Read On!

Mrs. Farquharson’s musings about books for children and young adults

2020 Caldecott Medal

February7

The Undefeated by Kwame Alexander, illustrated by Kadir Nelson (Versify)

The Undefeated was awarded the 2020 Caldecott Medal for artistry in the most distinguished American picture book. Distinguished is an apt adjective for this particular title. The first time I read this book, it took my breath away. The pictures complement Kwame Alexander’s powerful poem which makes up the text. The Caldecott Medal is given to Nelson for his excellence as the illustrator. Two other committees also recognized the brilliance of the book. Nelson received the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Book Award. The Newbery Committee cited it as one of the Honor Books which recognized Kwame Alexander’s writing.

There are so many superlatives that are being used to describe this book in the media. The Undefeated is worth every one of them.

This poem is an ode, as Kwame writes, to “the dreamers and doers.” Those who beat odds, stared down fear, made this nation better.

Kadir Nelson is an illustrator whom I admire. He is an artist whose work has been featured on covers of Ebony and The New Yorker as well as album covers. I learned about those after I became a fan of his illustrations in children’s books. In The Undefeated, he used oils on panels.

Kwame Alexander is a favorite author of many of our students from grades 5 through 8. They are entertained and challenged by his novels in verse, Crossover, Rebound, Booked, and Solo. In his author’s note, Alexander explains that he started writing the poem in 2008 when his second daughter was born. He wanted his children to know and understand where they stood as people of color in America. He wrote about those who came before them and those who live now:
the unforgettable, the undeniable, the unflappable, the unafraid, the righteous marching ones, the unspeakable, the unlimited, and the unbelievable.
At the end, there are brief biographies of the people mentioned in the book. It’s a winner.

Awards’ Season

January31

Every year, a Monday in late January is awards’ day for librarians, publishers, authors, illustrators, and readers. For us, it’s as big as the Grammy’s, the Emmy’s, and the Oscar’s because it’s the announcement by the American Library Association of their awards for children’s and young adult’s books. There were a number of outstanding books published in 2019.

It used to be that there were two major awards, the Newbery Award (literary award given to the author of “the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children”) and the Caldecott Award (given to “the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children”).

The categories have expanded though and the others now carry great prestige.
• Corretta Scott King Awards – now given in five categories to “outstanding African American authors and illustrators of books for children and young adults that demonstrate an appreciation of African American culture and universal human values.”
• Michael L. Printz Award – excellence in literature written for young adults
• Schneider Family Book Award – books that embody an artistic expression of the disability experience
• Pura Belpré Award – honors a Latino writer and illustrator whose children’s books best portray, affirm, and celebrate the Latino cultural experience
• Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award – most distinguished informational book for children
• Theodor Seuss Geisel Award – most distinguished beginning reader

Some of these books and categories deserve to be singled out, especially New Kid by Jerry Craft. The author/illustrator received the 2020 Newbery Medal and also the Coretta Scott King Author Book Award. Craft’s book is the first graphic novel to ever win the Newbery Award, and I have enjoyed promoting this title to our readers. We have three copies of it, and they are always out.

There’s an interesting interview with Jerry Craft on Publisher’s Weekly’s website. They aptly described this outstanding graphic novel:

New Kid introduces African-American seventh grader Jordan Banks, an aspiring artist who leaves his home in Washington Heights each morning and takes the bus to his new, private, mostly white school in the Bronx. In his sketchbook, he chronicles what it’s like for him to navigate his two different worlds, the ups and downs of middle school, and the various micro-aggressions he faces each day. The book was inspired by Craft’s own school experiences, as well as those of his two sons…

On January 10, 2020, Craft created a Sketchbook Piece for the New York Times.

I highly recommend New Kid!

Remembering Mordicai Gerstein

October18

It seems clear to me that everything in the world needs to know about every other thing in the world. My theory is that the driving force in the universe is curiosity – nosiness! It’s not a scientific theory; it’s the kind of theory you come up with if you write and illustrate books for children. (Mordicai Gerstein – Acceptance speech at the 2004 Boston Globe/Horn Book Award for Picture Book)

When I learned that author/illustrator Mordicai Gerstein passed away in September 2019, I knew that I wanted to share my thoughts about this talented man. Even though I’ve read some of his books with students many times over the years, it’s always a pleasure to do so. It’s a joy to observe some of the children’s reactions as one of Gerstein’s books excites curiosity in them. He had that unique ability to bring the reader into the world of his creation. In interviews, Gerstein often said that he wrote and drew for people, for everybody, and others call them children’s books.

One of my favorite non-fiction picture books to share with children is Gerstein’s The Man Who Walked Between the Towers (Roaring Brook, 2003). Much has been written about this award-winning book. Some of the commendations that Gerstein received for the title were the Caldecott Medal, the Boston Globe/Horn Book Award, and the New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Book. Gerstein chronicled Philippe Petit’s 1974 unauthorized tightrope walk between the twin towers of New York City’s World Trade Center. In an interview, Gerstein said, “I didn’t want to just tell the story of the walk – I wanted the book to be the walk between cardboard covers…I wanted this book to cause real vertigo, to put the reader, child or adult-and of course myself-on the wire.” He certainly accomplished this.

Mordicai Gerstein created over forty books for young people. One of his latest is I Am Hermes! Mischief-Making Messenger of the Gods (Holiday House, 2019). In his author’s note, Gerstein explained that he was intrigued with Greek myths because “They’re interesting because they’re so human and so entertaining.” He was still following his creative philosophy that he described in that 2004 acceptance speech.

Mordicai Gerstein’s legacy lives on as children and adults continue to be captivated by his work.

MACBA

April4

The winner and honor books for the 2019 Massachusetts Children’s Book Award were announced this month. While our readers at DCD didn’t choose the state winner, they voted for three of the books that are the 2019 honor books.

Jennifer Nielsen’s book, A Night Divided, was this year’s winner. Her thank you letter discusses her novel and her inspiration for it.

“The book’s origin came from Ilona, a friend of our family’s. She was born into East Germany and at age five, her family made the decision to escape. Ilona’s parents planned to escape through the countryside. However, they didn’t want to take a five-year-old running through the countryside, so a different plan had to be put in place for Ilona.

Her grandparents in the west would come over by train, and then return by train with Ilona – not on the seat beside them because she had no papers. Instead, Ilona was drugged, put to sleep, and hidden in the baggage car of the train beneath a pile of hay. The knew the car would be searched at the border, and if Ilona even rolled over in her sleep, she would be sent back to East Germany alone and her grandparents would be arrested, or worse.

In the end, all of Ilona’s family successfully escaped, but when I heard her story, I knew I wanted to tell the story of the people of East Germany. It means so much to me that you then read this book, and loved it.”

To read the rest of Nielsen’s acceptance letter go to the MACBA site here.

The honor books are Ghost by Jason Reynolds, A Handful of Stars by Cynthia Lord, Rain Reign by Ann M. Martin, and Framed by James Ponti.

MCBA

February27

This week, we celebrated reading with our annual Massachusetts Children’s Book Award voting party. Prior to choosing their top books, the participating students advocated for their personal preferences. Many of the children commented that they were introduced to new authors and series that have now become favorites.

The winner of the vote is Rain Reign by Ann Martin. Rose is thrilled that her name is a homonym (rows). She names her dog Rain because that also has homonyms (reign and rein). Rose’s autism is evident through the rules that she makes for herself. It is difficult for her father and her teachers to understand her. When Rain disappears in a flood, Rose must break her own rules and overcome her fears to search for him.

There were three books that came in very close in the voting.

Ghost by Jason Reynolds is about a track team from an elite middle school where the main character is not only running on the field but also running from his problems.

Framed by James Ponti is an entertaining mystery about middle schooler who has a knack for solving mysteries, even one that puzzles the FBI at the National Gallery.

Towers Falling by Jewell Parker Rhodes tells the story of three friends from very different cultures whose families are all affected by the event of 9/11 that happened before Déja, Ben, and Sabeen were born.

Newbery 2019

February7

The Newbery Award is presented “…to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children.” (American Library Association)

The 2019 Newbery Award was presented to Meg Median for her novel Merci Suárez Changes Gears (Candlewick Press). Merci Suárez and her brother navigate their way through an elite private school as scholarship students. Even though she sees the palatial homes, boats, and cars that her classmates enjoy, Merci is comfortable and confident with her own life and close family. Entering sixth grade brings totally new social issues for her as she navigates middle school jealousies. Suddenly, her idyllic family life is turned upside down when her beloved grandfather begins to have memory issues. The author exhibits humor and understanding to Merci’s adolescent issues.

There were two Newbery Honor Books this year:
The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani (Dial)
The Book of Boy by Catherine Gilbert Murdock, illustrated by Ian Schoenherr (Greenwillow)

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Caldecott Award 2019

January31

It’s awards’ season for all of us who are involved with books for children and young adults. On Monday, the American Library Association (ALA) announced their choices for the 2019 Newbery, Caldecott, Coretta Scott King Award, and numerous others for outstanding books, authors, and illustrators.

This week, I would like to introduce the winner and honor books of the 2019 Caldecott Award. This award “was named in honor of nineteenth-century English illustrator Randolph Caldecott.” (ALA) An interesting aspect of this award is that it is given to the illustrator of the chosen picture book, and not the author. Many times, the illustrator is the author, but not always. While it’s difficult to judge a picture book without considering the text, the committee is required to evaluate the visual experience of the book and whether the illustrations unite the story-line, themes, or concepts.

There’s often a great deal of discussion among professionals in the children’s literature field about the winner and honor books. Publishers look at the books differently than the illustrators, and librarians and teachers have their own ideas. It’s important to remember that a committee made the choice, and the members compromise to come to an agreement. That’s not to say this year’s choices are not fine selections, but it’s important to understand the process.

The 2019 Caldecott Award was given to Sophie Blackall for Hello Lighthouse (Little Brown). Blackall wrote and illustrated the picture book that chronicles the life of a lighthouse keeper. For her book, Blackall used ideas from logs that she found during her research on lighthouses. While depicting the daily life in a lighthouse, Blackall also depicts the passing of seasons. Throughout all of the challenges that weather brings, the lighthouse stands tall as a beacon to light the way for those traveling on the ocean. Blackall’s Chinese ink and watercolor illustrations are not only detailed, but they also depict the structure from numerous perspectives.

This was the second Caldecott Award for Sophie Blackall. She won it in 2016 for her illustrations in Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World’s Most Famous Bear written by Lindsay Mattick (Little Brown).

There were four books that were recognized as Caldecott Honor Books in 2019.

Alma and How She Got Her Name, written and illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal (Candlewick)
A Big Mooncake for Little Star, written and illustrated by Grace Lin (Little Brown)
The Rough Patch, written and illustrated by Brian Lies (Greenwillow)
Thank You, Omu! written and illustrated by Oge Mora (Little Brown)

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Massachusetts Children’s Book Award 2018

April13

The winner and honor books for the 2018 Massachusetts Children’s Book Award were announced this month. Our readers at DCD chose the same book as the state winner, and they also voted for two of the state honor books.

This year’s most highly rated book is The War That Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley (Dial). The setting is Great Britain during WWII. The protagonist is Ava, a young girl who was born with a club foot. Her mother shows Ava no affection. Ava envies her brother who is able to run free and escape the loveless home. When children are being evacuated from London and welcomed into homes in the safer countryside, she sneaks off to join her brother whom her mother put on the transport. When the siblings are sheltered by a recluse who is forced to house them, Ava finally experiences something that she always longed for, kindness. Yet, she does not know how to accept it. The fourth, fifth, and sixth graders who read this novel all enjoyed this book. They have now moved on to the sequel, The War I Finally Won which was recently published.

The two honor books that DCD’s readers chose are Space Case by Stuart Gibbs (Simon & Schuster) and Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt (Nancy Paulsen Books). There were a number of quality selections that were nominated for the award this year. Our readers were introduced to some authors and genres that were new to them. We look forward to Salem State University’s publication of the list of nominees for 2019. Those will be announced soon.

 

2018 Newbery Award

February23

The Newbery Award is presented “… to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children.” (American Library Association)

The 2018 Newbery Award was given to Hello, Universe, written by Erin Entrada Kelly (Greenwillow). This outstanding novel is told through the voices of four different characters – Virgil, Valencia, Kaori, and Chet. And then there is Virgil’s grandmother, Lola, who explains about growing up and human nature through her ancient stories.

Virgil had long suspected that his brothers were crafted out of a factory that made perfect, athletic, perpetually happy children, and he was made from all of the leftover parts.

As hearing-impaired Valencia faced summer alone, she thought, There is plenty to do. I don’t need a gazillion friends.I don’t even need one. All I need is me, right? Solo- it’s the best way to go. It’s a lot less trouble.

Kaori Tanaka liked to tell people her parents were born in the high, misty mountains of a samurai village. In truth, they were both second generation Japanese-Americans from Ohio…Sometimes people were just delivered to the wrong birthplace.

Chet Bullens is the neighborhood bully who is taught by his father that Respect came in two flavors, fear or admiration. Sometimes both. Otherwise you’re just a weakling at the bottom of the food chain, ready to get crushed under someone else’s boot.

The judges for this year’s Newbery Committee chose three honor books: Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut illustrated by Gordon C. James and written by Derrick Barnes (Bolden), Long Way Down written by Jason Reynolds (Atheneum), and Piecing Me Together written by Renée Watson (Bloomsbury Children’s Books).

 

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Caldecott 2018

February15

The American Library Association (ALA) announced their annual awards given to honor children’s and young adults’ books this week. The Caldecott Award is presented “to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children.” This year, the committee chose more multicultural titles than were celebrated in past years.

 

This year’s Caldecott Award was presented to Wolf in the Snow (Macmillan), illustrated and written by Matthew Cordell. The only writing in this nearly wordless book is of animal sounds. The illustrations are inked in pen and colored with watercolors. The design of the pages varies with some being circular and others depicting more than one picture. A young girl is walking home from school when it begins to snow. She finds a wolf pup who has become separated from his pack. After she returns him to his pack, the wolves follow the girl and protect her when she, too, becomes lost. It’s often difficult to share a wordless book with more than one child at a time, but Wolf in the Snow is an exception. Cordell’s charming book should be enjoyed by young readers for years to come.

The judges for this year’s Caldecott Committee chose four honor books: Big Cat, Little Cat written and illustrated by Elisha Cooper (Roaring Brook Press), Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut illustrated by Gordon C. James and written by Derrick Barnes (Bolden), A Different Pond illustrated by Thi Bui and written by Bao Phi (Capstone), and Grand Canyon illustrated and written by Jason Chin (Roaring Brook Press).

 

While all of the honor books demonstrate excellence, there is one of the titles that received much recognition  – Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut. Not only did the ALA choose the title as a Caldecott Honor Book, it was also recognized as a Newbery Honor Book and a Coretta Scott King Honor book. The King Award recognizes African American authors and illustrators, and the Newbery Medal is given for outstanding children’s literature. It’s unusual to have a picture book recognized in the Newbery category. The writing is lyrical as Derrick Barnes describes the importance of a haircut to an African-American boy.

It was worth it. It always is

You know why?

Because you’ll leave out of “the shop”

Every single time, feeling the exact same way…

                        Magnificent.

                                    Flawless.

                                                Like royalty.

Hello, world…

 

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