Caldecott Awards

2010

 
 Medal WInner: The Lion & The Mouse illustrated and written by Jerry Pinkney 

Honor Book: All The World illustrated by Marla Frazee, written by Liz Garton Scanlon

Honor Book: Red Sings from Treetops: A Year in Colors by Joyce Sidman

2009

Medal Winner: The House in the Night by Susan Marie Swanson

Honor Book: A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever by Maria Frazee

Honor Book: How I Learned Geography by Uri Shulevitz

Honor Book: A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant

2008

Medal Winner: The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Seiznick

Honor Book: Henry's Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad by Ellen Levine

Honor Book: First the Egg by Laura Vaccaro Seeger

Honor Book: The Wall: Growing up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sis

Honor Book: Knuffle Bunny Too: A Case of Mistaken Identity by Mo Willems

2007


Medal Winner: Flotsam by David Wiesner

Honor Book: Gone Wild: An Endangered Animal Alphabet by David McLimans

Honor Book: Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom by Carole Boston Weatherford

2006

Medal WInner: The Hello, Goodbye Window by Norton Juster

Honor Book: Rosa by Nikki Giovanni

Honor Book: Zen Shorts by Jon J. Muth

Honor Book: Hot Air: The (Mostly) True Story of the First Hot-Air Balloon Ride by Marjorie Priceman

2005

Medal Winner: Kitten's First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes

Honor Book: The Red Book by Barbara Lehman

Honor Book: Coming on Home Soon by Jacqueline Woodson

Honor Book: Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale by Mo Willems

2004

Medal WInner: The Man Who Walked Between the Towers by Mordicai Gerstein

Honor Book: Ella Sarah Gets Dressed by Margaret Chodos-Irvine


Honor Book: What Do You Do with a Tail Like This? by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page

Honor Book: Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus by Mo Willems

2003

Medal Winner: My Friend Rabbit by Eric Rohmann

Honor Book: The Spider and the Fly by Mary Howitt

Honor Book: Hondo & Fabian by Peter McCarty

Honor Book: Noah's Ark by Jerry Pinkney

2002

Medal Book: The Three Pigs by David Wiesner

Honor Book: The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins by Barbara Kerley

Honor Book: Martin's Big Words: the Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. by Doreen Rappaport

Honor Book: The Stray Dog by Marc Simont

2001

Medal Winner: So You Want to Be President? by Judith St. George

Honor Book: Casey at the Bat by Ernest Thayer

Honor Book: Click, Clack, Moo: Cows that Type by Doreen Cronin

Honor Book: Olivia by Ian Falconer

 2000

Medal Winner: Joseph Had a Little Overcoat by Simms Taback

Honor Book: A Child's Calendar by Trina Schart Hyman

Honor Book: Sector 7 by David Wiesner

Honor Book: When Sophi Gets Angry-Really, Really Angry by Molly Bang

Honor Book: The Ugly Ducking by Jerry Pinkney

Awards Matter

Awards matter, especially in children’s books.  Make no bones about it; in a world where children’s books are produced in mass quantity, and by anybody with a computer, children’s book awards absolutely matter.   
 
Children’s book awards tell the authors, illustrators and publishers what is considered the most prolific and successful children’s books.  This sets the bar for which they must strive to attain. 
 
Publishers value these awards for an additional reason.  Librarians often times select children’s book awards.  This is not always the case, but surely it more often than not.  This market, the library market, is still very relevant to most publishers, and the most popular children’s book awards not only honor the author/illustrator, but also generate a significant increase in sales.  This is really where the rubber hits the road, and a major factor in why children’s book awards are so important.
 
For authors and illustrators, becoming familiar with award-winning books is likely one of the most effective ways to better understand what the mainstream consumer base and industry experts consider to be the best books on the market today, rather than rely upon the children’s books that we where familiar with as a child many years ago.  It’s the absolute best way to keep the consumer and industry professionals relevant with what is current and in demand at the present time.
 
There are many children’s book awards out there these days.  The most popular are the Newbery Medal, Caldecott Medal and the Golden Kite Award. 
 
The Newbery Medal began awarding children’s book medals in 1922.   The John Newbery Medal was the first children’s literary award in the world.  John Newbery was an 18th century English publisher of juvenile books.  A medal has been presented annually to the writer/illustrator of the most prolific and distinguished literary contribution for children’s books published in the United States in the previous year.  The author/illustrator who receives the medal must be a citizen or residence of the United States.  The winner is announced at the annual American Library Association Midwinter meeting that is held at the beginning of each year, then the award is presented at the ALA summer conference each year.  When the winner is announced each January, bookstores all over the country immediately sell out of the winning books, librarians quickly order copies and teachers incorporate the book into their curriculum for the year.  Most bookstores and libraries have a Newbery section, as well.  Winning this award means instant fame and sometimes fortune for the authors. 
 
The Caldecott Medal is awarded each year by the ALSC, Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the ALA.  It is given to the most distinguished children’s picture book published during that year.  Famous 19th century illustrator by the name of Randolph Caldecott is the namesake of the Caldecott Medal.  The Caldecott is the second most popular and distinguished children’s book award, just after the Newbery Medal.  Specific criteria for the award is that the book must be published in English in the United States, the illustrations must be original to the artist, the artist must be a citizen of the United States, the book is considered primarily for the artistic technique used to illustrate the book; illustrative interpretation of the story; relevance of the style of illustration of the book; delineation of the theme, plot and characters in the book.  The children’s book must also depict respect for children’s understandings, appreciations and abilities.
 
The Golden Kite Award is presented each year by the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators in an effort to recognize supreme talent in children’s literature.  The Golden Kite Award began in 1972, and is the only children’s book award judged by peers within the industry.  The award contains four categories: Picture Book Text, Picture Book Illustration, Fiction and Nonfiction.