And the Winners Are.... 2018 American Library Association's Youth Media Awards

The American Library Association has announced their prestigious 2018 Youth Media medals, including their most famous awards for youth fiction, nonfiction and picture books at their annual conference in Denver, Colorado. And here are the winners!

Taking the John Newbery Medal for the most outstanding contribution to children's literature was Hello, Universe, by Erin Estrada Kelly, published by Greenwillow Books.

The three Newbery Honor Award Books for 2018 were Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut," by Derrick Barnes, Long Way Down, by Jason Reynolds, and Piecing Me Together by Renee Watson.

The Randolph Caldecott Medal for the most distinguished American picture book went to Wolf in the Snow by author-illustrator Matthew Cordell, published by Feiwel and Friends. Caldecott Honor Awards went to illustrators Elisha Cooper for his Big Cat, Little Cat, to Gordon C. James for Crown, an Ode to the Fresh Cut, to artist Thi Bui for A Different Pond, and to Jason Chin, for his Grand Canyon.

The Coretta Scott King Author Medal went to Renee Watson for Piecing Me Together. King Autor Honor Awards went to authors Derrick Barnes' Long Way Down, by Jason Reynolds, and The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas. Out of Wonder: Poems Celebrating Poets, illustrated by Ekua Holmes, earned the King Illustrator Award, and Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Medals went to Gordon C. James for Crown: An Ode to a Fresh Cut, and to James E. Ransome for his artwork in Before She Was Harriet: The Story of Harriet Tubman.

The Coretta Scott King/Virginia Hamilton Award for lifetime achievement went to author-illustrator Eloise Greenfield.

The Michael L. Printz Medal for Excellence in Young Adult literature was awarded to Nina LaCour for We Are Okay, published by Dutton Books.

The Theodor Seuss Geisel Award for the the best book for beginning readers was given to author Laurel Snyder and artist Emily Hughes for Charlie & Mouse, and the Young Adult Nonfiction Award was given to Deborah Hiligman for her Vincent and Theo: the Van Gogh Brothers. The Pura Belpre' Award for Latino literature went to La Princessa and the Pea, written by Juana Martinez-Neal.

The Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal for continuing contribution to children's literature went to author Jacqueline Woodson, and Twelve Days in May: Freedom Ride 1961, written by Larry Dane Brimner, received the Robert Sibert Medal for the most distinguished informational book for children.

Other awards and prizes for contribution to children's literature can be seen here.

The Envelope, Please! ALA Youth Media Awards Announced

The American Library Association has revealed their book and media winners for 2016.

Taking the prestigious John Newbery Award for the most outstanding contribution for children's literature was Matt de la Pena, for Last Stop on Market Street (G. P. Putnam's Sons, 2015). Pena becomes the first Hispanic author to win this award.

Newbery Honor Awards go to Kimberly Brubaker Bradley for The War that Saved My Life (Dial Books, 2015) (see my review here), Roller Girl, (Dial Books 2015) by Victoria Jamieson, and Echo (Scholastic Press, 2015) by Pam Munoz Ryan.

The Randolph Caldecott Medal is awarded for the best illustrated book published in the United States. Winning the 2016 Caldecott for Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World's Most Famous Bear (Little, Brown and Company, 2015), the story of the search for the toy bear who became famous as "Winnie-The-Pooh," is illustrator Sophie Blackall. The author was Lindsay Mattick.

Caldecott Honor Medals went to Trombone Shorty(Abrams Books, 2015), illustrated by Bryan Collier and authored by Troy Andrews; Waiting (Greenwillow Books, 2015) written and illustrated by Kevin Henkes, (see my review here); Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer: The Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement (Candlewick Press, 2015), illustrated by Ekua Holmes and written by Carole Boston Weatherford; and the Newbery winner, Last Stop on Market Street (G. P. Putnam's Sons, 2015), illustrated by Christian Robinson.

The 2016 Coretta Scott King Author Award, recognizing an African American author, went to Rita Williams-Garcia for Gone Crazy in Alabama (Harper-Collins, 2015) (see my review here). Illustrator Bryan Collier also took the King Illustrator Award for his work on Trombone Shorty (Abrams Books, 2015). The Coretta Scott King New Talent Author Award went to Ronald L. Smith for Hoodoo (Houghton Mifflin Clarion, 2015) (see my review here).

The Michael L. Printz Award for Young Adult literature was won by Laura Ruby for Bone Gap (Balzer & Bray, 2015).

The Laura Ingalls Wilder Award for life achievement went to Caldecott Award-winning author-illustrator Jerry Pinkney.

The Theodor Seuss Geisel (Dr. Seuss) Award for the most distinguished beginning reader book went to David Adler's Don't Throw It to Mo! (Mo Jackson) (Penguin Young Readers, 2015),illustrated by Sam Ricks.

The Andrew Carnegie Medal for children's video went to Weston Woods Studio for its adaptation of Mo Willems' This Is NOT A Good Idea. (See my review of the book here).

Read the complete list of ALA's awards and winners here.

(Drumroll) The Envelope, Please! The 2015 American Library Association's Awards for Children's and Young Adult Literature

There's snow in Chicago, and that means it is time for the premier children's and young adults awards, especially the venerable John Newbery Medal, given for the best work of literature to the author, and the Randolph Caldecott Medal
for the best-illustrated book, both announced at the American Library Association's Midwinter Meeting, February 2.

And the winners are...

The Newbery Award goes to Kwame Alexander for his novel The Crossover (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2014). In my review of March 19, 2014, I said "Watch for this one to take some honors in the awards for books debuting this year, because it's definitely got game--on-court suspense, real-life characters, and a moving narrative that confronts life changes with all the right moves. Slam-dunk!" Yeah!

Newbery Honor Medals went to El Deafo (Amulet/Abrams, 2014) by Cece Bell, and Brown Girl Dreaming (Nancy Paulsen Books, 2014) by Jacqueline Woodson, which also was the winner of the National Book Award for Young People's Literature. (See review here.)

The Caldecott Medal for illustrations goes to Dan Santat for his The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend (Little, Brown and Company, 2014), reviewed here.

Caldecott Honors wen to The Noisy Paint Box: The Colors and Sounds of Kandisky's Abstract Art, (Alfred A Knopf, 2014), illustrated by Mary Grandpre'; Nana in the City (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Clarion, 2014); Sam and Dave Dig a Hole (Candlewick Press, 2014),illustrated by John Klassen; Viva, Frida (Roaring Brook Press, 2014) illustrated by Yuyi Morales; The Right Word: Roget and his Thesaurus (Eerdman Boks, 2014, illustrated by Melissa Sweet; and This One Summer (First Second, 2014), illustrated by Jillian Tamaki.

The Coretta Scott King Author Awards went to Kwame Alexander for The Crossover (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2014); Marilyn Nelson for How I Discovered Poetry (Dial Books, 2014): and Kekla Magoon for How It Went Down (HenryHolt, 2014).

The Coretta Scott King Illustrator Awards went to Christopher Myers for Firebird (G.P. Putnam's Sons, 2014), Christian Robinson for Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker, (Chronicle Books, 2014), and Frank Morrison, illustrator of Little Melba and Her Big Trombone (Lee and Low, 2014).

The King-Steptoe New Talent Author Award went to Jason Reynolds' When I Was The Greatest (Atheneum Books, 2014)

The Coretta Scott King/Virginia Hamilton Lifetime Achievement Award was given to librarian and literacy advocate Deborah D. Taylor.

The Michael L. Printz Award for Literature for Young Adults was given to Jandy Nelson for I'll Give You the Sun, (Dial Books, 2014).  Honor awards went also to Jossie Ann Foley, The Carnival at Bray, Jenny Hubbard for And We Stay; Andrew Smith, for Grasshopper Jungle, and This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki.

The Schneider Family Book Award for books about disabilities went to A Boy and a Jaguar by Alan Rabinowitz (Houghton Mifflin, 2014) and Rain Reign by Ann M. Martin, published by Feiwel and Friends, 2014). (See reviews here and here.

The Theodor Seuss Geisel Award for Beginning Reader Books was given to You Are Not Small, by Anna King (Two Lions Press, 2012), and honor medals went to Mr. Putter and Tabby Turn the Page (Houghton Mifflin  (Harcourt, 2014), and Waiting Is Not Easy!  (Hyperion Books, 2014). (See reviews here and here.

The YALSA Award for Excellence in Young Adult Nonfiction went to Popular Vintage Wisdom for a Modern Greek, (Dutton Books, 2014) by Maya Van Wagenen.  Honor books include Shane Burcaw's Laughing at My Nightmare (Roaring Brook, 2014), Candace Fleming's The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, & the Fall of Imperial Russia and Ida Tarbell: The Woman Who Challenged Big Business--and Won (Houghton Mifflin Clarion, 2014) by Emily Arnold McCully, (see my review here).

The Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Children's Video was awarded to Weston Woods Studios, Paul Gagne, and Melissa R. Elard, for their film of the Caldecott Honor Book Me . . . Jane (See review of the book here.)

The Laura Ingalls Wilder Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to author-illustrator Donald Crews, and the Margaret A. Edwards Award for Lifetime Achievement in the area of young adult literature want to author Sharon Draper.

A complete listing of book and media awards presented today by the American Library Association may be found here.