Children’s Book Committee 2016 Award Winners!

The Bank Street Children’s Book Committee is delighted to announce the 2016 Children’s Book Awards.

The Josette Frank Award honors a book or books of outstanding literary merit in which children or young people deal in a positive and realistic way with difficulties in their world and grow emotionally and morally. The 2016 Josette Frank Award goes to:

The War that Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley (Dial Books for Young Readers)

Set before the outbreak of WWII London, nine-year old Ada with a club foot is prohibited from leaving her family’s home by a mother ashamed of her disability. When her younger brother is evacuated to escape the upcoming blitz, Ada seizes her chance and escapes with him. Ada flourishes in the care of her guardian, Susan Smith, and learns to trust for the first time.

The Claudia Lewis Award is given for the best poetry book of the year for young readers. The 2016 Claudia Lewis Award goes to:

My Seneca Village by Marilyn Nelson (Namelos)

The little-known story of the settlement that preceded Central Park, the author recreates Seneca Village, a path-breaking 19th-century Manhattan community that included an assemblage of African-American property owners living alongside Irish and German immigrants. In a series of poems, Nelson constructs the lives of more than 30 characters based on names found in census records.

The Flora Stieglitz Straus Award is given for an information book that serves as an inspiration to young readers. The 2016 Flora Stieglitz Straus Award goes to:

Voice of Freedom, Fannie Lou Hamer: Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Ekua Holmes (Candlewick Press)

Stirring poems and stunning collage illustrations combine to celebrate the life of Fannie Lou Hamer, a champion of equal voting rights.

The Children’s Book Awards will be celebrated at Bank Street College on Thursday, March 10th, 2016. Join us for the celebration.

Congratulations to all of the winners!

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