2011 American Library Association Youth Media Awards

Here are the award winner announced this morning!
(I think I got them all.  If you see any errors, please let me know!)

Newbery Honors:
Dark Emporer and Other Poems of the Night by Joyce Sidman, illustrated by
Heart of a Samurai by Margi Preus
One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia
Turtle in Paradise by Jennifer L. Holm


Newbery Medal Winner:
Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool


Caldecott Honors:
Dave the Potter illustrated by Bryan Collier, written by Laban Carrick Hill
Interrupting Chicken written & illustrated by David Ezra Stein


Caldecott Medal Winner:
A Sick Day for Amos McGee illustrated by Erin Stead, written by Philip Christian Stead


Printz Honors:
Stolen by Lucy Christopher
Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King
Revolver by Marcus Sedgwick
Nothing by Janne Teller


Printz Medal Winner:
Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi


Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor:
Jimi Sounds Like a Rainbow: the story of a young Jimi Hendrix illustrated by Javaka Steptoe, written by Gary Golio


Coretta Scott King Illustrator Medal:
Dave the Potter illustrated by Bryan Collier, written by Laban Carrick Hill


Coretta Scott King Author Honor:
Lockdown by Walter Dean Myers
Ninth Ward by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Yummy: the last days of Southside Shorty by G. Neri, illustrated by Randy DeBurke


Coretta Scott King Author Medal Winner:
One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia


Coretta Scott King-Virginia Hamiliton Practitioner Award for Lifetime Achievement:
Henrieta Mays Smith from the University of Florida


John Steptoe Award for New Talent:
Author Award: Zora and Me by Victoria Bond and T.R. Simon
Illustrator Award: Seeds of Change illustrated by Sonia Lynn Sadler, written by Jen Cullerton Johnson


Geisel Honors:
Ling and Ting: Not Exactly the Same! by Grace Lin
We Are in a Book by Mo Willems


Geisel Medal Winner:
Bink and Gollie by Kate DiCamillo and Alison McGhee


Arbuthnot Honor Lecture Award
Peter Sis


Alex Awards:
The Reapers Are Angels by Alden Bell
The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender
The House of Tomorrow by Peter Bognanni
The Vanishing of Katharina Linden by Helen Grant
The Radleys by Matt Haig
Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok
Breaking Night: A Memoir of Forgiveness, Survival and My Journey from Homeless to Harvard by Liz Murray
The Boy Who Couldn't Sleep and Didn't Have to by DC Pierson

Batcheldor Honors:
Departure Time by Truus Matti
Nothing by Janne Teller


Batcheldor Medal Winner:
A Time of Miracles by Anne-Laure Bondoux


Belpre Illustrator Honors:
Fiesta Babies illustrated by Amy Cordova written by Carmen Tafolla
Me Frida illustrated by David Diaz, written by Amy Novesky
Dear Primo: a letter to my cousin by Duncan Tonatiuh


Belpre Illustrator Award:
Grandma's Gift by Eric Valesquez


Belpre Author Honors:
Ole!  Flamenco by George Ancona
The Firefly Letters: A Suffragette's Journey to Cuba by Margarita Engle
90 Miles to Havana by Enrique Flores-Galbis


Belpre Author Award:
The Dreamer by Pam Munoz Ryan, illustrated by Peter Sis


Carnegie Medal:
The Curious Garden


Margaret A. Edwards Award:
Sir Terry Pratchett


William C. Morris Finalists:
Hush by Eishes Chayil
Guardian of the Dead by Karen Healey
Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by Lish McBride
Crossing the Tracks by Barbara Stuber





William C. Morris Winner:
Freak Observer by Blythe Woolston


Odyssey Honor:
Alchemy and Meggy Swann by Karen Cushman
The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly
Will Grayson, Will Grayson by David Levithan and John Green


Odyssey Medal Winner:
The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex


Schneider Awards:
Children--The Pirate of Kindergarten by George Ella Lyon, illustrated by Lynne Avril
Middle-- After Ever After by Jordan Sonnenblick
Young Adult-- Five Flavors of Dumb by Anthony John


Sibert Honors:
Ballet for Martha: Making Appalachian Spring by Jan Greenburg and Sandra Jordan, illustrated by Brian Floca
Lafayette and the American Revolution by Russell Freedman


Sibert Medal Winner:
Kakapo Rescue: Saving the World's Strangest Parrot by Sy Montgomery, illustrated by Nic Bishop


YALSA Award of Excellence Finalist:
Janice Joplin: Rise Up Singing by Ann Angel
They Called Themselves the KKK: the birth of an American terrorist group by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
The Spies of Mississippi: the true story of a spy agency that tried to destroy the civil rights movement by Rick Bowers
The Dark Game: True Spy Stories by Paul B. Janeczko
Every Bone Tells a Story: Hominin Discoveries, Deductions and Debates by Jill Rubalcaba and Peter Robertshaw


YALSA Award of Excellence Winner: 
 Janice Joplin: Rise Up Singing by Ann Angel

Stonewall Award
Almost Perfect by Brian Katcher
Will Grayson, Will Grayson by David Levithan and John Green
Freaks and Revelations by David Willis Hurwin
Love Drugged by James Klise
The Boy in the Dress by David Walliams


Laura Ingalls Wilder Award
Tomie DePaola

ALA Youth Media Awards 2011

Snow Day, snow day!

Hooray!

I was kind of sad about not being able to watch the live feed of the 2011 ALA Youth Media Awards this year because I would have a class in the library (my very first!), but we got 3-1/2" of snow yesterday.  So, no school and I get to watch the announcement! 

It's always an exciting morning for me because I like to see if I did a good job with my collection development (when I was at the public library) and we have the books in our library already.  If we don't, we've got to get those ordered!

So...here's who I hope wins...
Caldecott--Jon Muth for City Dog, Country Frog
Newbery--One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia....though Mockingird by Kathryn Erskine will be in the running too
Geisert--We Are in a Book by Mo Willems

The rest I'm afraid I don't have enough knowledge to make a good guess.  So I'll just wait and see what happens! 

You can watch live by clicking here: http://alawebcast.unikron.com/.  There will be lots of flurry on Twitter and I'm sure facebook will have lots of action too.  I'll post back after the announcements are made the winners and my thoughts!

The Pirate of Kindergarten by George Ella Lyon, illustrated by Lynne Avril

Ginny loves reading and school.  But sometimes simple tasks for other kids like navigating the chairs at reading circle or cutting out paper rabbits prove to be a challenge for Ginny.  She has double vision, which makes things difficult for her.  When this is discovered at a school Vision Screening Day, Ginny goes to the eye doctor for glasses and an eye patch...making her Ginny the Kindergarten Pirate!


What I Thought:
This is an important book as it tackles a common problem for lots of young children.  Through the illustrations, readers get a sense of what Ginny sees.  The illustrations depicting what Ginny is viewing is drawn in doubles, just like her double vision.  We also get to experience visiting the eye doctor and how the problem is fixed.

This is a great story for kids who are experiencing vision problems, and for children who have friends with problems too!  It will help them understand what their friend is experiencing.

Recommended.

(Edited to Add...)  This book won a Schneider Award in 2011. 

Want to see more?  Check it out on Amazon: The Pirate of Kindergarten by George Ella Lyon, illustrated by Lynne Avril.

Reviewed from a library copy.

Bink & Gollie by Kate DiCamillo and Alison McGhee, illustrated by Tony Fucile

Bink and Gollie are best friends, but two very different personalities!  Both love fun and through three short stories and illustrations we get a glimpse of life with this pair. 


What I Thought:
This is a keeper!  What a fun book.  It's a collection of three short cohesive stories that are simply wonderful and Fucile's illustrations take them to the next level!  He did an exemplary job portraying Bink and Gollie's different personalities in the perfect way.

My favorite story was the second one where Gollie went on an adventure to the Andes mountains...through a book!  When she reached the top, Bink joined her for a sandwich snack.

I really hope that we see more of Bink and Gollie in the near future.

Very highly recommended...I promise you will love it! 

(Edited to add...) This book is the 2011 Geisert Medal Award winner. 

Want to see more?  Check it out on Amazon: Bink & Gollie by Kate DiCamillo and Alison McGhee, illustrated by Tony Fucile.

Reviewed from a library copy.

Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein

It's bedtime, and Little Chicken is looking forward to his bedtime story!  Papa reminds Little Chicken not to interrupt his story...but will he remember?  It's hard for a little chicken when one gets involved in the story!

What I Thought:
TOO CUTE!  I tend to have the bad habit of finishing other people's sentences, so this book hit right at home plate for me!

As Papa is telling the stories...classic childrens' stories like Hansel and Gretel, Little Red Riding Hood and the like.  But then Papa gets frustrated as Little Chicken interrupts each story and finally requests that Little Chicken tell HIM a story!  (Which is quite entertaining!)

This is a super fun book, and I think will be a great read-aloud.  And an even better reader's theater story!

(Edited to add...) This book is a 2011 Caldecott Honor book.

Recommended. 

Want to see more?  Check it out at Amazon: Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein.

Reviewed from a library copy.

Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff

Hollis Woods was abandoned as an infant in a little town named Hollis Woods.  The person who left her there pinned a note to her shirt instructing that her name be just that...Hollis Woods.  Hollis has been bounced around the foster care system for her entire life.  She has made it a habit to run away from these homes as well as skipping school and prides on being "trouble."

When really, all she truly wants is a family.

This book alternates between flashbacks of an almost perfect summer with a wonderful family in the mountains and the present when Hollis is placed with an older women, Josie who turns out to have some memory problems, but is a craftsman which is perfect for Hollis who is a very talented artist herself.

Hollis decides to stay at Josie's for a while but when the social worker informs Hollis she cannot stay with Josie because of her memory problems, Hollis talks Josie into running away.   They go to the cabin where she spent that wonderful summer in the mountains, but now it is winter and a harsh one at that!

As Hollis cares for Josie and tries to come to terms with her past, she learns a lot about herself.

What I Thought: 
A wonderful, well-written book.  I fell in love with Hollis Woods and so badly wanted her to get her dream...a family!  I loved how Giff alternated each chapter with a flashback allowing us to gain insight into her past while living her life with her in the present.   Hollis is a great girl who just has been let down by adults her whole life and has learned to fend for herself.  It's such a gift to see Hollis trust others and allow herself to become a part of a family unit! 

A super book...give to readers who love reading books about strong characters and happy endings.

Very highly recommended.

This book was the recipient of a 2003 Newbery Honor.  

Want to see more?  Check it out on Amazon: Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff.

In 2007, a Hallmark movie was premiered on CBS of this novel starring Jodelle Ferland as Hollis Woods,  Sissy Spacek as Josie, and Alfre Woodard as Enda Reilly--the social worker.  It was really a wonderful movie and though it has been several years since I saw it, I believe it was pretty parallel to the novel.   You can check it out here. 

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin

Minli is a young girl working with her family in the fields near the Jade River. Their family was very poor and worked very hard with little reward. Her father told Minli countless stories that her mother disapproved of. She felt they filled Minli's head with nonsense.

One day Minli decided to go find the Old Man of the Moon, a character in many of her father's stories, and attempt to change her family's fortune.

Thus begins a wonderful adventure in which Minli befriends a dragon who can't fly, encounters a young boy with a buffalo, meets the king, is saved from a vicious tiger by a set of fun-loving twins, and so much more!

But will Minli reach her goal and change her family's fortune or will her request change in order to help a friend?

What I Thought:
This book is a fantastic read aloud. The plot of the story is supplemented and moved forward with traditional stories or fables interspersed throughout the text. Whether the story is told by Minli's father or another character in the book, wonderful stories are interwoven throughout.

I loved the theme of friendship that ran throughout the book. Minli is such a sweet character who made friends wherever she roamed, and she was a wonderful friend in return.

This book is a wonderful story of adventure that I think anyone would love.

Very highly recommended.

This book was awarded a Newbery Honor in 2010. (A well deserved honor!)

Want to see more? Check it out on Amazon: Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin.

Reviewed from a library copy.

2010 ALA Youth Media Awards

Hooray! It was a fantastic morning on my couch with the YALSA Live Blog of the ALA Youth Media Awards. I never connected to the live feed, which is fine because I had horrible issues with it last year.

So here's the lowdown:

Newbery Honors:
Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice written by Phillip Hoose
The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate written by Jacqueline Kelly
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon written by Grace Lin
The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg written by Rodman Philbrick


Newbery Medal Winner:
When You Reach Me written by Rebecca Stead

Caldecott Honors:
All the World ill by Marla Frazee, written by Liz Garton Scanlon
Red Sings from Treetops: A Year in Colors ill. Pamela Zagarenski written by Joyce Sidman

Caldecott Medal Winner:
The Lion & the Mouse ill & written by Jerry Pinkney

Printz Honors:
Charles & Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith by Deborah Heiligman
The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey
Punkzilla by Adam Rapp
Tales of the Madman Underground: An Historical Romance, 1973 by John Barnes

Printz Medal Winner:
Going Bovine by Libba Bray

Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor:
E.B. Lewis for The Negro Speaks of Rivers

Coretta Scott King Illustrator Medal:
Charles R. Smith Jr. for My People, written by Langston Hughes

Coretta Scott King Author Honor:
Tanita S. Davis for Mare's War

Coretta Scott King Author Medal Winner:
Vaunda Micheaux Nelson for Bad News for Outlaws: the Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves, Deputy U.S. Marshal

Coretta Scott King-Virginia Hamiliton Award for Lifetime Achievement: (1st year for this award)
Walter Dean Myers

John Steptoe Award for New Talent:
Kekla Magoon for The Rock and the River

Geisel Honors:
I Spy Fly Guy! written & ill by Tedd Arnold
Little Mouse Gets Ready written & ill by Jeff Smith
Mouse and Mole: Fine Feathered Friends written & ill by Wong Herbert Yee
Pear and Wagner: One Funny Day by Kate McMullan ill R. W. Alley

Geisel Medal Winner:
Benny and Penny in the Big No-No! written & ill by Geoffrey Hayes

Arbuthnot Honor Lecture Award
2011 Lecture will be given by Lois Lowry

Alex Awards:
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
The Bride's Farewell, Meg Rosoff
Everything Matters! by Ron Currie, Jr.
The Good Soldiers by David Finkel
The Kids Are All Right: A Memoir by Diana & Liz Welch
The Magicians by Lev Grossman
My Abandonment by Peter Rock
Soulless: An Alexia Tarabotti Novel by Gail Cairriger
Stitches A Memoir by David Small
Tunneling to the Center of the Earth by Kevin Wilson

Batcheldor Honors:
Big Wolf and Little Wolf written by Nadine Brun-Cosme, ill. Olivier Tallec, trans. Claudia Bedrick
Eidi by Bodil Bredsdorff, trans. Kathryn Mahaffy
Moribito II: Guardian of the Darkness by Nahoko Uehashi, ill. Yuko Shimizu, trans Cathy Hirano

Batcheldor Medal Winner:
A Faraway Island by Annika Thor, trans. Linda Schenck

Belpre Illustrator Honors:
Diego: Bigger Than Life ill. by David Diaz (written by Carmen T. Bernier-Grand)
My Abuelita ill. Yuyi Morales, written by Tony Johnston
Gracias Thanks ill by John Parra, written by Pat Mora

Belpre Illustrator Award:
Book Fiesta!: Celebrate Children's Day/Book Day; Celebremeos El dia de los ninos/el dia de los libros ill. Rafael Lopez, written by Pat Mora

Belpre Author Honors:
Diego: Bigger Than Life written by Carmen T. Bernier-Grand, ill. by David Diaz
Federico Garcia Lorca written by Georgina Lazaro ill. Enrique S. Moreiro

Belpre Author Award:
Return to Sender written by Julia Alvarez

Carnegie Medal:
Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! Produced by Paul R. Gagne and Mo Willems of Weston Woods

Margaret A. Edwards Award:
Jim Murphy

William C. Morris Finalists:
Ash, by Melinda Lo
Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
The Everafter by Amy Huntley
hold still by Nina LaCour

William C. Murphy Winner:
Flash Burnout by L.K. Madigan

Odyssey Honor:
In the Belly of the Bloodhound - written by L. A. Meyer
Peace, Locomotion by Jacqueline Woodson
We Are the Ship by Kadir Nelson

Odyssey Medal Winner:
Louise, the Adventures of a Chicken Produced by Live Oak Media written by Kate DiCamillo & narrated by Barbara Rosenblat

Schneider Awards:
Young Children's: Django written & ill by Bonnie Christensen
Middle Grades: Anything but Typical written by Nora Raleigh Baskin
Teen: Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco X. Stork

Sibert Honors:
The Day-Glo Brothers by Chris Barton, ill. Tony Persiani
Moonshot written & ill by Brian Floca
Claudette Colvin by Phillip Hoose

Sibert Medal Winner:
Almost Astronauts: 13 Women Who Dared to Dream by Tanya Lee Stone

YALSA Award of Excellence Finalist:
Almost Astronauts by Tanya Lee Stone
The Great and Only Barnum by Candace Fleming
Written in Bone by Sally M. Walker
Claudette Colvin by Phillip Hoose

YALSA Award of Excellence Winner:
Charles & Emma by Deborah Heiligman---WINNER


What a great list! I'm excited that for the first time I've read the Newbery & Caldecott Medals already! And I'm about 3/4 through one of the Newbery Honors, and have read several of these listed already. But I've got a hefty reading list ahead!

I'm VERY excited for Jerry Pinkney and his The Lion and the Mouse. I had that book picked from the second I picked it up. It's that amazing.

What do you all think of today's announcements?

ALA Youth Media Awards

I'm up and ready for the Youth Media Awards, which are slated to begin at 6:45amCT. I'm bundled up on the couch, up earlier than I would be to get up for work....and I'm off work today!

I had hoped to read more books that seemed to be getting Newbery buzz...but I didn't. So I'll just say that I do hope that When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead. I did read it and it really is outstanding.

And if The Lion & the Mouse by Jerry Pinkney doesn't get the Caldecott, the committee has serious issues! It's an amazing book.

I'll guess we'll find out! Soon!

All the World by Liz Garton Scanlon, illustrated by Marla Frazee

A young family spend a day enjoying all of what the world has to offer...the beach, a farmer's market, hanging out in the beautiful outdoors, spending time with friends and family.

What I Thought:
This is a beautiful book. The simple, yet beautiful, text matched with the amazing illustrations by Marla Frazee make this book a pure joy.

This is definitely a book to not just read, but devour as so much of the story is told through the illustrations. A wonderful book to share with your family!

Recommended.

This book was awarded a 2010 Caldecott Honor. (Two in a row for Marla Frazee!)

Want to see more? Check it out on Amazon: All the World by Liz Garton Scanlon, illustrated by Marla Frazee.

Reviewed from a library copy.

Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis

Elijah was the first free child to be born in Buxton, a settlement in Canada consisting of mostly runaway slaves who found freedom by escaping from their masters and surviving treacherous conditions.

Now, at eleven years old in the year 1860 he tells readers the story of the happenings of Buxton and its cast of characters, including the "Reverend" who tricks Elijah several times, the arrival of new citizens into the settlement, school, and a powerful ending that you'll just have to discover for yourself.

What I Thought:
I listened to the audio version of this book and all I can say is WOW. This is a story that everyone should experience, whether it be via the print or audio version. The story is read by Mirron Willis and is so unbelievably well done you won't want to turn it off!

I love Elijah's story, and you will watch him bloom from a boy to a man as you read (or listen!). The story is full of boy hijinks, solid stories about numerous people and just lots of fun with a true sense of history. Speaking of history, make sure you read the afterword as Curtis gives more insight into the Buxton settlement and encourages readers to find out more about it. Which I totally plan on doing!

This is a must read.

Very highly recommended.

The book was awarded a Newbery Honor and a Coretta Scott King Honor and the audiobook was awarded an ALA Notable Recording and Odyssey Honor.

Want to see more? Check it out on Amazon: Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis

The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes, illustrated by Louis Slobodkin

This is the story of three little girls, Wanda, Peggy and Maddie. They attended school together and while Wanda was fairly quiet and kept to herself, and no one payed her any mind. One day, Wanda tells the other girls that she has one hundred dresses in her closet. Peggy and Maddie find this interesting as she wears the same blue dress to school everyday.

So the girls begin teasing Wanda about her one hundred dresses everyday.

One day, Wanda does not come to school. Maddy begins to think about how the whole "game" of teasing Wanda came about, and comes to realize that while Peggy started the teasing, Maddy went along with it because she didn't want to become a target of teasing.

When the results of a class-wide contest was revealed and it was made known that Wanda did have one hundred dresses, the girls felt especially bad for the teasing and attempt to make amends.

What I Thought:
A beautiful story with a timeless message! Even though this book was published in 1944 and some of the details in the story are apparent of this time period, the story as a whole and message conveyed will be relevant forever.

This book is a wonderful read-aloud and would create some great discussions. Should be a must read for all. This book is a 1945 Newbery Honor Book.

Very highly recommended.

Want to see more? Check it out on Amazon: The One Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes, illustrated by Louis Slobodkin.

Lily's Crossing by Patricia Reilly Giff

Lily is a young girl growing up on the East Coast in 1944...right during World War II. Her mother is dead, so she is being raised by her father and grandmother and they visit their beach house each summer in Rockaway. Lily loves these summer days as she visits the beach and plays with her good friend Margaret.

But this summer will be different. With the war in full swing, Margaret's family moves to Chicago and Lily's father is called to serve overseas.

Lily is dreading the summer with no friends her age to play with, until Albert moves to town to stay with family. He is a refugee from war torn Hungary, and holds a great secret. They become fast friends, brought together by a sweet kitten. Lily has a problem to "stretch" the truth, but Albert hasn't been completely honest either and this becomes a major problem...one that could be life or death.

What I Thought:
Wow, what a great story! I love reading anything about this time period this book provides a completely different view on most of the literature I've read about WWII. Instead of a book about the Holocaust, its a story of a child living in the states who befriends a refugee child from Hungary. Albert is taken from his home as a precaution as his parents publish anti-Nazi literature, and if found out they would be in great danger.

The story also shows the life of the family of a WW2 soldier who is left home and worries about their loved one. D-Day and Normandy Beach is mentioned often.

This book is a 1998 Newbery Honor Book, and I've noticed is on a couple of schools' summer reading lists in my area. A superb book.

Highly Recommended.

Stinky by Eleanor Davis

Stinky the monster loves his swamp, his pet toad Wartbelly, the mud and his favorite snack: pickled onions. He hates the nearby town and its kids because they like things like baths and apples.

When a young boy named Nick wanders into the swamp, Stinky is horrified to see that Nick has built a treehouse on one of the trees in his swamp. He begins to plan and implement actions that would scare Nick away from the swamp, like put Wartbelly in his treehouse or pretend to be a ghost. Nothing works!

But when Nick loses his hat and Stinky realizes how sad he is, he finds the hat and they become fast friends.

What I Thought:
What a fun book! The story is told in a comic book format with the text bubbles and usually multiple illustrations per page. The cartoon illustrations are colorful and have lots of details to explore as readers decode each picture to read the story.

I love the Stinky premise. This is bound to be a book that kids will eat up and will want to read over and over again. Here's to hoping that another Stinky book is on the way soon.

Highly recommended, especially for young readers!

This book is a 2009 Geisel Honor Book, an honor "given annually to the author(s) and illustrator(s) of the most distinguished American books for beginning readers published in English in the United States during the preceding year" (ALA.com).

Want to see more? Check it out on Amazon: Stinky by Eleanor Davis.

A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever by Marla Frazee

(Caldecott Honor Sticker should be on cover soon!)

One summer, James went to visit Eamon's and his grandparents at the beach. They were going to attend a nature day camp, and Eamon's grandpa is so excited to teach them about penguins and take them to the Natural History Museum, and teach them about Antarctica.

Things don't quite work out as planned however, but the best week ever is definitely had.


What I Thought:
I. LOVE. THIS. BOOK. And if I have anything to say about it, I will own it very soon.

Seriously, this book is just pure joy. I love picture books where the text tells one story while the pictures tell the complete opposite, and this is one of those books. The text tells one story from the narrator's standpoint, and the illustrations with the balloon text tells another story from the boys standpoint. Which is simply hilarious.

When you read this book, make sure that you inspect each inch of the book, the end papers have some great illustrations that supplement the story.

This book is the recipient of a 2009 Caldecott Honor Book, Boston Globe Horn Book Honor Award for Picture Book, and numerous Best Book of the Year Award from several prominent book review publications.

Very highly recommended, I promise you'll love it.

Want to see more? Check it out on Amazon: A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever by Marla Frazee.

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

(Note the pretty Newbery Medal!)

A toddler crawls out his house in the middle of the night, unaware that someone is murdering the rest of his family. When the man with the knife goes to find the baby, he is baffled as to where he may be. The baby has toddled from the house into a nearby graveyard where the residents vote to raise the child after receiving permission from the child's parents, also ghosts at this point, but would not be residents at this particular graveyard which houses souls from much earlier times. The child is named Nobody "Bod" Owens, and will spend his childhood in the graveyard learning the ways of the ghosts as well as the ways of the living.

Each chapter tells a different adventure of Bod's childhood and his experience in the graveyard. He befriends most of the ghosts residing there and they teach him how to Fade, Dreamwalk and other skills that help him survive. He goes to school, and even makes friends with a young girl, and sneaks into old crypts.

As he grows older, Bod becomes curious of the world outside of the graveyard, and he is often put in harms way. Bod is protected in the graveyard, but is exposed outside the gates. Thankfully his guardian and friends save him every time...but Bod must save himself and his one of his friends in one exciting adventure where he meets the man who once tried to killed him and killed his family.

Check out this link for Amazon's book trailer (like a video) promoting the book.

What I Thought:
A wonderful story! So very imaginative and I am simply amazed at the skill of storytelling that Gaiman has as he tells the story of Bod and the ghosts in the graveyard.

While this book is not one that I would have normally picked up, and since we are being honest here, it was kind of hard for me to 'get in to,' I can say that it is an EXCELLENT book that is just plain good. The ending was great and I hope Gaiman has a sequel up his sleeve. It is so well-written, the story is captivating and the characters are believable. Even the ghosts!

(I do want to mention that while the family is murdered, Gaiman does an outstanding job informing the reader of the situation without it being overly graphic and disturbing. That's just my opinion and while I think it is a great book for older kids, especially those clamoring for a great ghost story.)

This book is the 2009 Newbery Award Medal Winner, meaning that the American Library Association picked this book book to be the best book written for children in 2009. It has also received many other accolades such as ALA Best Book for Young Adults, Horn Book Fanfare, & New York Library's "One Hundred Titles for Reading and Sharing." And believe me, it is well worth all the attention. This book deserves it.

Very highly recommended.

Want to see more? Check it out here: The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

This book has many different covers, which I found interesting. I liked a couple of these better than the US book and thought you would enjoy looking at them. I love how each cover depicts a different aspect of the story. Which one is your favorite?? (Don't forget the one on top of this post!)

The House in the Night by Susan Marie Swanson, pictures by Beth Krommes

(Caldecott Medal Sticker should be added to image soon!)

A sweet rhyme about the happenings in a house in the night. Readers follow a little girl as she acquires the key to the house and sees a light in the house. She continues to her bedroom and sees a book and goes on a magnificent journey and back home again.

The black and white with golden illustrations are done on scratchboard and include incredible detail.

What I Thought:
What a beautiful book! This book is the winner of the 2009 Caldecott Medal, an award given by the American Library Association for the best illustrated book of the year. This book is very much deserving of this honor.

It is hard to comprehend how much work it takes to put together a picture book filled with scratchboard illustrations. Check out this video where the Today Show interviews Krommes about her book, along with Neil Gaiman. It is quite interesting to learn, even how briefly, how the illustrations are created.

The text is inspired by a nursery rhyme about the "keys to the kingdom" from The Oxford Nursery Rhyme Book, first published in 1955.

Overall, a beautiful book...highly recommended.

Want to see more? Check it out on Amazon: The House in the Night by Susan Marie Swanson, pictures by Beth Krommes.

The Underneath by Kathi Appelt, illustrated by David Prince

(Newbery Honor Medal should be added soon to image!)

This is a story of an unlikely friendship, a story of unconditional love, a story of family, a story of hate, a story past and present times.

It all started with a calico cat looking for a home. She found one in an unlikely place--under an old house with Ranger, a hound dog who remains chained to the deck by his mean-spirited owner. When the cat has two kittens, both Ranger and the cat feel unbelievable love for these two new lives.

At the same time, hatred abounds. Ranger's owner, Gar Face, is hunting an alligator that lives in one of the nearby rivers. This Alligator King has lived for a thousand years, and has seen much. He has seen Grandmother, a serpent who has also lived for a thousand years, spending most of those trapped in a clay jar.

In this wonderful story, each of these characters will intertwine between situations and time in this story of love, bravery and acceptance.


What I Thought:
Um, wow.

This book is well deserved of the 2009 Newbery Honor it was bestowed.

I'll admit it, at first I found it difficult to get into this book. But as Appelt tells this story, she sucks you in and one can simply not this this book down. The magnificence of the storytelling in this book is simply pure genius. Appelt takes you back in time one thousand years and back to the present seamlessly, I have read few- if any -better.

The characters are lovable and instantly you will love them, or love to not like them! You feel their hurt, their disappointment, and you sympathize with their situation...even if you find yourself wishing you wouldn't.

The illustrations are superb. However, there were a few in there that startled me when I turned the page! (Though all in good fun!)

This book would be a great read aloud, and sincerely hope this will become a timeless and beloved book in the world of children's literature.

Winner of a 2009 Newbery Honor, and a National Book Award Finalist.

Extremely Recommended! Run, go read it!

Want to see more? Check it out on Amazon: The Underneath by Kathi Appelt, illustrated by David Prince.

YALSA Releases Best Books of the Year for Young Adults

Happy Day!

YALSA (Young Adult Services Library Association) has released their yearly Best Books of Young Adults.

You can check out the entire list here, or the just the Top Ten List here.

Again, I have a lot of reading to do!

Book Awards

These are JUST ANNOUNCED...and I am only going to quickly list as I need to get ready for work. (Please forgive any typos...I did this quicky!)


Printz Honors:
The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II, The Kingdom on the Waves, by M.T. Anderson
The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, by E. Lockhart
Printz Honor Book: “Tender Morsels,” by Margo Lanagan,
Printz Honor Book: “Nation,” by Terry Pratchett, published by

Printz Award:
Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta

Coretta Scott King Author Honors:
Keeping the Night Watch by Hope Anita Smith, illustrated by E.B. Lewis
The Blacker the Berry” by Joyce Carol Thomas, illustrated by Floyd Cooper
Becoming Billie Holiday” by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Floyd Cooper

Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honors
We Are the Ship: The Story of the Negro League Baseball,” written and illustrated by Kadir Nelson
Before John Was a Jazz Giant” by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Sean Qualls

Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award:
The Blacker the Berry, illustrated by Floyd Cooper, written by Joyce Carol Thomas

Caldecott Honors:
How I Learned Geography, written & illustrated by Uri Shulevitz
A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever written & illustrated by Marla Frazee
A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams written by Jen Bryant, illustrated by Melissa Sweet

Caldecott Award
The House in the Night by Susan Marie Swanson, illustrated by Beth Krommes

Newbery Honors
Saavy by Ingrid Law
Tupac and D Foster by Jacqueline Woodson
The Underneath by Kathi Appelt
The Surrender Tree by Madeline L'Engle

Newbery Award:
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

I've got some reading to do!