Award Time!

So... yesterday morning at the ALA conference in San Antonio, the announced all sorts of awards!

Newberry:

Criss Cross by Lynne Rae Perkins

Newberry Honors:

Whittington by Alan Armstrong
Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
The Princess Academy by Shannon Hale
Show Way by Jacqueline Woodson


Caldecott:

The Hello, Goodbye Window by Norton Juster, illustrated by Chris Roaschka

Caldecott Honors:

Rosa by Nikki Giovanni, illustrated by Bryan Collier
Zen Shorts written and illustrated by Jon J. Muth
Hot Air : The (Mostly) True Story of the First Hot-Air Balloon Ride written and illustrated by Marjorie Priceman
Song of the Waterboatman and Other Pond Poems by Joyce Sidman, illustrated by Beckie Prange

There are a million others. The complete list is here.

I actually haven't read any of the Newberry books, but I've looked over all of the Caldecotts with the excpetion of Hot Air : The (Mostly) True Story of the First Hot-Air Balloon Ride. And, I gotta say... where I really liked The Hello, Goodbye Window, the illustrations didn't grab me. They're a bit chaotic and if I'm not in the right mood, give me a headache. I like them, but they just weren't the "wowie zowie" type thing you'd expect from a Caldecott award winner, you know?

Now, Zen Shorts really did grab me in that way. The first time I read it I thought "Man, this should get the Caldecott". I didn't see Rosa or Song of the Waterboatman and Other Pond Poems until they started getting "Caldecott Contender" hype, but I think their illustrations both grab more than The Hello, Goodbye Window, especially Song of the Waterboatman and Other Pond Poems, which immediately grabbed me. Rosa didn't grab me in the same way, but I can definitely see why it might grab others...

I just used the word "grab" waaaaaaaaay too much. I apologize.

Touching back briefly on Newberry...

I've flipped through Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow a few times and it looks really good. I've checked The Princess Academy out and will read it soon. I'm also currently listening to Kira-Kira, which won last year. So far, I like it.

AND! I've only about 50 pages left in Unredeemed Captive, The : A Family Story from Early America. It's been worth the re-read.