Gracias/Thanks to artist John Parra

Dear Santiago Lopez,

What a great site for art and for books, two of my favorite things. Reading, just like art, feeds our noggin and our imagination. It inspires us to be great thinkers and to share ideas with others. I think the concept of kids growing libraries is an absolute home run. Life is great when we all look out for each other and share good things.

Being a children's book illustrator I was thrilled when I got to work on the art for Gracias/Thanks. A big part of why I connected to it begins with Pat Mora’s beautifully written story. It tells of young boy growing up in a multicultural Hispanic home and being thankful for all the special people and things in his life. The story closely reflected my own life growing up. Many of the scenes were events and memories that I had as a child and many of the characters were modeled after my own family. The main character is really a portrait of myself and how I saw my life. My two favorite pages from the book are the scene at the beach, where the waves are crashing and chasing the kids as they play, and the other is where the family is dancing and enjoying along with their guitar playing uncle.

I always loved to draw growing up. I was drawing even before I was in school. I would spend hours looking and examining people and landscapes, birds and bugs, robots and fantastic creatures. I would set up still lifes in my room with toys, blocks, books and various objects. I would draw with my brothers and friends. Once a teacher showed me how to draw perspective and I drew pages and pages of railroad tracks and buildings that would disappear off into the distance. Art always brought out this creative and positive energy in me.

For those who would like to be an artist the first step is: start to draw and draw, make sure to have a special place or area at home where you can do art with your supplies ready to go, and remember to feed your ideas for art by reading books, visiting museums and observing the world. You will then see a path to where your creativity and energies lie in becoming an artist.

All the best,
John Parra



This is a very special book John, you are a great illustrator and all my family loves your art. Looking at these pictures makes a kid smile because it makes you think of all the good things in life to be thankful for. Like going to the beach and that feeling you get when big waves come crashing down near you and your friends. You laugh and scream because it just feels so good. I like listening to my Dad play guitar too and we sing and make up crazy songs.
In Mexico people make little paintings on pieces of tin called retablos and even Frida Kahlo made them. We visited her blue house and the wall was covered with them and they paint them to say thanks like your book. When I saw your art I told my parents that I remembered those paintings about miracles on metal.
I like your ideas to keep drawing and reading and looking at all things in our world like bugs because they can look like they are from outer space. I am learning about perspective too and drawing it makes things feel close or far away. What a good idea John to paint pictures of yourself when you were a kid. I think it looks just like you. I know why kids love your drawings because I think you see the world like we do.

Gracias/Thanks Illustrated by John Parra and written by Pat Mora is a 2010 Pura Belpré Honor book and you can see more of John's amazing paintings at:
http://www.johnparraart.com/

Connecting Reading and Peace with Writer Julia Alvarez

Dear Santiago Lopez,
I think it’s so cool you are doing this. I’m with you that libraries are so important. It’s the house that holds all our stories. That’s why we’ve got to make sure all different kinds of storytellers are allowed to live there, on those shelves.

And I also agree with you about reading being a peace project. When you read, you become someone else. Simple as that! So, you get to understand someone else’s world from the inside out. If we did more of that and less making enemies we would have peace. Maybe every ruler of every country should have to spend part of every day in the library reading? It would be a better world, you think? At least, while they are in the library reading, they aren’t out causing trouble in the world.

You asked for a story from when I was a little girl. Well, back then, I lived in the Dominican Republic under a cruel dictatorship. We didn’t have things like public libraries. Actually, people were afraid to be caught reading or talking about ideas. The dictator thought intellectuals, writers and artists were troublemakers. (He was right! Ask your dad?) So it was a culture of censorship.

So I didn’t grow up reading or seeing people reading. But I did grow up surrounded by wonderful storytellers. Since people didn’t dare to write things down, they learn to say what they needed to say by telling stories. Later, when we fled to the United States, and I became a reader, I realized that even though people in my family were not readers, they were expert storytellers.

When we came to this country, I discovered the library! Wow! I knew I had come to a special place. I think more than the United States, it was in libraries that I discovered the great democracy my family had come searching for in this country. No one was barred from reading. And stories were about all of us in the human family. The story of a slave girl or the story of a prince. Every life was full of mystery and beauty, sadness and joy. And when you read, you are reminded that you are part of one human family.

So, you see, I totally agree with you! Maybe your dad—or heck, you!--can devise a bumpersticker: READ for WORLD PEACE!!!

Julia Alvarez

I saw Julia Alvarez talk in Washington D.C. with my parents and she is such a fantastic writer I wanted to learn more about her. She was born in New York City but when she was a small baby she moved to a place called the Dominican Republic for ten years. Her family had to flee because they were in danger. My parents told me she wrote a famous book for grown ups called How the García Girls Lost Their Accents about a family who had to leave the Dominican Republic.

She writes great books for us kids too.
At our school we learn that bullies are wrong and when she came back to America she met people who were mean to her just because she spoke another language and was different. She felt alone and homesick but books became a good friend. There is a very happy ending to this story because she decided to become a writer and this is a book she gave me called Return to Sender. She is a great storyteller and it won the Pura Belpré medal. It is a chapter book so Mom read it to me and it is a beautiful story and we are getting another to put in our growing library. We also listened to Julia Alvarez read part of it on TeachingBooks.net and you can listen too. She is a great storyteller and talks about what she calls a pebble in her shoe. That means an idea. I like the way she uses her words to paint pictures. Writers can talk like they are singing sweet poems .

Click here to listen to Julia Alvarez:
http://www.teachingbooks.net/book_reading.cgi?id=3951&a=1
You have to go to Julia Alvarez's website to know more about her books. There is a beautiful drawing of her there with very long hair and many things floating inside it-like her ideas.

Thank you Julia Alvarez for writing to us and I really, really like your books and ideas about peace. http://www.juliaalvarez.com/

Exercise your imagination in a pumpkin patch

A big part of what makes Halloween fun is reading spooky stories. Around this time of year I start to think about one of my favorite storytellers Chris Van Allsburg. He knows how to tell stories with pictures and words. I live right in the city but every year we get to drive out to the country to look for a pumpkin.

We have been reading the Chris Van Allsburg books in my third grade class and Just yesterday we read Two Bad Ants. I decided to bring along The Polar Express for the drive to the country because it is one of my all time favorites. I just found out it won the Caldecott Medal in 1986. I like to go off by myself and think about things and books are my good friend.

Have you seen the pictures Chris draws? He uses pencils and his drawings can be so amazing and spooky. I like the books he does because there are some scary parts when you don't know what will happen. I am just one of those kids who likes to get scared sometimes and not know what is going to happen and this makes me feel so excited. His stories and drawings will do that to you. I like his ideas and have learned it is important to exercise your imagination. He can really draw and something you will notice is that he puts this little white dog in his books. Many artists like to draw from real life. This dog was a bull terrier named Winston that belonged to his brother but died. He remembers him by putting him in all his books and I like looking for that dog.

I want to tell you about a really great part of his website called The Mysteries of Harris Burdick. You can look at these mysterious pictures and make up stories. We did it in Mrs. Merrill's class and it was fun. You could also draw another picture to tell the next part of the story or act them out for your family. You can have fun and exercise your imagination and if you like to write down your stories Chris might put your words on his website.

Click right here to give it a try.
http://www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/features/harrisburdick/introduction.html
There are tips for kids who want to write too:
http://www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/features/harrisburdick/tips_for_writers.html

PLEASE Keep Reading CLICK ON 2010 Under BLOG ARCHIVE (at the top of the blog on the right) because we want you to see ALL of our October posts from writers and illustrators. They include Pura Belpré and Americas Award winning illustrators and authors, Monica Brown, Rafael López and Pam Muñoz Ryan who teach us about books. You can also learn about our school and view a list of the Newberry, Caldecott, Pura Belpré and Coretta Scott King Medal books.

Getting our idea rolling

Monica Brown's The Biblioburro gave us an idea. While our library grows we need a way to get the books to our readers. We are working hard. Just take a look what we have collected so far!

This little book cart will be our burro, our Alfa and Beto and the start of the library. Big ideas start with small seeds and to get our idea rolling my mom and dad helped us get this moving bookshelf for the collection of amazing books we are growing. As our library builds we can roll it around to the different classrooms at the San Diego Cooperative Charter School.

My good friend Pierre in the photo is already a writer. He created these wonderful stories and poems about our peace project that you have to see.

I love books.
I love to read because I get to explore things that are funny and different than my world.
I love to read because it means I'm never bored.


Have you ever heard of an acrostic poem? There is some magic in it, you will see!

Love
Interesting
Beautiful
Rewarding
Awesome
Rich
You can help build our library!




Once there was a boy who planted a book.

He watered it every day.

He told his friends about it and they wanted to plant books too.

One night it rained and when the children woke up there were books sprouting from the ground.
Every book planted turned into 5!

Every kid had a book to read and they lived happily ever after.

Thanks Pierre for your poetry and beautiful writing.


Every month we get to walk about a mile to the the library nearest our school. It's an adventure and we get to check out books about things that we like! Mom and Dad take me to the downtown library too. Last visit I wanted books on Greek myths because my teacher read us some and I thought the stories were incredible. Like Jason and the Argonauts and the story of Phineas the blind man whose food was stolen by Harpies [creatures with the body of a bird and human heads]. I couldn't wait to make pictures of these stories after I heard them and here are my drawings of these big adventures.

Librarians are smart and friendly and they can tell you just where to go to find the book you want. You know what else is great about the library-you don't have to pay to look at books and can take them to your house for a few weeks. If you want to be a writer like Pierre or an artist like me the library can help you learn and have fun doing it.

If you don't know how to find a library near you there is a website that can help.
Tell your family.
http://www.publiclibraries.com/

The Association for Library Service to Children [ALSC] is part of the American Library Association and they are the world's biggest club working to make libraries better for kids.

We believe libraries and books are so important and we are ready to roll. We want to grow a library for our school because we don't have one.

PLEASE MAKE SURE TO CLICK ON OLDER POSTS IN THE LOWER RIGHT CORNER TO SEE SOME AMAZING ART AND STORIES.

Author Monica Brown talks about growing libraries

Dear Santiago,

I’ve been reading your words and looking at your beautiful art and Wow! I love the idea of “growing” libraries, because like flowers and gardens—libraries need special attention. They may not need sun and water, but they need parents and children and librarians who care about books—children just like you. When I was a kid, I was always escaping into a book. No matter if I was bored or lonely or grumpy—I could open the pages of a book and escape into an adventure of words and art. I think every child should be able to fly away with books, don’t you?

I just finished writing a very special book, called Waiting for the Biblioburro, illustrated by John Parra. I learned so much about libraries and what hard working people will do to bring books to children. Did you know that in Kenya, there are camel caravans that deliver books to nomads in the desert? In Sweden, there’s a “floating library” that delivers books to islands. And my book is about Luis Soriano, who lives in Colombia and who delivers books to poor children in remote villages with the help of his two donkeys, Alfa and Beto! If they can do it—so can we. And I’d like to help by donating a few books to YOUR library of choice.

From one book-lover to another, I wish you and the children of your community the very best!

Monica

Dear Monica-
Thank you for writing back to me! You are incredible and have made so many wonderful books that I have seen like My name is Celia about Celia Cruz who sang so beautifully. You made books about other famous people like My Name is Gabito, My Name is Gabriela. These people are famous writers, poets and music makers right? I like reading and learning about these people who did great things.

What a great idea for a story Monica to write about Luis Soriano delivering books to kids on a burro. I live part of the year in a town in Mexico called San Miguel de Allende and every day I see burros coming down the hill. They carry wood or sacks of dirt in baskets that the farmers sell in town. How I wish that there was a burro in our town who would bring books to kids out in the country who can't get to the library. That is such a good idea I will have to tell the librarians I met there about it and and I can't wait to read this and look at all the pictures.

The story you wrote goes so well with our project of growing a library that it would make me so happy if you would help us get your book. Could you sign it for our school when it is ready for kids to read? We are making the San Diego Cooperative Charter School library and you can write on the front page that is for us kids. Thank you for sending the pages as I love those amazing pictures by John Parra, I really like how he draws because it makes you feel like you are there and are part of your story. I asked mom today to help me write to him to see if he can talk to us about making art for children's books. Thank you for helping us with this Peace Project and now I know how much you like books like me. I thought you did but now I am sure it's true.

My parents helped me go to your website. Because you are a teacher and a mom they told me how you made a list of all these ideas to help teachers and kids learn more about the books you wrote. I hope people will click here to see all the good things you are doing:
http://www.monicabrown.net

































































John this last painting is my favorite. I love the one with all the kids listening to stories. There is a drawing I saw once by a great artist Diego Rivera and a teacher is sitting out in the country reading to kids. I will try to find that picture to show you and Monica. It reminds me of when my teacher Mrs. Merrill reads to us. She has a beautiful wooden rocking chair and a beautiful smile and very curly hair.

Illustrator Rafael López invites you to a Book Fiesta!

When I started this project I knew I wanted to talk to writers and artists to see what they thought about growing a library. The first person I knew I should talk to about this was my Dad Rafael. He is an artist who makes children's books. I will tell you a secret. He always has paint all over his hands and sometimes his face and then he drives to school to get me and has a big purple dot on his nose. This is a very special book he painted that was written by Pat Mora. It has a very big idea in the words and pictures: READ! Anytime, anywhere is a good place to read a book. Even in a crazy submarine. You can imagine you are a pirate or a mermaid or that you are riding on the back of a huge elephant. Look at his paintings and you will see what I am talking about.




So here are some questions I asked my Dad about being a children's book illustrator:

Dad why do you think it is important to grow a library?

When you read books it helps you grow your imagination. You can travel to faraway places without ever leaving home.

Tell me a story about you making art when you were a kid?
When I was a kid I loved to draw so much that Grandma Pillo asked my Uncle who worked at a paper mill to help. He gave me these big gigantic rolls of paper. I would move all the furniture and roll them out from one end of the room to another. I remember drawing an amazing parade with calaca cats [those are skeleton cats] and goat drummers. I worked on it for days. When I ran out of paper your grandmother told me I could draw on the walls. Your aunties got really mad at her and said she shouldn't do that but she whispered in my ear to keep going.
When I got a little bit older we learned how to make our own paints the way the native people of Mexico did. We ground them from rocks and plants. We put the powder in these little bottles, added water and vegetable oil and I painted my room so that it looked like an Egyptian tomb. It took me a year and I got the idea from looking at a story about King Tut in National Geographic. Grandma Pillo kept the room just the way I left it and you remember how bright the colors still are, don't you?

If you were a child like me or my friends and wanted to paint books one day what would you do?
I think the most important thing to do first is to draw, draw and then draw some more. Whenever you can tell your friends and your family to get you notebooks and pens and colored pencils. Practice every day and keep all your notebooks so you can see how you are getting better. When you go to restaurants and they give you something to draw with do it. Walk around with a sketchpad and draw what you see in life. Each week find your favorite drawings and make your own story to go with it. Write the story out. Maybe you want to make more than one picture to go with your story. Before you know it you will have a book!

Dad, what is a book fiesta?The idea is to have a party to celebrate Children's Day/Book Day on April 30th.This is what Pat Mora was talking about when she wrote Book Fiesta! Maybe you and Pierre can get help and organize a party at your school on April 30th and everyone can look at all the wonderful books you have collected to grow this library. You can count on me to give all the books I have painted so far. I know you can get this done and have lots of fun as this is a really good idea. If we can get a space for this library we can do a mural there with the kids, parents and teachers. We should make the library a really beautiful place where kids will want to relax and read. We can start drawing some ideas for it this weekend.

You can see more of Book Fiesta that won the 2010 Pura Belpré for illustration and other books my Dad painted by clicking below and going to his blog:
http://rafaellopezbooks.blogspot.com
He also has a website at: http://www.rafaellopez.com

Writer Pam Muñoz Ryan has some great ideas to tell us about

We were talking about really great books and a real writer wrote back to me. Her name is Pam Muñoz Ryan and she has written many wonderful books including Esperanza Rising that is on the booklist mom helped me to make. Here is what she had to say...

Why do you think it is a good idea for kids to grow libraries?

Growing a library is as important as growing a garden. There is no limit to the harvest. After you finish a book, you are always something new, something more than what you were before.

Can you tell us about your book Esperanza Rising that won the Pura Belpré? How did you get the idea?

ESPERANZA RISING is a story that parallels my grandmother's immigration journey from Aguascalientes, Mexico to the San Joaquin Valley of California in 1930.

What made you want to write children's books and do you have any tips for kids who want to be writers?

I became a professional writer because of my love of books and my desire to have a vocation that had something to do with books. At first, I thought that would be teaching, but I discovered later on, that it was writing to which I was drawn.

I don't think that all children should necessarily want to be professional writers. That would be like saying that all children should want to be dentists or plumbers or computer programmers. But I do think that all children should learn to write well, because no matter what they choose to do in their lives, they will need to communicate by writing.

Pam sent my Dad one of her latest books called the Dreamer. It is a story of a boy from Chile, who she says traveled a challenging road that led him to become the most read poet in the world. The name of this poet is Pablo Neruda. Have you ever heard of him? My mom read me some of his poems and I have to say they are very beautiful. If you listen to them quietly you will get ideas for pictures.

With my parents I went to Pam's website and you can too by clicking right here on this link:
http://www.pammunozryan.com/index.html

She listed some great links there for kids who want to be writers and my teacher Mrs. Lau liked them so much she put them on our class blog. You should talk about them at your school too.
Check out the following web sites:

Where can a young writer get published???
http://www.aprilwayland.com/students_pub.htm

Beth Brust's Ten Truths about Writing
http://www.tmisnet.com/~bethbrust/tentruth.html

Aaron Shepard's Young Authors Page
http://aaronshep.com/youngauthor/index.html

Ralph Fletcher's Tips for Young Writers
http://www.ralphfletcher.com/TfYw.html

StoneSoup.com for young writers and artists
http://www.stonesoup.com/main2/printmagazines.html

Thank you Pam for telling us all about this and for writing back to us.

My poster

Growing a library is as important as growing a garden. There is no limit to the harvest. After you finish a book, you are always something new, something more than what you were before.

-Pam Muñoz Ryan/children's book author



I drew this poster to let other people know about growing a library for our school.

I think books are really special just like the kids at my school.

Imagine if we could put the two together. Great things would happen. I am going to need help but I just know we can grow a library.

I've got some really BIG NEWS! My friend Pierre Cozic is going to do this Peace Project with me! He told me yesterday and I'm happy because he is a great writer and I need him. His dad is a writer too. I like to draw and my dad is an artist who makes children's books. This is going to be fun and Pierre is really smart so he can help me get this going.

I want to grow a library.

Please click the arrow to listen to a message.


Get a Voki now!


My name is Santiago López and I am eight years old and my teachers are Mrs. Merrill DeGraff and Mrs. Mary Lau. As part of third grade we are doing Peace Projects. I want to help others and help myself by learning and do something to help my neighborhood.

My idea is to grow a library for my school and help other kids do it too at their schools. My mom and Dad are going to help me with this blog and the project and I will need my friends too. I will need the help of great writers and artists who make books because they have good ideas and love books too like me.

That is why I started this blog and I hope it works!

If you want to see my other blog where I keep some drawings you can click right here:
http://santiagorlopez.blogspot.com

About my school

At my school our teachers taught me to really love books. Last year in 2nd grade Miss Karen read many stories by Roald Dahl and he is my favorite writer. Once I heard his stories I told my mom and dad I wanted to read them all. When I was trying to think of an idea for my peace project I drew this picture of the spirit of Roald Dahl. In my drawing I was reading and he gave me an idea to grow a library.
Here are some pictures I made of his characters from the Fantastic Mr. Fox and the BFG.
This is what I mean when I tell you that when you read books you get good ideas.






































I go to the San Diego Cooperative Charter School and our principal is Dr. Wendy. We think our school is special because the students, teachers and parents care about it and each other. I think our peace project is a really good idea and I can't wait to see what the other kids want to do. I asked mom who was in charge and she told me his name is Superintendent Bill Kowba and we are a public school of the San Diego Unified School District. I am going to need to draw some pictures for him and have my friend Pierre make a poem to tell him about our idea to grow a library.

Our teachers have books in each of their rooms but there is not a real deal library at our school. I wish there was a place we could all go before, during and after school and sit and read books.


We have art with Miss Bell [that is her jumping high] and music with Mr. Michael each week and this makes learning so much fun. We fixed up our school and changed the way it looked when we got it. The children and parents planted gardens with flowers, fruits and vegetables and we can go and relax there. My dad is an artist and he has designed 3 murals that we have painted together with the families at our school. I think they are beautiful and I wanted to show you so you know about my school.

I think we should have shelves of really good books to read and ones with fantastic drawings and paintings. I want soft, comfy chairs where I could sit and be quiet and just go places in the books. That is why I want a library for our school and it is my project. I think kids at other schools should have libraries in their schools too. They could check out books and bring them home and read and draw ideas.

The Newberry and Caldecott Medal Books

My teachers made a website all about our 3rd grade class:

http://www.thirdistheword.webs.com/

Right there in the resources my teachers talk about a group of librarians the American Library Association. Every year they work hard to look for some of the best books in the world. All these librarians know what they are doing and they pick books that are REALLY special.

There are the winners and honor books for the:

Newberry Medal-awarded each year by the American Library Association for the best American children's book published the previous year.

Caldecott Medal-There once was a famous English illustrator named Randolph Caldecott. They give this medal to the artist who illustrates the best American picture book for kids.

Pura Belpré Medal-This one goes to the writer and illustrator who best shows and celebrates Latino culture in a book for children.

Coretta Scott King Award-awarded to outstanding books for young adults and children by African American authors and illustrators that reflect the African American experience.

I know about the medals because in June I got to go to Washington D.C. with my family. My Dad got the Pura Belpré medal for a story he painted called Book Fiesta that a really great writer named Pat Mora wrote. We have the medal at our home and it is shiny and heavy. I want to show it to you so you know what it looks like. I got to go to lots of museums and see the Washington monument. The very best part was that I got lots of books from amazing writers and artists who were there and got to bring them home to my house!

I decided this would be a great way to start deciding what some of the best books for my school would be. My idea is to make a list and then make a poster and put it up at my school. I hope that some of the parents and grandparents and friends might adopt a book for our school and I will work hard to get them all so kids can read them while we grow our library.

The Newbery Medal is awarded annually by the American Library Association for the most distinguished American children's book published the previous year.




2010 Medal Winner: When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead (Wendy Lamb Books, an imprint of Random House Children's Books)

2009 Medal Winner: The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman, illus. by Dave McKean (HarperCollins)

2008 Medal Winner: Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village by Laura Amy Schlitz (Candlewick)

2007 Medal Winner: The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron, illus. by Matt Phelan (Simon & Schuster/Richard Jackson)

2006 Medal Winner: Criss Cross by Lynne Rae Perkins (Greenwillow Books/HarperCollins)

2005 Medal Winner: Kira-Kira by Cynthia Kadohata (Atheneum Books for Young Readers/Simon & Schuster)

2004 Medal Winner: The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Timothy Basil Ering, (Candlewick Press)

2003 Medal Winner: Crispin: The Cross of Lead by Avi (Hyperion Books for Children)

2002 Medal Winner: A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park (Clarion Books/Houghton Mifflin)

2001 Medal Winner: A Year Down Yonder by by Richard Peck (Dial)

2000 Medal Winner: Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis (Delacorte)

1999 Medal Winner: Holes by Louis Sachar (Frances Foster)

1998 Medal Winner: Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse (Scholastic)

1997 Medal Winner: The View from Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg (Jean Karl/Atheneum)

1996 Medal Winner: The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman (Clarion)

1995 Medal Winner: Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech (HarperCollins)

1994 Medal Winner: The Giver by Lois Lowry (Houghton)

1993 Medal Winner: Missing May by Cynthia Rylant (Jackson/Orchard)

1992 Medal Winner: Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor (Atheneum)

1991 Medal Winner: Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli (Little, Brown)

1990 Medal Winner: Number the Stars by Lois Lowry (Houghton)

1989 Medal Winner: Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices by Paul Fleischman (Harper)

1988 Medal Winner: Lincoln: A Photobiography by Russell Freedman (Clarion)

1987 Medal Winner: The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman (Greenwillow)

1986 Medal Winner: Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan (Harper)

1985 Medal Winner: The Hero and the Crown by Robin McKinley (Greenwillow)

1984 Medal Winner: Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Cleary (Morrow)

1983 Medal Winner: Dicey's Song by Cynthia Voigt (Atheneum)

1982 Medal Winner: A Visit to William Blake's Inn: Poems for Innocent and Experienced Travelers by Nancy Willard (Harcourt)

1981 Medal Winner: Jacob Have I Loved by Katherine Paterson (Crowell)

1980 Medal Winner: A Gathering of Days: A New England Girl's Journal, 1830-1832 by Joan W. Blos (Scribner)

1979 Medal Winner: The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin (Dutton)

1978 Medal Winner: Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson (Crowell)

1977 Medal Winner: Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor (Dial)

1976 Medal Winner: The Grey King by Susan Cooper (McElderry/Atheneum)

1975 Medal Winner: M. C. Higgins, the Great by Virginia Hamilton (Macmillan)


This medal is to be given to the artist who had created the most distinguished picture book of the year and named in honor of the nineteenth-century English illustrator Randolph J. Caldecott.



2010: The Lion & the Mouse by Jerry Pinkney (Little, Brown and Company)
2009: The House in the Night illustrated by Beth Krommes, written by Susan Marie Swanson (Houghton Mifflin Company)
2008: The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick (Scholastic Press, an imprint of Scholastic)
2007: Flotsam by David Wiesner (Clarion)
2006: The Hello, Goodbye Window Illustrated by Chris Raschka, written by Norton Juster (Michael di Capua/Hyperion)
2005: Kitten's First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes (Greenwillow Books/HarperCollinsPublishers)
2004: The Man Who Walked Between the Towers by Mordicai Gerstein (Roaring Brook Press/Millbrook Press)
2003: My Friend Rabbit by Eric Rohmann (Roaring Brook Press/Millbrook Press)
2002: The Three Pigs by David Wiesner (Clarion/Houghton Mifflin)
2001: So You Want to Be President? Illustrated by David Small; text by Judith St. George (Philomel Books)
2000: Joseph Had a Little Overcoat by Simms Taback (Viking)
1999: Snowflake Bentley, Illustrated by Mary Azarian; text by Jacqueline Briggs Martin (Houghton)
1998: Rapunzel by Paul O. Zelinsky (Dutton)
1997: Golem by David Wisniewski (Clarion)
1996: Officer Buckle and Gloria by Peggy Rathmann (Putnam)
1995: Smoky Night , illustrated by David Diaz; text: Eve Bunting (Harcourt)
1994: Grandfather's Journey by Allen Say; text: edited by Walter Lorraine (Houghton)
1993: Mirette on the High Wire by Emily Arnold McCully (Putnam)
1992: Tuesday by David Wiesner (Clarion Books)
1991: Black and White by David Macaulay (Houghton)
1990: Lon Po Po: A Red-Riding Hood Story from China by Ed Young (Philomel)
1989: Song and Dance Man , illustrated by Stephen Gammell; text: Karen Ackerman (Knopf)
1988: Owl Moon , illustrated by John Schoenherr; text: Jane Yolen (Philomel)
1987: Hey, Al , illustrated by Richard Egielski; text: Arthur Yorinks (Farrar)
1986: The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg (Houghton)
1985: Saint George and the Dragon , illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman; text: retold by Margaret Hodges (Little, Brown)
1984: The Glorious Flight: Across the Channel with Louis Bleriot by Alice & Martin Provensen (Viking)
1983: Shadow , translated and illustrated by Marcia Brown; original text in French: Blaise Cendrars (Scribner)
1982: Jumanji by Chris Van Allsburg (Houghton)
1981: Fables by Arnold Lobel (Harper)
1980: Ox-Cart Man , illustrated by Barbara Cooney; text: Donald Hall (Viking)
1979: The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses by Paul Goble (Bradbury)
1978: Noah's Ark by Peter Spier (Doubleday)
1977: Ashanti to Zulu: African Traditions , illustrated by Leo & Diane Dillon; text: Margaret Musgrove (Dial)
1976: Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears , illustrated by Leo & Diane Dillon; text: retold by Verna Aardema (Dial)
1975: Arrow to the Sun by Gerald McDermott (Viking)

Pura Belpré Books

The Pura Belpré Award, established in 1996, is presented to a Latino/Latina writer and illustrator whose work best portrays, affirms, and celebrates the Latino cultural experience in an outstanding work of literature for children and youth.









2010
Narrative:
Julia Alvarez. Return to Sender,published by Alfred A. Knopf.
Illustration:
Rafael López. Book Fiesta!: Celebrate Children’s Day/Book Day; Celebremos El día de los niños/El día de los libros, Written by Pat Mora, HarperCollins Publishers

2009
Narrative:
Margarita Engle. The Surrender Tree: Poems of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom (Henry Holt)
Illustration:
Yuyi Morales. Just In Case (A Neal Porter Book published by Roaring Brook Press)

2008
Narrative
Margarita Engle. The Poet Slave of Cuba: A Biography of Juan Francisco Manzano. Illustrated by Sean Qualls (Holt, 2006)
Illustration
Yuyi Morales. Los Gatos Black on Halloween. Written by Marisa Montes. (Holt, 2006)

2006
Narrative
Viola Canales. The Tequila Worm. (Wendy Lamb Books, a division of Random House, 2005).
Illustration
Raul Colón. Doña Flor: A Tall Tale About a Giant Woman with a Great Big Heart. Written by Pat Mora. (Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House, 2005)

2004
Narrative
Julia Alvarez. Before We Were Free. (Alfred A. Knopf, 2002)
Illustration
Yuyi Morales. Just a Minute: A Trickster Tale and Counting Book (Chronicle Books, 2003)

2002
Narrative
Pam Munoz Ryan. Esperanza Rising (Scholastic Press, 2000)
Illustration
Susan Guevara. Chato and the Party Animals. Written by Gary Soto. (G.P. Putnam's Sons, 2000)

2000
Narrative
Alma Flor Ada. Under the Royal Palms: A Childhood in Cuba. (Atheneum Books, 1998).
Illustration
Carmen Lomas Garza. Magic Windows. (Children's Book Press, 1999).

1998
Narrative
Victor Martinez. Parrot in the Oven: mi vida. (Joanna Cotler/HarperCollins, 1996).
Illustration
Stephanie Garcia. Snapshots from the Wedding. Written by Gary Soto. (Putnam, 1997).

1996
Narrative
Judith Ortiz Cofer. An Island Like You: Stories of the Barrio (Melanie Kroupa / Orchard Books, 1995).
Illustration
Susan Guevara. Chato's Kitchen Written by Gary Soto. (Putnam, 1995).

Coretta Scott King Awards

Designed to commemorate the life and works of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and to honor Mrs. Coretta Scott King for her courage and determination to continue the work for peace, the Coretta Scott King Book Awards annually recognize outstanding books for young adults and children by African American authors and illustrators that reflect the African American experience. Further, the Award encourages the artistic expression of the black experience via literature and the graphic arts in biographical, social, and historical treatments by African American authors and illustrators.

2010 Author Award Winner
“Bad News for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves, Deputy U.S. Marshal,” written by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson, is the King Author Book winner. The book is illustrated by R. Gregory Christie, published by Carolrhoda Books, a division of Lerner Publishing Group, Inc.
Illustrator Award Winner
“My People,” illustrated by Charles R. Smith Jr., is the King Illustrator Book winner. The book was written by Langston Hughes and published by ginee seo books, Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

2009 Author Award Winner
We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball written and illustrated by Kadir Nelson (published by Disney-Jump at the Sun, an imprint of Disney Book Group)
Illustrator Award Winner
The Blacker the Berry illus. by Floyd Cooper (published by Joanna Cotler Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers)

2008 Author Award Winner
Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis (published by Scholastic)
Illustrator Award Winner
Let it Shine written and illusrated by Ashley Bryan (published by Atheneum Books for Young Readers)

2007 Author Award Winner
Copper Sun by Sharon Draper (published by Simon & Schuster/Atheneum Books for Young Readers)
Illustrator Award Winner
Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom illus. by Kadir Nelson, written by Carole Boston Weatherford (published by Jump at the Sun/Hyperion Books for Children)

2006 Author Award Winner
Day of Tears: A Novel in Dialogue by Julius Lester (published by Jump at the Sun, an imprint of Hyperion Books for Children)
Illustrator Award Winner
Rosa by Nikki Giovanni, illustrated by Bryan Collier (published by Henry Holt and Company)

2005 Author Award Winner
Remember: The Journey to School Integration by Toni Morrison (Houghton Mifflin)
Illustrator Award Book
Ellington Was Not a Street, illustrated by Kadir A. Nelson; text by Ntozake Shange (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)

2004 Author Award Winner
The First Part Last by Angela Johnson (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)
Illustrator Award Book
Beautiful Blackbird by Ashley Bryan (Atheneum Books for Young Readers)

2003 Author Award Winner
Bronx Masquerade by Nikki Grimes (Dial Books for Young Readers)
Illustrator Award Winner
Talkin’ About Bessie: The Story of Aviator Elizabeth Coleman, illustrated by E. B. Lewis; text by Nikki Grimes (Orchard Books/Scholastic)

2002 Author Award Winner
The Land by Mildred Taylor (Phyllis Fogelman Books/Penguin Putnam)
Illustrator Award Winner
Goin’ Someplace Special, illustrated by Jerry Pinkney; text by Patricia McKissack (Anne Schwartz Book/Atheneum)

2001 Author Award Winner
Miracle’s Boys by Jacqueline Woodson (G.P. Putnam’s Sons)
Illustrator Award Winner
Uptown by Bryan Collier (Henry Holt)

2000 Author Award Winner
Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis (Delacorte)
Illustrator Award Winner
In the Time of the Drums, illustrated by Brian Pinkney; text by Kim L. Siegelson (Jump at the Sun/Hyperion Books for Children)

1999 Author Award Winner
Heaven by Angela Johnson (Simon & Schuster)
Illustrator Award Winner
i see the rhythm, illustrated by Michele Wood; text by Toyomi Igus (Children’s Book Press)

1998 Author Award Winner
Forged by Fire by Sharon M. Draper (Atheneum)
Illustrator Award Winner
In Daddy’s Arms I am Tall: African Americans Celebrating Fathers, illustrated by Javaka Steptoe; text by Alan Schroeder (Lee & Low)

1997 Author Award Winner
Slam by Walter Dean Myers (Scholastic)
Illustrator Award Winner
Minty: A Story of Young Harriet Tubman, illustrated by Jerry Pinkney; text by Alan Schroeder (Dial Books for Young Readers)

1996 Author Award Winner
Her Stories by Virginia Hamilton (Scholastic/Blue Sky Press)
Illustrator Award Winner
The Middle Passage: White Ships Black Cargo by Tom Feelings (Dial Books for Young Readers)

1995 Author Award Winner
Christmas in the Big House, Christmas in the Quarters by Patricia C. & Frederick L. McKissack (Scholastic)
Author Honor Books
Illustrator Award Winner
The Creation, illustrated by James Ransome; text by James Weldon Johnson (Holiday House)