The winners for children’s literature awards through the
American Library Association were announced in February. There are many great
books that were honored this year. Some interesting qualities from the eight books that were
honored here. One book (Crown: An Ode to
the Fresh Cut by Derrick Barnes, illustrated by Gordon C. James) won both a
Caldecott Honor and a Newbery Honor. All four Newbery winners and two of the
five Caldecott winners featured children of color (Filipino, Japanese, African
American and Vietnamese). Two of the four Newbery winners were for young adults
rather than for younger readers, books that generally win the Newbery
award; and one of the four was a picture book, leaving only the Medal winner (Hello, Universe by Erin Entrada Kelly)
as a more traditional middle grade book in the winner’s circle. The Caldecott
winner (Wolf in the Snow, written and
illustrated by Matthew Cordell) is a wordless picture book.
My favorite of the Newbery winners was one of the honor
books. Piecing Me Together by Renee
Watson tells the story of Jade, an African American teenager who attends a
privileged private school in Portland. OR. Jade is an artist who uses collage
to make her art pieces.
At the beginning of her junior year, she is offered the
opportunity to participate in a mentoring program called Woman to Woman. While
Jade did not necessarily want to participate, her participation as a mentee
meant that she would receive a full scholarship to college, a deal that her
mother said she could not pass up. Jade’s mentor is an African American woman who
attended the same school Jade is now attending. But, that is where the
similarities end. Maxine is from a wealthy family, used to giving not receiving
charity.
Each page of this book gives new insights, memorable quotes
and excellent writing. After the
first mentor/mentee meeting, Jade reflects as she walks to the bus, “I don’t
really want to learn about the polluted river. [Referring to the activism that
calls for the girls to clean up the river where they live as espoused by the
leader.] I want to move where the water is clean.” Later, when Jade is meeting
a new friend’s grandparents, she reflects on what it would be like to live in
one place, to own a home. “Mama says people who don’t own their homes don’t
have any real power.” While I am opposite to Jade in so many ways, I’m old, she’s
young, I’m white, she’s black, I have the privilege of money, while she is
materially poor, I identified with her in so many ways. This is writing
of the highest power. I will soon be searching out other books by Watson and
know I will be a fan of hers for many years to come.
Hello, Universe by
Erin Entrada Kelly is the story of four children, all Americans, but with
various backgrounds. Virgil is Filipino, Kaori is Japanese American, Valencia
is deaf, and Chet is a bully who is in turn bullied by his father, both Chet
and Valencia are white. These four children converge on a wooded area at the
beginning of summer vacation with surprising results. Told in a variety of
voices, the story jumps from one main character to the next, with Valencia
being the only one whose story is told in the first person. This would be an
excellent book for a read aloud in third or fourth grade. It would also be a
good book to pair with the graphic novel, El
Deafo by Cece Bell which won a Newbery Honor in 2015. They both make me
want to ask, why do we assume that a person who is hearing impaired is also
intellectually challenged?
Long Way Down by
Jason Reynolds uses free verse to tell the story of Will, an African American
teen whose brother has just been shot. Will is determined to follow the three
rules his brother taught him: Don’t Cry, Don’t Snitch, Take Revenge. So, Will
finds his brother Shawn’s gun and gets ready to take revenge. As he moves down
the elevator from floor to floor, he encounters ghosts of several people he has
known who have been killed by gun violence within his city. Sparse verse evokes
great emotion and questions without answers. Any teacher who works in middle or
high schools would welcome this book as a way to start the conversation on gun
violence in inner-city populations.
Crown: An Ode to the
Fresh Cut by Derrick Barnes, illustrated by Gordon C. James
Crown won both a
Newbery Honor and a Caldecott Honor, an unusual, but not unprecedented
occurrence. This captivating book gives credence to the importance of the
barber shop in the African American community. As the award page says, “A boy
walks into a barbershop; a prince walks out.” The positive emotions evoked in
this book give the reader, black or white, a feeling of peace and happiness, a
tall order from a picture book, but one which this book can fulfill.
Wolf in the Snow,
written and illustrated by Matthew Cordell
Winner of the Caldecott Medal for 2018, is a wordless picture
book reviewed here in September: A wonderful wordless picture book
that can be used to start story telling in a myriad of ways. A young person
leaves school and finds a young wolf who is separated from its pack. The child
carries the wolf to its family and then the wolves protect the child who is now
lost in a snowy world. Themes of friendship, caring for nature, reciprocal
favors, family love are all evident and ones that fit into many classroom
units. (All ages, no words, so you get to make up your own!)
Big Cat, Little Cat
by Elisha Cooper
Also reviewed here in May, 2017. When the little
cat comes into the big cat’s life, the big cat shows Little Cat the ropes, how
to be and how to do; they exist together for many years, until Big Cat
grows old and dies. A wonderful circular story of pets, or are the cats
substitutes for people? Many complexities from this simply story. Cooper likes
to write about cats and she does so fantastically!
A Different Pond
by Bao Phi, Illustrated by Thi Bui
A young Vietnamese-American boy goes with his father to fish
in the pond. The fishing is a form of recreation as well as a time for the
father and son to spend together. But, it is also apparent in this story that
the fishing is not just recreation, but a needed source of food for the family.
The father works long days, but gets up early to head to the
pond. “I am thinking about what Dad told the bait man. ‘If you got another job,
why do we still have to fish for food?’ I ask./’everything in America costs a
lot of money,’ he explains.”
Grand Canyon written and illustrated by Jason Chin
This amazing
nonfiction book gives the history of the Grand Canyon as well as lessons on the
flora and fauna of the area. Chin’s illustrations are intricately rendered,
each double page spread a wonderful view of the canyon, bordered by the animals
and plants that populate the canyon. A fascinating read for young and old
alike.
