The American Library Association (ALA) announced the top books, video, and audiobooks for children and young adults–including the Caldecott, Coretta Scott King, Newbery, and Printz awards–at its Midwinter Meeting in Dallas.
A list of all the 2012 award winners follows:
John Newbery Medal for the most outstanding contribution to children's literature:Dead End in Norvelt written by Jack Gantos
Newbery Honor Books: Inside Out & Back Againwritten by Thanhha Lai and
Breaking Stalin’s Nose written and illustrated by Eugene Yelchin
Randolph Caldecott Medal for the most distinguished American picture book for children: A Ball for Daisy illustrated and written by Chris Raschka
Caldecott Honor Books: Blackout illustrated and written by John Rocco, Grandpa Green illustrated and written by Lane Smith, and Me … Jane illustrated and written by Patrick McDonnell
Michael L. Printz Award for excellence in literature written for young adults: Where Things Come Back written by John Corey Whaley
Printz Honor Books: Why We Broke Up written by Daniel Handler, art by Maira Kalman,
The Returning written by Christine Hinwood,
Jasper Jones written by Craig Silvey, and
The Scorpio Races written by Maggie Stiefvater
Coretta Scott King (Author) Book Award recognizing an African American author and illustrator of outstanding books for children and young adults: Kadir Nelson, author and illustrator of
Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans King Author Honor Book recipients: Eloise Greenfield, author of The Great Migration: Journey to the North illustrated by Jan Spivey Gilchrist, and Patricia C. McKissack, author of Never Forgotten illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon
Coretta Scott King (Illustrator) Book Award: Shane W. Evans, illustrator and author of Underground: Finding the Light to Freedom
King Illustrator Honor Book recipient: Kadir Nelson, illustrator and author of Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans
Coretta Scott King – Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement: Ashley Bryan, storyteller, artist, author, poet and musician
Schneider Family Book Award for books that embody an artistic expression of the disability experience, middle school award (ages 9 – 13): close to famous written by Joan Bauer and Wonderstruck: A Novel in Words and Pictures written by Brian Selznick; teen (ages 14-18) award: The Running Dream written by Wendelin Van Draanen
Alex Awards for the 10 best adult books that appeal to teen audiences: Big Girl Small by Rachel DeWoskin, In Zanesville by Jo Ann Beard, The Lover’s Dictionary by David Levithan, The New Kids: Big Dreams and Brave Journeys at a High School for Immigrant Teens by Brooke Hauser, The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, Ready Player One by Ernest Cline, Robopocalypse: A Novel by Daniel H. Wilson, Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward, The Scrapbook of Frankie Pratt: A Novel in Pictures by Caroline Preston,and The Talk-Funny Girl by Roland Merullo
Andrew Carnegie Medal for excellence in children's video: Paul R. Gagne and Melissa Reilly Ellard of Weston Woods Studios, Inc., producers of Children Make Terrible Pets based on the book written by Peter Brown, narrated by Emily Eiden, with music by Jack Sundrud and Rusty Young, and animation by Soup2Nuts.
Margaret A. Edwards Award for lifetime achievement in writing for young adults: Susan Cooper, The Dark Is Rising Sequence
May Hill Arbuthnot Honor Lecture Award recognizing an author, critic, librarian, historian or teacher of children's literature, who then presents a lecture at a winning host site: Michael Morpurgo, War Horse
Mildred L. Batchelder Award for an outstanding children's book translated from a foreign language and subsequently published in the United States: Soldier Bear written by Bibi Dumon Tak, illustrated by Philip Hopman, translated by Laura Watkinson
Batchelder Honor Book: The Lily Pond written by Annika Thor and translated by Linda Schenck
Odyssey Award for best audiobook produced for children and/or young adults, available in English in the United States: Rotters produced Listening Library, an imprint of Random House Audio Publishing Group, Random House, Inc., written by Daniel Kraus, and narrated by Kirby Heyborne.
Odyssey Honor audiobooks: Ghetto Cowboy produced by Brilliance Audio, written by G. Neri, and narrated by JD Jackson; Okay for Now produced by Listening Library, an imprint of Random House Audio Publishing Group, Random House, Inc., written by Gary D. Schmidt, and narrated by Lincoln Hoppe; The Scorpio Races, produced by Scholastic Inc., Scholastic Audiobooks, written by Maggie Stiefvater, and narrated by Steve West and Fiona Hardingham; and Young Fredle produced by Listening Library, an imprint of Random House Audio Publishing Group, Random House, Inc., written by Cynthia Voigt and narrated by Wendy Carter
Pura Belpré (Illustrator) Award honoring a Latino writer and illustrator whose children's books best portray, affirm and celebrate the Latino cultural experience: Diego Rivera: His World and Ours illustrated by Duncan Tonatiuh and written by Duncan Tonatiuh
Belpré Illustrator Honor Books: The Cazuela that the Farm Maiden Stirred illustrated by Rafael López and written by Samantha R. Vamos and Marisol McDonald Doesn’t Match /Marisol McDonald no combina illustrated by Sara Palacios and written by Monica Brown
Pura Belpré (Author) Award: Under the Mesquite written by Guadalupe Garcia McCall
Belpré Author Honor Books: Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck written by Margarita Engle and Maximilian and the Mystery of the Guardian Angel: A Bilingual Lucha Libre Thriller written by Xavier Garza
Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award for most distinguished informational book for children: Balloons over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy’s Parade written by Melissa Sweet
Sibert Honor Books: Black & White: The Confrontation between Reverend Fred L. Shuttlesworth and Eugene ‘Bull’ Connor written by Larry Dane Brimnerand, Drawing from Memory written and illustrated by Allen Sayand, The Elephant Scientist written by Caitlin O’Connell and Donna M. Jackson, photographs by Caitlin O’Connell and Timothy Rodwell, and Witches!: The Absolutely True Tale of Disaster in Salem written and illustrated by Rosalyn Schanzer
Stonewall Book Award - Mike Morgan & Larry Romans Children’s & Young Adult Literature Award given annually to English-language children’s and young adult books of exceptional merit relating to the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender experience: Putting Makeup on the Fat Boy written by Bil Wright
Honor Books: a + e 4ever drawn and written by Ilike Merey, Money Boy written by Paul Yee, Pink written by Lili Wilkinson, and with or without you written by Brian Farrey
Theodor Seuss Geisel Award for the most distinguished beginning reader book: Tales for Very Picky Eaters written and illustrated by Josh Schneider
Geisel Honor Books: I Broke My Trunk written and illustrated by Mo Willems, I Want My Hat Back written and illustrated by Jon Klassen, and See Me Run written and illustrated by Paul Meisel
William C. Morris Award for a debut book published by a first-time author writing for teens: Where Things Come Back written by John Corey Whaley
Finalists for the award: Girl of Fire and Thorns written by Rae Carson, Paper Covers Rock written by Jenny Hubbard, Under the Mesquite written by Guadalupe Garcia McCall, and Between Shades of Gray written by Ruta Sepetys
YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults honors the best nonfiction book published for young adults, ages 12 – 18, each year: The Notorious Benedict Arnold: A True Story of Adventure, Heroism & Treachery written by Steve Sheinkin
Finalists for the award: Sugar Changed the World: A Story of Magic, Spice, Slavery, Freedom and Science written by Marc Aronson and Marina Budhos,
Bootleg: Murder, Moonshine, and the Lawless Years of Prohibition written by Karen Blumenthal,
Wheels of Change: How Women Rode the Bicycle to Freedom (With a Few Flat Tires Along the Way) written by Sue Macy, and
Music Was It: Young Leonard Bernsteinwritten by Susan Goldman Rubin
Recognized worldwide for the high quality they represent, ALA awards guide parents, educators, librarians and others in selecting the best materials for youth. Selected by judging committees of librarians and other children’s experts, the awards encourage original and creative work. For more information on the ALA youth media awards, publishers, and notables, please visit the
2012 Youth Media Awards page on the ALA website or the
press release webpage.
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