I'm not as knowledgeable about picture books as I am middle-grade fiction, but I am excited about this year's Caldecott winners.
2012 Caldecott Award Medal Winner:
The Randolph Caldecott Medal is for the most distinguished American picture book for children..
Title: A Ball for Daisy
Author: Chris Raschka
Publisher: Schwartz and Wade (May 2011)
Summary from Goodreads:
Here's a story about love and loss as only Chris Rashcka can tell it. Any child who has ever had a beloved toy break will relate to Daisy's anguish when her favorite ball is destroyed by a bigger dog. In the tradition of his nearly wordless picture book Yo! Yes?, Caldecott Medalist Chris Raschka explores in pictures the joy and sadness that having a special toy can bring. Raschka's signature swirling, impressionistic illustrations and his affectionate story will particularly appeal to young dog lovers and teachers and parents who have children dealing with the loss of something special.
A wordless picture book... sounds intriguing!
2012 Caldecott Honor Winners:
Author: John Rocco
Publisher: Hyperion Books (February 2011)
Summary from Goodreads:
One hot summer night in the city, all the power goes out. The TV shuts off and a boy wails, "Mommm!" His sister can no longer use the phone, Mom can't work on her computer, and Dad can't finish cooking dinner. What's a family to do? When they go up to the roof to escape the heat, they find the lights--in stars that can be seen for a change--and so many neighbors it's like a block party in the sky! On the street below, people are having just as much fun--talking, rollerblading, and eating ice cream before it melts. The boy and his family enjoy being not so busy for once. They even have time to play a board game together. When the electricity is restored, everything can go back to normal . . . but not everyone likes normal. The boy switches off the lights, and out comes the board game again.
Using a combination of panels and full bleed illustrations that move from color to black-and-white and back to color, John Rocco shows that if we are willing to put our cares aside for a while, there is party potential in a summer blackout.
My thoughts:
The cover looks amazing so I can only imagine what the rest of the book looks like.
Author: Lane Smith
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press (August 2011)
Summary from Goodreads:
From the creator of the national bestseller It's a Book comes a timeless story of family history, legacy, and love. Grandpa Green wasn't always a gardener. He was a farmboy and a kid with chickenpox and a soldier and, most of all, an artist. In this captivating new picture book, readers follow Grandpa Green's great-grandson into a garden he created, a fantastic world where memories are handed down in the fanciful shapes of topiary trees and imagination recreates things forgotten. In his most enigmatic and beautiful work to date, Lane Smith explores aging, memory, and the bonds of family history and love; by turns touching and whimsical, it's a stunning picture book that parents and grandparents will be sharing with children for years to come. Grandpa Green is a Publishers Weekly Best Children's Picture Books title for 2011.
Author: Patrick McDonald
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (April 2011)
Summary from Goodreads:
In his characteristic heartwarming style, Patrick McDonnell tells the story of the young Jane Goodall and her special childhood toy chimpanzee named Jubilee. As the young Jane observes the natural world around her with wonder, she dreams of "a life living with and helping all animals," until one day she finds that her dream has come true.
One of the world's most inspiring women, Dr. Jane Goodall is a renowned humanitarian, conservationist, animal activist, environmentalist, and United Nations Messenger of Peace. In 1977 she founded the Jane Goodall Institute (JGI), a global nonprofit organization that empowers people to make a difference for all living things.
With anecdotes taken directly from Jane Goodall's autobiography, McDonnell makes this very true story accessible for the very young--and young at heart.
What do you think of this year's winners?
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I am ashamed to say my children and I haven't read any of these. I'm going to seek them out at the library.
ReplyDeleteThanks for letting me know who the 2012 winners are!
This was fun for me because with a daughter in college, I don't get to read picture books anymore :)
ReplyDelete@Emily Don't feel bad! Most of these were released within the last year and some for just a few months. :)
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