Kansas students pick 2009 William Allen White Children’s Book Award winners

News Release hot off the presses from Emporia State University

“Clementine,” by Sara Pennypacker and “Yellow Star,” by Jennifer Roy are the choices of Kansas schoolchildren for the 2009 William Allen White Children’s Book Awards.

The awards will be presented Oct. 10 in Emporia. The 57th annual ceremony will cap two days of activities ranging from author autographs to story telling, attracting school children from across Kansas.

Each year, approximately 50,000 third- through eighth-graders take part in naming the two White Award-winning books. “Clementine” was the choice of third through fifth graders, while “Yellow Star” won the sixth through eighth grade award. The books were among a list of 24 chosen by a selection committee for the students to consider.

Pennypacker’s “Clementine” is the first in a series chronicling the adventures of the eponymous eight-year-old who sorts through difficulties in her friendship with Margaret, her neighbor. Pennypacker has written seven children’s books, and lives on Cape Cod, Mass.

“Yellow Star” is Roy’s story of a four-year-old girl named Syvia, a Jewish girl who struggles to survive with her family in Poland’s Lodz ghetto during the Nazi occupation of World War II. The book is a novelization of the true experiences of the author’s aunt. Roy has written more than 30 books for children and young adults. She lives in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Pennypacker and Roy are first-time William Allen White Children’s Book Award winners. They have been invited to participate in the October awards presentation.

The White Awards program is the nation’s first statewide reader’s choice award. It is directed by Emporia State University and is supported by the Trusler Foundation. The program was founded in 1952 by Ruth Carver Gagliardo, a children’s literature specialist, to honor the memory of one of the state’s most distinguished citizens by encouraging Kansas schoolchildren to read and enjoy good books.

ABOUT THE BOOKS:

Pennypacker, Sara. Clementine. New York, Hyperion Books for Children, 2006.

Roy, Jennifer. Yellow Star. Tarrytown, NY. Marshall Cavendish, 2006.

William Allen White Award Nominees Promoted on YouTube by Topeka Area Students

Robin Clark of Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library shared this with the members of Kanlib-L. What a wonderful idea!

Traditionally, William Allen White (WAW) book award nominee booktalks have been performed annually by Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library staff in person at local area schools. Realizing that it is impossible to reach all students in the service area in person, TSCPL bookmobile staffers Sandy Lane and Robin Clark collaborated with Topeka area gifted students to produce these highly creative student written and performed videos on Youtube featuring book reviews of the current William Allen White nominees for 2007-2008. The videos include interviews from “The Dr. Dyl Show”, several inanimate object reviewers, masked anonymous book reviewers, and one with exceptional headgear.

The boost in exposure includes posting the WAW video links on local, state, regional and national library listservs, the WAW official website, online library newsletters and blogs, as well as emails to area school media specialists.

Hopes are that as students view these peer produced video reviews, they will be more interested in reading the nominees and better prepared to vote by April 15, the end date for selection of the William Allen White award for 2008.

Videos may be viewed here:
http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=TopekaLibrary

Leave a comment on Youtube and let us know what you think!

Publisher Newsletter That's Useful for School and Children's Librarians

WhatsNew@enslow.com or www.enslow.com
The above e-mail address is for the monthly newsletter from Enslow Publishing. I've added their website, too. They specialize in materials for K-12. The newsletter is jammed with good information and they cite review sources for many of their books when they promote them. Below is a sample of the articles published:

Collection Development List Created by Catherine Barr

As the world becomes a smaller place and our population becomes increasingly diverse, reading literature by authors of different ethnic origins is of course one of the best ways to gain insight. These three reader's guides will be particularly helpful for students in grades 9 to 12:

• A Reader's Guide to Amy Tan's The Joy Luck Club
• A Reader's Guide to Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart
• A Reader's Guide to Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun

Biographies also serve a useful role in stimulating conversations about multicultural topics, and can be used in many areas of study. Among new and forthcoming biographies offered by Enslow are the following series:

• African-American Heroes (for grades 1-3): Muhammad Ali, Mae Jemison, Wynton Marsalis, Colin Powell, Chris Rock, Will Smith, Oprah Winfrey
• African-American Biography Library (for grades 6 and up): Louis Armstrong, Ray Charles, Duke Ellington, Zora Neale Hurston, Barack Obama, Paul Robeson, Ida B. Wells-Barnett

Studying history is another excellent way to engage students in discussions of multicultural issues. Coming in early 2008 are titles in the From Many Cultures, One History series. These cover:

• The Underground Railroad
• Native American history
• Puerto Rican history
• School desegregation
• Japanese-American internment during World War II
• Latino civil rights

And, finally, holidays always offer opportunities to learn about important multicultural traditions. Among relevant Enslow series are:

• Best Holiday Books (for grades 3–4), revised and updated editions of eight titles including Diwali—Hindu Festival of Lights and Ramadan and Id al-Fitr
• Celebrate Holidays (for grades 5 and up), five titles including Celebrate Tet and Celebrate Kwanzaa

For details about these books click here or for more information about additional books, please visit http://www.enslow.com/

Sincerely,
Catherine Barr
Author/Co-author: Best Books for Children; Best Books for Middle School and Junior High Readers; Best Books for High School Readers (All available from Libraries Unlimited and http://lu.com/).