ALA Youth Media Award Winners for 2011

The Newberry and Printz Award winners were announced this week while we were out for the snow. Here they are:

Newberry Award (for outstanding contributions to children's literature)
Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool

Newberry Honor Books
Turtle in Paradise by Jennifer L. Holm
Heart of a Samurai by Margi Preus

Dark Emperor and Other Poems of the Night by Joyce Sidman

One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

Printz Award (for excellence in literature written for young adults)

Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi

Printz Honor Books

Stolen by Lucy Christopher

Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King

Revolver by Marcus Sedgwick

Nothing by Janne Teller

Stonewall Children's and Young Adult Literature Award (for books of merit relating to the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered experience)

Almost Perfect by Brian Katcher

Stonewall Honor Books

will grayson, will grayson by John Green and David Levithan and

Love Drugged by James Klise

Freaks and Revelations by Davida Willis Hurwin

The Boy in the Dress by David Walliams

William C. Morris Award (for book published by a first-time author writing for teens)

The Freak Observer by Blythe Woolston

Margaret A. Edwards Award (for an author who's body of work has made a significant contribution to young adult literature

 Sir Terry Pratchett

Coretta Scott King Author Award (recognizing an African American author of outstanding books for children and young adults)

One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

Corette Scott King Author Honor Books

Lockdown by Walter Dean Myers

Ninth Ward by Jewell Parker Rhodes

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

What I'm Reading This Weekend

Matched
by Ally Condie

This is a young adult dystopian novel...my favorite genre! I read the free sample on the Nook and it sounds really good. It's about a girl in a future society where the government makes all of the decisions for people (sort of like in The Giver), including who they are "matched" with to marry. However, the main character, Cassia, is mysteriously matched with two boys -- does that mean the government made a mistake?

 

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

by Stieg Larson

I've had this book recommended to me almost ten times, so I guess it's time to buckle down and read it. From what I've gathered it's a sort of action-packed detective-type novel that is very, very Swedish and very, very hard to explain. I guess I'm in for either a trip or a treat.

 The Seeker's Guide to Harry Potter

by Geo Athena Trevarten, PhD

Another look at the symbolism and themes in the series.

The Giver by Lois Lowry

The Giver
by Lois Lowry

Lois Lowry's 1993 Newberry Award winning book has become a modern classic for reading with young adults. It is a dystopian novel about a futuristic society run by sameness. Everyone dresses the same, has the same birthday, lives in family units that are the same, etc. At first this dystopia appears to be a utopia -- the Pleasantville-like society is pain-free, crime-free, and everyone has everything they need. However, this type of utopia comes with a price. Would you give up music, love, and emotions to be safe and orderly?

I read this book in the sixth grade, and I clearly remember thinking that our society was eerily similar to the community in the book. We go to school, we go to college, we get a job, we pay our taxes. We do what we are supposed to do. I thought this story was a cautionary tale about becoming drones in world and failing to recognize the beauty in the world, the good things in life.

I read this book in ninth grade and I remember fixating on the government in the story. This society is the result of socialism to the extreme. Socialism sounds great in theory, but is that how people are really supposed to live? How can one be an individual in such a society, and is that even necessary? I wanted to know how the government managed to take so much control over these people, and what had gone so bad in the world to make that necessary.

Now, as an adult, I am looking at this book in a different way. A fellow teacher just read the book and was inspired by it. She brought it back and felt that students need to read it. It's a book about standing up for what you know is right. The book makes readers wonder if they are a Jonas, challenging the status quo and looking for truth, or if they are more like the other members of the community. I had always seen the book as more political, but the conversations we've had about the novel recently have helped me see that the themes in the novel are applicable in so many situations.

If you've never read The Giver, I highly recommend the book as a must-read. If you have read it before, no matter how many times, I also recommend that you pick it up and read it again. What does it say to you at this point in your life? We've got a whole class set in stock, so check it out today @ your library.

What I'm Reading This Weekend

This weekend I plan to sit down and read The Maze Runner by James Dashner. I'm already a few chapters in, so I know what I'm getting myself into. This is the story of Thomas, a boy who has been dropped in a place called The Glade with no memory of how or why he's there. There are other boys at The Glade, some who have been there a very long time time. The Gladers have their own society and their own procedures, but everything revolves around The Maze. The Maze is a character in itself, the enemy of the boys as they try to figure out why they are in The Glade and how to get out.

I'm excited about this book because it is a dystopian novel -- my favorite genre. Part Sci-Fi, part Lord of the Flies, I don't think I'll be able to put it down once I start. We also own a copy here at MSMS, so check it out today @your library!

Battle of the Books Read-Alikes

Today's features come from the Battle of the Books list for 2010-2011. I read these three books over the summer, and each of them immediately brought to mind other popular Young Adult books that you may have read. I'll give you a short description of the book and the read-alike title it is reminiscent of. It's your job to come down and check these out @your library!


Truesight by David Stahler, Jr.

In a futuristic society where everyone is blind, what happens if you start to see? This book reminded me of The Giver by Lois Lowry.

Schooled by Gordon Korman

After living on a hippie commune for his whole life, Capricorn Anderson has to attend public middle school. Reminded me of Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli.

The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart

Four very different, and very quirky, kids are recruited to help with a top secret mission to save the world. This is a fun book filled with puzzles and brain teasers that can be solved right along with the characters. Reminded me of the Alex Rider series by Anthony Horowitz.