Winners!

Results of our Mock Coretta Scott King Book Award Program this year are:

Author Award: Ninth Ward, by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Honor Books: Zora and Me, by Victoria Bond & T. R. Simon; One Crazy Summer, by Rita Williams-Garcia; and Ruth and the Green Book, by Calvin Alexander Ramsey

Illustrator Award: Black Jack, The Ballad of Jack Johnson, by Charles R. Smith Jr., illustrated by Shane W. Evans
Honor Books: Back of the Bus, by Aaron Reynolds, illustrated by Floyd Cooper and Ruth and the Green Book, by Calvin Alexander Ramsey, illustrated by Floyd Cooper

Many Thanks to all of you who participated, virtually and in person. And to all of the authors and illustrators who gave us so many fantastic reading hours this year, our gratitude -- we'll do our best to put your work into the hands and hearts of children.

Short List for ACPL Mock Coretta Scott King Book Awards

Below is our short list for our in-person discussion at 1 p.m. on December 5, at the ACPL Main Library, Fort Wayne, IN. We've added titles suggested by blog-readers if the books are currently available in the ACPL collection. If you would like to add a title to this list, please do so in the comment section of this blog entry. Thanks!

For Author Award:
8th Grade Superzero, by Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich
Black Jack: The Ballad of Jack Johnson, by Charles R. Smith Jr.
Clemente!, by Willie Perdomo
The Cruisers, by Walter Dean Myers
Finding Family, by Tonya Bolden
Fort Mose, by Glennette Tilley Turner
Ninth Ward, by Jewell Parker Rhodes
One Crazy Summer, by Rita Williams-Garcia
Oprah: The Little Speaker, by Carole Boston Weatherford
The Other Half of my Heart, by Sundee Tucker Frazier
Paper Thin, by Shelia M. Goss
Ruth and the Green Book, by Calvin Alexander Ramsey
Saving Maddie, by Varian Johnson
Sit-In: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down, by Andrea Davis Pinkney
sweet, hereafter, by Angela Johnson
What Momma Left Me, by Renee Watson
Yummy : The Last Days of a Southside Shorty, by G. Neri
Zora and Me, by Victoria Bond and T. R. Simmons

For Illustrator Award:
Back of the Bus, by Aaron Reynolds, illustrated by Floyd Cooper
Black Jack: The Ballad of Jack Johnson, by Charles R. Smith Jr., illustrated by Shane W. Evans
Clemente!, by Willie Perdomo, illustrated by Bryan Collier
Dave the Potter
Oprah: The Little Speaker, by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by London Ladd
A Place Where Hurricanes Happen, by Renee Watson, illustrated by Shadra Strickland
Ruth and the Green Book, by Calvin alexander Ramsey, illustrated by Floyd Cooper
She Loved Baseball: The Effa Manley Story, by Audrey Vernick, illustrated by Don Tate
Sit-In: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down, by Andrea Davis Pinkney, illustrated by Brian Pinkney
Skit-Skat Raggedy Cat: Ella Fitzgerald, by Roxane Orgill, illustrated by Sean Qualls
Yummy : The Last Days of a Southside Shorty, by G. Neri, illustrated by Randy Duburke

Zora and Me, by Victoria Bond and T. R. Simon

Abstract: A fictionalized account of Zora Neale Hurston's childhood with her best friend Carrie, in Eatonville, Florida, as they learn about life, death, and the differences between truth, lies, and pretending. Includes an annotated bibliography of the works of Zora Neale Hurston, a short biography of the author, and information about Eatonville, Florida.







Publisher: Candlewick Press, 169 p.

Short List of 2010 Titles for Discussion of our Mock Award

Below is our short list for our in-person discussion on December 5. If you would like to add a title to this list, please do so in the comment section of this blog entry. Thanks!

For Author Award:
8th Grade Superzero
Black Jack: The Ballad of Jack Johnson
Clemente!
The Cruisers
Finding Family
One Crazy Summer
Oprah: The Little Speaker
The Other Half of my Heart
Ruth and the Green Book
Sit-In: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down
What Momma Left Me

For Illustrator Award:
Back of the Bus
Black Jack: The Ballad of Jack Johnson
Clemente!
Dave the Potter
Oprah: The Little Speaker
Ruth and the Green Book
She Loved Baseball: The Effa Manley Story
Sit-In: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down
Skit-Skat Raggedy Cat: Ella Fitzgerald

She Loved Baseball: The Effa Manley Story by Audrey Vernick, illustrated by Don Tate

Abstract: Effa always loved baseball. As a young woman, she would go to Yankee Stadium just to see Babe Ruth's mighty swing. She never dreamed she would someday own a baseball team. Or be the first-and-only woman ever inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.













Publisher: Harpercollins, 1 v. (unpaged)

Good Fortune by Noni Carter

Abstract: Brutally kidnapped from her African village and shipped to America, a young girl struggles to come to terms with her new life as a slave, gradually rising from working in the fields to the master's house, secretly learning to read and write, until, risking everything, she escapes to seek freedom in the North.

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 489 p.

Creating a Short List of 2010 Titles

For our in-person discussion on December 5, we will work off a short list of suggested titles. Which books would you like to have included? Do you know of titles that have been missed?

The short list will be posted October 25, 2010.

What Momma Left Me by Renee Watson

Abstract: After the death of their mother, thirteen-year-old Serenity Evans and her younger brother go to live with their grandparents, who try to keep them safe from bad influences and help them come to terms with what has happened to their family.








Publisher: Bloomsbury Children's Books, 240 p.

The Cruisers by Walter Dean Myers

Abstract: Friends Zander, Kambui, LaShonda, and Bobbi, caught in the middle of a mock Civil War at DaVinci Academy, their Harlem gifted and talanted school, learn the true cost of freedom of speech when they use their alternative newspaper, The Cruiser, to try to make peace.

Publisher: Scholastic Press, 128 p.

Ruth and the Green Book by Calvin Alexander Ramsey, illustrated by Floyd Cooper

Abstract: Ruth and the Green Book is the story of one black family's trip from Chicago to Alabama by car in the late 1940s. Along the way they encounter prejudice, but they also discover The Green Book, a real guide to accommodations which was published for decades to aid African-American travelers as they faced prejudice on the roads across the country.







Publisher: Carolrhoda Books, Lerner Publishing Group, Inc., unpaged

Almost Zero by Nikki Grimes, illustrated by R. Gregory Christie

Abstract: Dyamonde really wants red high-top sneakers. Too bad they're so expensive! A classmate tells her it's her mom"s job to give her what she needs, but when Dyamonde tries that argument, her mom teaches her a lesson by literally only giving her what she needs.






Publisher: G.P. Putnam's, 96 p.

Yummy: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty by G. Neri, illustrated by Randy DuBurke

Abstract: A graphic novel based on the true story of Robert "Yummy" Sandifer, an eleven-year old African American gang member from Chicago who shot a young girl and was then shot by his own gang members








Publisher: Lee & Low Books, 94 p.

Sell-Out by Ebony Joy Wilkins

Abstract: Being nearly the only African American in her school doesn't bother NaTasha. But it bothers Tilly, NaTasha's spitfire grandmother from Harlem, who decides NaTasha needs to get back to her roots.






















Publisher: Scholastic, 267 pages

Paper Thin by Shelia M. Goss

Abstract: Living with her emotionally absent father and a stepmother who spoils her, Sierra doesn't lack for material things, but she still struggles with the pain of losing her birth mother at an early age. Sierra hides her fears and disappointments behind food and fashion. After time spent at a weight loss camp, she returns to school twenty-five pounds lighter. She goes from being sweet to displaying a diva-like attitude. Her best friends, Britney and Jasmine, are quick to point out this new change.




Publisher: Urban Renaissance, 296 pages

Climbing Lincoln's Steps: the African American Journey by Suzanne Slade, illustrated by Colin Bootman

Abstract: A study of events in African American history highlights important events that have taken place on the Lincoln Memorial steps in Washington, D.C.









Publisher: Albert Whitman and Co., 1 v. (unpaged)

Step Up by Monica McKayhan

Abstract: Indigo Summer and her boyfriend, Marcus Carter, have stayed solid through plenty of drama. Now Marcus is a senior and has already been accepted to Harvard. But with his bright future, Indigo suddenly doubts where she fits into his life








Publisher: Kimani, 248 p.

Dave, the Potter by Laban Carrick Hill, illustrated by Bryan Collier

Abstract: A biography of a slave who lived in South Carolina in the 1800s and his extraordinary talent for pottery.








Publisher: Little, Brown, 1 v. (unpaged)

Obama: Only in America by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Richard Barrett

Abstract: A picture book biography of President Barack Obama.











Publisher: Marshall Cavendish, 1 v. (unpaged)

Michelle Obama: First Mom by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Robert Barrett

Abstract: A tribute to a remarkable woman who worked hard and reached high









Publisher: Marshall Cavendish, 1 v. (unpaged)

Finding Family by Tonya Bolden

Abstract: Raised in Charleston, West Virginia, at the turn of the twentieth century by her grandfather and aunt on off-putting tales of family members she has never met, twelve-year-old Delana is shocked when, after Aunt Tilley dies, she learns the truth about her parents and some of her other relatives.






Publisher: Bloomsbury, 181 pages

Clemente! by Willie Perdomo, illustrated by Bryan Collier

Abstract: A little boy named Clemente learns about his namesake, the great baseball player Roberto Clemente











Publisher: Henry Holt and Co., 1 v. (unpaged)

Skit-Scat Raggedy Cat: Ella Fitzgerald by Roxane Orgill, illustrated by Sean Qualls

Abstract: A swinging biography of young Ella Fitzgerald who pushed through the toughest of times to become one of America's most beloved jazz singers










Publisher: Candlewick Press, 48 pages

Oprah: The Little Speaker by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by London Ladd

Abstract: The first six years in the life of the world's most popular talk show host.











Publisher: Marshall Cavendish, 1 v. (unpaged)

Little Diva by LaChanze, illustrated by Brian Pinkney

Abstract: Nena wants to be a Diva, with a capital D, just like her mommy, who's a star on Broadway. So she learns all she can about singing and dancing when she is at the theater and trains day and night to make her dreams come true.









Publisher: Feiwel and Friends, 1 v. (unpaged)

My Brother Charlie by Holly Robinson Peete and Ryan Peete with Denene Millner, illustrated by Shane W. Evans

Abstract: A girl tells what it is like living with her twin brother who has autism and sometimes finds it hard to communicate with words, but who, in most ways, is just like any other boy. Includes authors' note about autism.










Publisher: Scholastic, 1 v. (unpaged)

Around Our Way on Neighbors' Day by Tameka Brown, illustrated by Charlotte Riley-Webb

Abstract: A young girl makes her way through an urban neighborhood filled with children playing, men debating, women cooking, and jazz music playing as her community gathers to celebrate "Neighbors' Day."

9780810989719






Publisher: Abrams Books for Young Readers, 1 v. (unpaged)

Lockdown by Walter Dean Myers

Abstract: Teenage Reese, serving time at a juvenile detention facility, gets a lesson in making it through hard times from an unlikely friend with a harrowing past.









Publisher: Amistad/Harper Teen, 247 p.

The Beatitudes: From Slavery to Civil Rights by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Tim Ladwig

Abstract: The Beatitudes form the backdrop for Weatherford's free-verse poem that traces the African American journey from slavery to civil rights.









Publisher: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 1 v. (unpaged)

The Other Half of My Heart by Sundee Tucker Frazier

Abstract: Twin daughters of interracial parents, eleven-year-olds Keira and Minna have very different skin tones and personalities, but it is not until their African American grandmother enters them in the Miss Black Pearl Pre-Teen competition in North Carolina that red-haired and pale-skinned Minna realizes what life in their small town in the Pacific Northwest has been like for her more outgoing, darker-skinned sister.





Publisher: Delacorte, 296 p.

Black Jack: The Ballad of Jack Johnson by Charles R. Smith Jr., illustrated by Shane W. Evans

Abstract: Art and poetry combine to tell the story of boxer Jack Johnson, who became the first African-American world heavyweight boxing champion in the early part of the twentieth century.









Publisher: Roaring Brook Press, 1 v. (unpaged)

Ninth Ward by Jewell Parker Rhodes

Abstract: In New Orleans’ Ninth Ward, twelve-year-old Lanesha, who can see spirits, and her adopted grandmother have no choice but to stay and weather the storm as Hurricane Katrina bears down upon them.







Publisher: Little, Brown and Co., 160 p.

Out of My Mind by Sharon Draper

Abstract: Considered by many to be mentally retarded, a brilliant, impatient fifth-grader with cerebral palsy discovers a technological device that will allow her to speak for the first time.








Publisher: Atheneum, 295 p.

A Place Where Hurricanes Happen by Renee Watson, illustrated by Shadra Strickland

Abstract: Told in alternating voices, four friends from the same New Orleans neighborhood describe what happens to them and their community when they are separated, then reunited, as a result of Hurricane Katrina.






Publisher: Random House, 1 v. (unpaged).

You Don't Even Know Me: Stories and Poems about Boys by Sharon G. Flake

Abstract: Tow-Kaye just learned that the love of his life is pregnant--and though he knows what the right thing to do is, he's scared to death to do it. Jeffrey hates having a mom who dresses like a teenager, but when another sexy mom moves in next door--well, that's a different kind of problem. In these and twenty-two other short stories and poems, readers plumb the inner lives of African American teenage boys.






Publisher: Jump at the Sun, 195 p.

Lucky Beans by Becky Birtha, illustrated by Nicole Tadgell

Abstract: During the Great Depression, Marshall, an African American boy, uses lessons learned in arithmetic class and guidance from his mother to figure out how many beans are in a jar in order to win her a new sewing machine in a contest.






Publisher: Albert Whitman & Co., 1 v. (unpaged)

8th Grade Superzero by Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich

Abstract: After half-heartedly joining his church youth group's project at a homeless shelter near his Brooklyn middle school, eighth-grade "loser" Reggie McKnight is inspired to run for school office on a platform of making a real difference in the community.







Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books, 324 p.

Culture Clash by L. Divine

Abstract: Fed up with the way her school is handling Cultural Awareness Day, Jayd decides to form the first African Student Union. At the same time, she can't deny her attraction for Emilio, the new Latino sophomore at South Bay High.






Publisher: Dafina, 220 p.

Black Magic by Dinah Johnson, illustrated by R. Gregory Christie

Abstract: Presents a poem celebrating the African-American experience and what it means to be part of a strong, proud, and free people.








Publisher: Henry Holt and Co., 1 v. (unpaged)

One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

Abstract: In the summer of 1968, after traveling from Brooklyn to Oakland, California, to spend a month with the mother they barely know, eleven-year-old Delphine and her two younger sisters arrive to a cold welcome as they discover that their mother, a dedicated poet and printer, is resentful of the intrusion of their visit and wants them to attend a nearby Black Panther summer camp.








Publisher: Amistad, 218 p.

Back of the Bus by Aaron Reynolds, illustrated by Floyd Cooper

Abstract: From the back of the bus, an African American child watches the arrest of Rosa Parks.







Publisher: Philomel, 1 v. (unpaged)

Sit-In: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down by Andrea Davis Pinkney, illustrated by Brian Pinkney

Abstract: "This picture book is a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the momentous Woolworth's lunch counter sit-in, when four college students staged a peaceful protest that became a defining moment in the struggle for racial equality and the growing civil rights movement."--Amazon.com.





Publisher: Little, Brown

Sweet, Hereafter by Angela Johnson

Abstract: Sweet leaves her family and goes to live in a cabin in the woods with the quiet but understanding Curtis, to whom she feels intensely connected, just as he is called back to serve again in Iraq.









Publisher: Simon and Schuster, 118 p.

The 2010 Real Awards Announcement from Boston

Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award: Charles R. Smith Jr., for “My People”

Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor: E.B. Lewis for "The Negro Speaks of Rivers"

Coretta Scott King Author Award: Vaunda Micheaux Nelson, author of “Bad News for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves, Deputy U.S. Marshal”

Coretta Scott King Author Honor: Tanita D. Davis, author of "Mare's War"

Coretta Scott King Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Acheivement: Walter Dean Myers

Coretta Scott King Steptoe for New Talent: Kekla Magoon, author of “The Rock and the River”

2010 ACPL Mock Coretta Scott King Book Awards go to...

The Mock Coretta Scott King Book Illustrator Award winner:
The Negro Speaks of Rivers illustrated by E.B. Lewis, written by Langston Hughes

Illustrator Award honors:
My People illustrated by Charles R. Smith Jr., written by Langston Hughes
Sweethearts of Rhythm illustrated by Jerry Pinkney, written by Marilyn Nelson

The Mock Coretta Scott King Book Author Award winner:
The Rock and the River by Kekla Magoon

Author Award honors:
Peace, Locomotion by Jacqueline Woodson
Shooting Star by Fredrick McKissack Jr.

Looking forward to Sunday

I'm excited about Sunday afternoon! From 1 to 2 p.m. we'll have a conversation about the Coretta Scott King Book Award with author Fredrick McKissack Jr. who will share his perspective. Mr. McKissack along with his mother, Patricia McKissack, received a 1995 Coretta Scott King Author Honor Award for their book, Black Diamond: Story of the Negro Baseball League. His book, Shooting Star, is one of the titles to be discussed at our first ACPL Mock CSK Book Award Discussion and Election, which follows the conversation, and will take place from 2:15 to 5:00 p.m.

The Allen County Public Main Library is located in downtown Fort Wayne, IN. I hope to see you there.