i see the rhythm,"
published by Children's Book Press.=20
The King Awards, which this year celebrate a 30th
anniversary, honor African American authors and
illustrators of outstanding books for children and young
adults -- fiction or nonfiction -- that demonstrate
sensitivity to the true worth and value of all people.=20
In "Heaven," a teenage girl's life is altered by shattering
truths that lead her to question the endearing and secure
family relationships that she enjoys. Unforeseen
circumstances thrust her into a state of confusion when
she learns that her parents are not her birth parents.=20
King Award Jury Chair Deborah Taylor said, "The
author's compelling first-person narrative is a finely tuned
vehicle for an engaging protagonist who speaks with
refreshing candor typical of adolescence. Powerful
characters and a precise story line give a resonant voice
to a credible plot and provocative theme. Johnson's fluid
writing is an invitation for the reader to deepen an
appreciation for the universal search for self identity."=20
"i see the rhythm" is a multi-layered history of African
American music that celebrates the far-reaching impact of
this art form. The rich text includes words from songs of
the various eras, definitions of musical styles and valuable
chronological time lines.=20
"Vibrant, expressionistic paintings blend with innovative
fonts and creative page design to enrich this visual
chronicle of African-American music from the drum beats
of Africa to stirring gospel to the contemporary rhythms
of fun, rap and hip hop," Taylor said.=20
The King Committee selected three Author Honor
Books: "Jazmin's Notebook," by Nikki Grimes,
published by Dial Books; "Breaking Ground, Breaking
Silence: The Story of New York's African Burial
Ground," by Joyce Hansen and Gary McGowan,
published by Henry Holt and Company; and "The Other
Side: Shorter Poems," by Angela Johnson, published by
Orchard Books.=20
The committee selected three King Illustrator Honor
Books: "I Have Heard of A Land," illustrated by Floyd
Cooper and published by Joanna Cotler Books, an
Imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers; "The Bat Boy & His
Violin," illustrated by E.B. Lewis, published by Simon &
Schuster Books for Young Readers; and "Duke Ellington:
The Piano Prince and His Orchestra," illustrated by Brian
Pinkney, written by Andrea Davis Pinkney and published
by Hyperion Books for Children.=20
Margaret A. Edwards Award=20
The 1999 winner of the Margaret A. Edwards Award for
lifetime achievement is popular science fiction writer
Anne McCaffrey.=20
The Margaret Edwards Award, established in 1988,
honors an author's lifetime contribution in writing books
of enduring popularity with teenagers. The award is
sponsored by School Library Journal and is
administered by ALA's Young Adult Library Services
Association. Criteria include literary quality and
popularity with young adults.=20
McCaffrey is the author of many popular books including
the Dragonriders of Pern Series, which includes,
"Dragonflight," "Dragonquest" and "White Dragon," from
Del Rey Publishers. She is the author of "The Ship Who
Sang," from Del Rey. She wrote the Harper Hall Trilogy:
"Dragonsong," "Dragonsinger" and "Dragondrums,"
published by Bantam.=20
Committee Chair Jana Fine said, "Anne McCaffrey's
books have become science fiction classics and have
impressed young adult readers for 30 years. Although set
in imaginary worlds, McCaffrey's focus on the personal
and emotional needs of human beings mirrors the quest of
today's teens to find their own place in society."=20
Mildred L. Batchelder Award=20
Dial Books for Young Readers is the recipient of the
1999 Mildred L. Batchelder Award for "Thanks to My
Mother." The award is given for the best children's book
first published in a foreign language in a foreign country
and subsequently translated into English for publication in
the United States.=20
Originally published in Hebrew and translated into
German and then into English, "Thanks to My Mother"
was written by Schoschana Rabinovici, edited by Cindy
Kane and translated by James Skofield.=20
In "Thanks to My Mother," 8-year-old Schoschana
Rabinovici recounts her harrowing childhood experiences
from the time that the German Army invades her home in
Lithuania to her liberation from a concentration camp by
the Russian Army at the end of World War II. It is her
mother's indomitable spirit and awe-inspiring
steadfastness that rescues them both from the
Holocaust's shadow of death.=20
The Batchelder Committee chose one Honor Book.
Viking receives the distinction for "Secret Letters From 0
to 10," originally published in French, written by Susie
Morgenstern, edited by Jill Davis and translated by Gill
Rosner.=20
Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in
Children's Video=20
Producer Frank Moynihan is the winner of the 1999
Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Children's Video for
"The First Christmas." The award, now in its ninth year,
honors an outstanding American video production for
children released during the previous year.=20
"The First Christmas" was directed by Linsay van Blerk
and distributed by billy budd films, inc. Moynihan has
produced and distributed over 50 films and videos. Using
clay animation, the video tells the well-known story of the
birth of Jesus. Narrated by Christopher Plummer,
accompanied by traditional Christmas music, this
rendition is enhanced by colloquial dialogue and delightful
touches of humor.=20
May Hill Arbuthnot Lecture Award=20
Hazel Rochman, assistant editor, books for youth, for
Booklist, the review magazine of the American Library
Association, has been selected to deliver the May Hill
Arbuthnot Lecture in spring 2000.=20
Each year, an individual of distinction in the field of
children's literature is selected to deliver the lecture, a
paper prepared by the recipient that will make a
significant contribution to children's literature. Rochman,
noted critic and reviewer, was born and raised in South
Africa under apartheid and worked there as a journalist
until she left the country in 1963. A former teacher and
school librarian, she is an ardent advocate for all people
to explore and understand other cultures.=20
Rochman received the 1994 G.K. Hall Award for
Library Literature for her book "Against Borders:
Promoting Books for a Multicultural World."=20
For more award information, see the Association for
Library Service to Children's website: www.ala.org/alsc/.
Copyright =A9 1999, American Library Association.=20
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Inside News=
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