The most prestigious awards for children’s books were announced this week by The American Library Association. Taking top honors were “The One and Only Ivan,” by Katherine Applegate, a book that nabbed the Newbery Award, and “This Is Not My Hat,” by Jon Klassen.
The “One and Only Ivan” was a Missourian Book Buzz Pick in June when Newsbee described it as a “must-read . . . that will touch the hearts of those 8-84.”
The book tells the story of a Silverback ape named Ivan, a baby snatched from the jungle and forced to live and perform at the Exit 8 Big Top Mall. Ivan endures 27 years of captivity and befriends a newcomer, a small elephant named Ruby.
Ivan doesn’t want Ruby to live in captivity and become another “one and only,” so the softhearted ape goes to great means to prevent this from happening.
“This is Not My Hat” is the quirky tale of a fish that stakes his claim to a much larger fish’s hat — swimming away to hide from him in the deep. The outcome of his new acquisition makes for a humorous, off-the-wall read.
Another book illustrated by Klassen received a Caldecott Honor and was a Book Buzz Pick.
“Extra Yarn” by Mac Barnett was featured in Book Buzz in January 2012. Newsbee described the book as “An inventive yarn with the makings of a modern-day fairy tale.”
The heroine of the story is “Annabelle, not a ding-a-ling, but a girl blessed with a mess of yarn she finds in a mysterious box.
“Have yarn, will knit, Annabelle sets about making sweaters, hats and scarves for all she comes into contact with. Of course there’s a castle and a curse, but not one line of verse in this clever book with illustrations by Jon Klassen.”
The following also received Caldecott Honors:
“Creepy Carrots” by Aaron Reynolds, illustrated by Peter Brown;
“Green” by Laura Vaccaro Seeger;
“One Cool Friend” by Toni Buzzeo, illustrated by David Small; and
“Sleep Like a Tiger” by Mary Logue, illustrated by Pamela Zagarenski.
Newbery honors went to “Splendors and Glooms” by Laura Amy Schlitz; “Bomb” by Steve Sheinkin and “Three Times Lucky” by Sheila Turnage.
For a complete list of all of the 2013 American Library Awards, people can visit www.ala.org.
