March AwardsCAT - Newbery & Caldecott Medals and genre awards

Each year, the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association, awards Newbery and Caldecott medal and honor books. The Newbery has been awarded since 1922 “to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children”*. This year’s medal winner is The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill.

* http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/newberymedal/newberymedal



The Caldecott has been awarded since 1938 “to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children”+ This year’s medal winner is Radiant Child: The Story of Young Artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, written and illustrated by Javaka Steptoe.

+ http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/caldecottmedal/caldecottmedal



While the Newbery and Caldecott awards may have the most name recognition, the American Library Association presents many other Youth Media Awards, including the Coretta Scott King Awards to African American authors and illustrators, the Printz Award for young adult literature, the Pura Belpré Award to Latino/a authors and illustrators, and the Alex Awards for adult books with special appeal to teens.

There are many genre awards out there. The last time we had an AwardsCAT (was it really as long ago as 2013?!) it featured several genre awards that didn’t make the cut this time. I’ve also added a few others to the list. I know that there are many more that I haven’t listed here. Please feel free to add recommendations to the list. I will update this post with any additional genre awards mentioned in this thread so that they’ll all be available in one place. I haven't included any scifi/fantasy awards because they get their own month in July.

Agatha Award for mysteries (leans toward the cozy end of the spectrum)
ALA Reading List for genre fiction for adults
Anthony Award for mysteries
Bram Stoker Award for horror
Carnegie Medal for children’s literature published in the UK
Christianity Today Book Awards for Christian literature (leans evangelical)
Christy Awards for Christian fiction
CWA for crime writing published in the UK
Davitt Award is an Australian award for crime writing by women
Dilys Award for mysteries
Dolman Best Travel Book Award for travel books
Forward Poetry Prize for English language poetry published in the UK or Ireland
Hans Christian Andersen Award, an international children’s book award
James Beard Foundation Award for books about food
Kate Greenaway Medal for children’s book illustration
Leacock Medal for Humour for Canadian humor
Macavity Award for mysteries
National Jewish Book Award for books of Jewish interest
National Outdoor Book Award for books about the outdoors
RITA Award for romance fiction
Shirley Jackson Award for suspense/horror
Spur Award for books about the American West
Thriller Award for thrillers
Thurber Prize for American Humor (seems self-explanitory!)
Wellcome Trust Book Prize for books on medicine and health

I thought I might have more on my tbr than what's coming for Newbery or Caldecott! This one came up, but I don't own it, and I feel like I want to, but don't want to spend the money right now, so we'll see:

- On the Banks of Plum Creek / Laura Ingalls Wilder

That's all I'm seeing on first glance. I could try for a genre award, but I really thought I'd have more Newbery or Caldecott to choose from, so we'll see!

>3 LibraryCin: Both the Newbery and Caldecott Awards have several honor books as well as the medalist each year. I only linked to the medal list in the post above. You may find that you have more in your TBRs from the honor lists.

http://www.librarything.com/bookaward/Newbery+Honor
http://www.librarything.com/bookaward/Caldecott+Honor

>4 cbl_tn: Thanks, I'll take a look!

For the Newbery Awards I am planning on reading 2011 Medal winner Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool and 1945 Newbery Honor Book, The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes.

For Genre Awards I am planning on reading Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger which won the 2014 Best Novel Anthony Award. Anthony Awards are literary awards for mystery writers.

I'm planning to read the Newbery runner up for 1968 Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth by E. L. Konigsburg which lost out to her From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. I think Ms. Konigsburg was the first author to have a Newbery winner and runner up the same year; I don't know whether or not it has happened since then.
I might also reread one of Laura Ingalls Wilder's runners up,
or Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink.

My most likely contender is This Night's Foul Work by Fred Vargas, shortlisted for the 2008 Duncan Lawrie International Dagger (now known apparently as the CWA International Dagger).

So far I'm planning to read The Chili Queen by Sandra Dallas which won the 2003 Spur Best Western Novel award. I have nothing in my TBR for either the Newberry or Caldecott awards so will wait til I see what's available at the library.

Right now I'm planning to read Un Dia de Nieve (The Snowy Day), the 1963 medal book, and Rumpelstiltskin, a 1987 honor book, for the Caldecotts. I'll also read several of this year's award winners.

For the Newbery, I'd like to read Blue Willow, a 1941 honor book, and if I have time, Frontier Living, a 1962 honor book.

For genre awards I plan to read The Spy Who Came In from the Cold, the 1963 CWA Gold Dagger winner.

I plan to read this year’s medal winner is The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill. I picked it up when it was the audible deal of the day.

So many options, and the Newbery are fairly quick reads.
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman for Newbery.
March book 3 by John Lewis is a Printz winner, Queen of Hearts won the Agatha, or Between the World and Me is an Alex award winner.

I don't know what I will be reading yet, as there are a lot of choices on my TBR that would fit.

One of my favorite awards is the Shirley Jackson Award for horror, psychological suspense, and the dark fantastic: http://www.shirleyjacksonawards.org/. I will likely read one or more of the books that won or was short-listed for that award.

Another favorite is the American Library Association's Reading List, which recognizes good books for adults in multiple genres. This is the LibraryThing list of all the winners and short-listed books: http://www.librarything.com/list/921/all/ALA-The-Reading-List. I will probably read at least one book from that list as well.

I also want to give a shout-out to the Bram Stoker Awards, given by the Horror Writers Association (http://horror.org/awards/stokerwinnom.htm) and the Edgar Awards, given by the Mystery Writers of America (http://www.theedgars.com/).

>13 sturlington: The Reading List is new to me! I've read several but I don't own any TBRs from the list. I probably have a few on my public library wishlist, though.

The Edgar Award is one of the two featured awards for May. I think of horror as a subgenre of science fiction or fantasy so I didn't list any of the horror awards in >2 cbl_tn:. Maybe that's not correct? I don't read any of those genres, so I guess I'm just going by what it seemed like people were reading in October for the 2015 SFFF Cat.

There's no reason that anyone can't read from the same award list more than once for our individual challenges. I'm just trying to avoid straying into another host's territory in the introductory material!

>14 cbl_tn: I understand. I forgot the Edgar Award would be featured in May.

I do tend to think of horror as separate from science fiction and fantasy, although there is certainly overlap, and one person's horror could be another person's dark fantasy. Horror also frequently overlaps with thrillers/psychological suspense. I just wanted to mention the Shirley Jackson Awards, because I know I'll be reading something from that list.

Oh, if The Graveyard Book was considered for a Newbery Award, I guess I'm participating in both awards this month! Yay! I've also earmarked A Foreign Country, by Charles Cumming, which was up for the CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger in 2012. Given all the crime fiction on my shelves, that seemed like a good genre for my "genre award" ;)

>16 rabbitprincess: The Graveyard Book won the Newbery Medal in 2009.

I realize that I have another planned read for March that will fit this Cat. In A Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson was a 2001 finalist for the Thurber Prize.

>13 sturlington: Another favorite is the American Library Association's Reading List, which recognizes good books for adults in multiple genres. This is the LibraryThing list of all the winners and short-listed books: http://www.librarything.com/list/921/all/ALA-The-Reading-List.

Thank you for that list! It pointed me toward Kate Morton and The Secret Keeper as a possibility for here and CATWoman in March

The Australian women's crime writing organisation, Sisters in Crime, gives out the Davitt Awards for female crime writers.

ETA Just checked, and found that it's a world-wide organisation. This is just the Australian branch.

I'll be reading The Long and Faraway Gone by Lou Berney for the Anthony Award for mysteries.

I have a couple Newberry winners on my TBR, Johnny Tremain and Up a Road Slowly. Hopefully I'll get to both of those.

I'll be reading Pardonable Lies by Jacqueline Winspear that won the Agatha Award in 2005 and the Macavity in 2006.

I'll be reading The Last Battle by C.S Lewis which won the Carnegie award.

I plan to read:
Brown Girl Dreaming- Jacqueline Woodson
This One Summer- Mariko Tamaki
The Iron Dragon's Daughter- John Swanwick
and if I have time; The Girl Who Drank the Moon - Kelly Barnhill

>23 luvamystery65: I have been rereading the whole Narnia series (for the first time since I was a teenager) and should be getting to The Last Battle this month too.

>25 leslie.98: I've read the series up to The Last Battle. I thought I had read it, but realized when I read The Problem of Susan by Neil Gaiman last year, I had never read the last one. It will be nice to finish up the series. Enjoy your reread.

>10 cbl_tn: I read Blue Willow recently, and it was very good.

The edition of Rumplestiltskin you listed was one my children had, and loved.

>7 sallylou61: Carrie Woodlawn is also quite good.

I've looked through my library, and can make several recommendations for others:

Ramona and Her Father is a WONDERFUL book about a little girl, and her unemployed father.

Across Five Aprils is about growing up during the US Civil War. I've yet to read anything not superb by Irene Hunt.

The Cricket in Times Square is good, good, GOOD.

The Avion My Uncle Flew is a less well-known but very worthy book.

On my shelves, unread, I have three choices for this month's challenge:

Jacob Have I Loved

Sign of the Beaver

Adam of the Road

Happy reading!

I will be reading some Caldecott and Newberry books since they should cross my desk after spring break. (I noticed several arrived. A few are for earlier years.) Are we allowed to use both medal recipients and honor books, or will only the medals count?

I'm currently reading The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, which won the Alex Award in 2012. If I have the time, I will also read Silence of the Grave by Arnaldur Indridason, that won the Glass Key Award (Nord crime fiction) in 2003.

More on the Glass Key award on Wikipedia.

>28 thornton37814: The ones I'm reading are honor books, and I'm counting them! I think for all of the awards we're counting long and shortlists as well as award winners. I think of the honor books as a shortlist.

>30 cbl_tn: Shortlisted books are often better than the winners.

>31 thornton37814: Agree.

I've read The Long and Faraway Gone which won several genre awards including the McAvity (Mystery Readers International 1st place).

I read Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth -- E.L. Konigsburg, which was a Newbery Honor Book in 1968; it lost out to the author's From the Mixed Up Files of of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. I did not enjoy this book as much as From the Mixed Up Files ... since this runner up was about witches, a topic I am not interested in. I felt that the book dragged. However, I liked its ending.

I absolutely loved my first Newbery read of the month! Hattie Big Sky by Kirby Lawson reminded me a little of Sarah, Plain and Tall and The Little House on the Prairie.

I finished Generation Loss by Elizabeth Hand, which won the very first Shirley Jackson Award in 2007.

I'm thinking about picking from the following three:
The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters - Shirley Jackson award finalist in 2009
Girl Waits with Gun by Amy Stewart - Reading List award, historical fiction 2016
Faithful Place by Tana French - Macavity award nominee 2011

I've finished Doll Bones by Holly Black. This was a 2014 Newberry Honor Book. It was a good ghost story.

Aha! I just read one without realizing it...

I ordered a copy of Millions of Cats for my granddaughter, and read it to myself as soon as I opened the box. Love that story!

I'm planning to take it to her when we go visit her, in May.

I am listening to the audiobook of The Curse of Chalion which won the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Adult Literature in 2001 and was nominated for the Hugo, World Fantasy, and Locus Fantasy Awards in 2002.

I read Human Chain by the Irish poet, Seamus Heaney, for the March RandomCAT. It also fits this CAT since it won the Forward Poetry Prize for best collection in 2010.

>41 sallylou61: That was my first experience with Heaney -- good choice!

Finished Crooked Heart by Lissa Evans. It won the ALA Reading List Award for historical fiction in 2016.

I have completed The Dead by Ingrid Black which won the 2005 Shamus Award for Best New Novel.

I've just finished Hattie Big Sky by Kirby Larson which was a 2007 Newbery Honors book.

I have read Pardonable Lies by Jacqueline Winspear which won the 2006 Macavity Historical Mystery Award.

I just finished Finding Nouf (alternative title to The Night of the Mi'raj) by Zoe Ferraris. This is a 2009 Alex award winner, and is a murder mystery set in a repressive society where women have very few rights, and are always supposed to be subservient to men. Saudi society is very slowly transitioning away from traditional norms to a more modern culture where women have more rights. The author lived in Saudi for awhile with her then Muslim husband and his traditional family. She now lives in California with her daughter. She does a good job of portraying this not well known culture as it is in the midst of this painful transition. At the same time this was a good mystery with a surprising ending.

Yesterday I read The Sign of the Beaver, and loved it. Highly recommended.

I'll probably read several today and tomorrow. First is Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer, Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement written by Carole Boston Weatherford and illustrated by Ekua Holmes. It was a 2016 Caldecott Honor book. (It also won Siebert and Steptoe/Coretta Scott King honors or medals.)

Just finished Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Pena. (There's a tilde over the n, but I don't know how to make those.) It received a Caldecott honor and won the Newbery Medal in 2016. The illustrator also won a Coretta Scott King award. It was also a NCTE Charlotte Huck Award for Outstanding Fiction for Children recommended book that year.

Just finished They All Saw a Cat by Brendan Wenzel! I loved the illustrations! I read a library copy. Now I want my own.

Finished Trombone Shorty, a Caldecott honor book from 2016. Good, but a little flawed in my opinion.

So far I've read Rumpelstiltskin, a 1987 Caldecott honor book, and Blue Willow, a 1941 Newbery honor book. I rated both at 4 stars.

>53 cbl_tn: my children had that edition of Rumplestiltskin, and we all loved the illustrations!

I read Blue Willow for the first time, just in the last few months, and loved it also.

Just finished Pardonable Lies by Jacqueline Winspear that won the Macavity Award in 2006.

I read The Giver which won a Newberry.

I read The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes which received a Newbery Honor in 1945. This classic tale of teasing and intolerance is still relevant today.

This morning I finished Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool. This charming book won the 2011 Newbery Award.

Finished The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill. This year's winner of the Newberry Award. It's really a coming of age story told through fairy tale. Good! I give it 5 stars for children literature.

The Spy Who Came In from the Cold was my genre award book. It won the CWA Gold Dagger in 1963.

COMPLETED The Last Camel Died At Noon by Elizabeth Peters, which was a 1991 Agatha Award nominee.

>60 cbl_tn: that was a good one, though sad.

I forgot to post to say that I read The Chili Queen by Sandra Dallas which won the 2003 Spur Award for my genre book this month.

Is the New York Drama Critics Circle Award too far-fetched to be considered a genre award? I definitely want to reread Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun sometime soon. (I haven't read this note-worthy play in the last 50 years or so.) It won the above award for 1959/1960. I don't know how much this particular award is based on the acting, etc., and how much on the text of the play itself.

I really enjoyed my read of In A Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson which was a 2001 Thurber Prize Finalist.

On the Banks of Plum Creek / Laura Ingalls-Wilder
4 stars

In the 4th Little House book, following Laura Ingalls-Wilder and her family, they have just arrived in Minnesota, where they trade a few of their things with a Norwegian farmer for his land and sod house, built right in to the hill. The girls go to school and church for the first time. The Ingalls family has to deal with drought and grasshoppers on their farm, as well as winter prairie blizzards.

This is where many of the characters from the tv show are from; we meet Nellie Oleson in this book. One of my favourite chapters was their first Christmas tree at the church. These books are so very good at descriptions: the descriptions of the farm, the sky, the weather, the grasshoppers, the blizzards… These books are just really enjoyable!

I read The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner on my Kindle and was surprised when I finally saw on the cover that it has been awarded a 1997 Newbery Honor.

>66 LibraryCin: I love all the Little House books. In the next book you will learn why Laura became so descriptive in her observations.

>68 fuzzi: Cool! Thanks!

I have completed Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger. This sensitive story about a family during a crisis was an excellent read.

ETA: I forgot to mention that Ordinary Grace won a 2014 Anthony Award for Best Novel.

I decided to count The Secret Place by Tana French which was nominated for Best Mystery Anthony Awards 2015. I also started The Expats by Chris Pavone, which won the Anthony Award for Best First Mystery in 2013.

Oh, forgot to mention that I read Jacob Have I Loved. Bleh.

I read 2 Newberys - The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman and A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park. Liked both, quick easy reads with great characters.

I also read Queen of Hearts by Rhys Bowen (Agatha award and March Book 3 by John Lewis (Printz prize) which was amazing and heart breaking and awful all at once.

I finished The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters yesterday. A Shirley Jackson Award finalist in 2009, it was a really well-written gothic novel which I think would also be considered historical fiction. Very well done - still not sure exactly what happened - was it a haunted house, were one or more people possessed, was it a family 'taint' (madness)? And along with it being a gothic novel, there was an examination of life among the landed gentry and what life was like for them after WWII, and how they interacted with the 'common' folk (and even a doctor is considered part of the 'common' folk!).

(It was also shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 2009, so can be read in May as well.)

I read Eileen by Ottessa Moshfegh, which was a finalist for the Shirley Jackson Award.

Starting This Night's Foul Work by Fred Vargas. It was shortlisted for the Duncan Lawrie International Dagger in 2008. If I don't finish it before Saturday, then it can be a bridge into April because it was also longlisted for the Dublin in 2010.

I found The dark frigate at Project Gutenberg which won the Newbery Medal in 1924. Rather disappointing.

I finished a reread of The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman, which won the Carnegie award for children's literature in the UK, under its original title, Northern Lights.

Clearing out the cobwebs on this thread to report reading A Foreign Country, by Charles Cumming, which won the CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger in 2012.