2011 Newbery Award Announced!

... and the 2011 Newbery winner is.... Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool


Our Youth Mock Newbery committee at the library did not read this book but I am sure we will have readers lining up to check it out. Unfortunately we do not have a copy in the library yet!
The story is about twelve-year-old Abilene Tucker, the daughter of a drifter who, in the summer of 1936, sends her to stay with an old friend in Manifest, Kansas, where he grew up. It is where Abilene hopes to find out some things about her father's past.




Two of our Mock Newbery Honor Books won awards.

One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia won the Coretta Scott King (Author) Book Award recognizing an African American author of outstanding books for children and young adults. It also won as a 2011 Newbery Honor Book! (I knew it would win some award! It was one of my favorites.)

The Dreamer by Pam Munzo Ryan & Peter Sis won the Pura Belpre (Author) Award honoring a Latino writer whose children's books best portray, affirm and celebrate the Latino cultural experience.

I have always waited to hear about the Newbery and Caldecott winners through an email. This year, however, with the excitement built up by our Mock Newbery Club student organizer, Laura Rogers, I had to turn on the ALA live webcam announcements. It was difficult to prepare for work at the library (dry my hair and get dressed) while being glued to the the internet. I even tried to watch Twitter posts to get the most current updates. Times sure have changed! Instant information can really be distracting!

The Mock Newbery Club plans to celebrate the winners Tuesday night ... if the snow does not disrupt our plans. Our Mock Newbery Election Day in December was almost cancelled because of the weather. We have a dedicated group! If the library is open I am sure we will have some people here to celebrate the book awards! Congratulations to Clare Vanderpool for writing Moon Over Manifest the 2011 Newbery Award Winner!