Book and media awards
Newbery Medal
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Newbery award winner
Lynne Rae Perkins, “Criss Cross”
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“Criss Cross,” by Lynne Rae Perkins, won the 2006 Newbery Medal, awarded annually to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children. Published by Greenwillow Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, “Criss Cross” follows the lives of four 14-year-olds, each at a crossroads and each exploring new thoughts and feelings in a quest to find the meaning of life and love. “Writing in a wry, omniscient third-person narrative voice, Perkins deftly captures the tentativeness and incompleteness of adolescence,” said Award Committee Chair Barbara Barstow. The Association for Library Service to Children, an ALA division, annually awards The Newbery Medal, named for 18th-century British bookseller John Newbery, to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children.
Caldecott Medal
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Caldecott award winner
Chris Raschka,
“The Hello, Goodbye Window”
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The 2006 Caldecott Medal was awarded to “The Hello, Goodbye Window,” illustrated by Chris Raschka and written by Norton Juster (Michael di Capua Books, an imprint of Hyperion Books for Children). In this sunny portrait of familial love, a little girl tells us about her everyday experiences visiting her grandparents’ house. “With a few energetic lines, Raschka suggests a world filled with affection and humor,” said Award Committee Chair Gratia Banta. “The richly textured tones of these expressive illustrations convey the emotional warmth of the intergenerational connection.” The Association for Library Service to Children annually awards the Caldecott Medal, named for 19th-century English illustrator Randolph Caldecott, to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children.
Coretta Scott King Awards
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Coretta Scott King winner
Julius Lester, “Day of Tears”
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Coretta Scott King winner
Bryan Collier,
“Rosa”
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Julius Lester, author of “Day of Tears: A Novel in Dialogue,” and Bryan Collier, illustrator of “Rosa,” are the winners of the 2006 Coretta Scott King Awards honoring African American authors and illustrators of outstanding books for children and young adults.
“Day of Tears: A Novel in Dialogue,” published by Jump at the Sun, an imprint of Hyperion Books for Children, is Lester’s masterful fictionalized account of the largest slave auction in U.S. history, held in 1859 in Savannah, Ga. In a powerfully dramatic format, the voices of enslaved Africans and their masters move between monologues and conversations. In “Rosa,” written by Nikki Giovanni and published by Henry Holt and Company, Collier uses uniquely bold illustrations depicting Rosa Parks as an inspirational and unwavering force. Intricate profiles hidden in the details of the background give the reader a sense of collective community spirit.
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Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Author winner
Jaime Adoff,
“Jimi & Me”
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Jaime Adoff, author of “Jimi & Me,” is the winner of the 2006 Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Author Award, which recognizes excellence in writing and/or illustrations at the beginning of a career as a published children’s book creator. “Jimi & Me” is a poignant novel written in free verse describing the tumultuous experience of Keith James, a 13-year-old biracial teen who must cope with the unexpected murder of his father.
The ALA’s Ethnic Multicultural Information Exchange Round Table annually presents these awards to authors and illustrators of African descent whose distinguished books promote an understanding and appreciation of African-American culture. The awards commemorate the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and honor his widow, Coretta Scott King, for her courage and determination in continuing the work for peace and world brotherhood.
Michael L. Printz Award
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Michael L. Printz award winner
John Green, “Looking for Alaska”
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John Green won the 2006 Michael L. Printz Award for his extraordinary first novel, “Looking for Alaska,” published by Dutton Books, a member of Penguin Group (USA), Inc. Bored with his existence, 16-year-old Miles “Pudge” Halter heads off to seek his Great Perhaps at an Alabama boarding school, where new-found freedom, guilty pleasures and an enigmatic girl named Alaska hurl him into life. The award, first given in 2000, is named for the late Michael L. Printz, a Topeka, Kan. school librarian known for discovering and promoting quality books for young adults.
Robert F. Sibert Award
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Sibert award winner
Sally M. Walker, “Secrets of a Civil War Submarine: Solving the Mysteries of the H.L. Hunley”
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Sally M. Walker, author of “Secrets of a Civil War Submarine: Solving the Mysteries of the H.L. Hunley,” is the winner of the 2006 Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award for the most distinguished informational book for children published in 2005. In 1864, the H. L. Hunley became the first submarine to sink an enemy ship. It then vanished, and for 131 years its fate remained a mystery. Walker has crafted a seamless account of historical and scientific sleuthing to reveal the secrets of the Hunley and her crew, all the while demonstrating the interdisciplinary nature of the problem-solving process in our modern world. Carolrhoda Books, Inc., a division of Lerner Publishing Group, published the book.
One Sibert Honor Book was named: “Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler’s Shadow,” written by Susan Campbell Bartoletti and published by Scholastic Nonfiction, an imprint of Scholastic.
Bound to Stay Bound Books, Inc., of Jacksonville, Ill., sponsor the Robert F. Sibert Award in honor of Robert F. Sibert, its longtime president. The Association for Library Service to Children administers the award.
Alex Awards
 The Alex Awards, administered by the Young Adult Library Services Association, are given each year to 10 adult books that appeal to young adults. The 2006 winners are: Judy Fong Bates, “Midnight at the Dragon Café,” Counterpoint; Kalisha Buckhanon, “Upstate,” St. Martins; Neil Gaiman, “Anansi Boys,” William Morrow & Company; Gregory Galloway, “As Simple As Snow,” Putnam; Kazuo Ishiguro, “Never Let Me Go,” Alfred A. Knopf; A. Lee Martinez, “Gil’s All Fright Diner,” Tor; Susan Palwick, “The Necessary Beggar,” Tor; Nancy Rawles, “My Jim,” Crown; Julia Scheeres, “Jesus Land: A Memoir,” Counterpoint; Jeannette Walls, “The Glass Castle: A Memoir,” Scribner.
Stonewall Book Awards
Winners of the 35th annual Stonewall Book Awards were Abha Dawesar, author of “Babyji” (Anchor Books), who received the Barbara Gittings Book Award in Literature, and Joshua Gamson, author of “The Fabulous Sylvester: the Legend, the Music, the 70s in San Francisco” (Henry Holt and Co.), who received the Israel Fishman Book Award for Nonfiction. The ALA’s Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgendered Round Table (GLBTRT) chose the winners; the awards were presented at the 2006 Annual Conference in New Orleans.
Margaret A. Edwards Award
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Edwards award winner
Jacqueline Woodson
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Jacqueline Woodson is the winner of the 2006 Margaret A. Edwards Award honoring her outstanding lifetime contribution to writing for teens. Woodson’s sensitive and lyrical books reveal and give a voice to outsiders often invisible to mainstream America. “I Hadn’t Meant to Tell You This” and its sequel, “Lena,” both from G. P. Putnam’s Sons, a division of Penguin Young Readers Group, tell a story of interracial friendship with no pat solutions to the problems of race, class, abandonment and abuse, while a compassionate community offers hope and support. “Woodson’s books are powerful, groundbreaking and very personal explorations of the many ways in which identity and friendship transcend the limits of stereotype,” said Edwards Award Committee Chair Mary Arnold. The Margaret A. Edwards Award is sponsored by School Library Journal and administered by the Young Adult Library Services Association.
Theodor Seuss Geisel Award
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Theodor Seuss
Geisel Award
Cynthia Rylant (author) and Sucie Stevenson (illustrator), “Henry and Mudge and the Great Grandpas”
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The first Theodor Seuss Geisel Award, given to the author and illustrator of the most distinguished contribution to the body of American children’s literature known as beginning reader books published in the United States during the preceding year, went to “Henry and Mudge and the Great Grandpas,” written by Cynthia Rylant and illustrated by Suçie Stevenson (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers). The Association for Library Service to Children administers the award.
Sophie Brody Medal
 Avner Mandelman was the first recipient of the Sophie Brody Medal. The award, which consists of a medal for the winner and citations for honor books, is funded by Arthur Brody and the Brodart Foundation and is given to encourage, recognize and commend outstanding achievement in Jewish literature. Mandelman received the award for his book “Talking to the Enemy,” published by Seven Stories Press. The Reference and User Services Association administers the award.
Pura Belpré Award
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Pura Belpré Award winner
Viola Canales, “The Tequila Worm”
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Pura Belpré Award winner
Raul Colón, “Doña Flor: A Tall Tale About a Giant Woman with a Great Big Heart”
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The Pura Belpré Award is presented to a Latino/Latina writer and illustrator whose work best portrays, affirms and celebrates the Latino cultural experience in an outstanding work of literature for children and youth. The Association for Library Service to Children and the National Association to Promote Library and Information Services to Latinos and the Spanish-Speaking (REFORMA), an ALA affiliate, co-sponsor the award. The 2006 winners are Viola Canales for “The Tequila Worm” (Wendy Lamb Books, a division of Random House), a debut novel that shows how a Latina child maintains her cultural integrity with pride and humor while living within another culture; and Raul Colón, for “Doña Flor: A Tall Tale About a Giant Woman with a Great Big Heart,” written by Pat Mora (Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House).
Library awards and honors
Robert D. Stueart receives ALA’s highest honor
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Robert D. Stueart
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The ALA honored one new Honorary Member at the 2006 Annual Conference in New Orleans. The association’s highest honor was bestowed on Robert D. Stueart, who was nominated “in recognition of his accomplishments as a library educator, administrator, author, editor, researcher, international consultant and contributor to the work of numerous library organizations on the state, national and international levels.”
As dean and professor in the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at Simmons College for almost 20 years, Stueart influenced the careers of hundreds of students now working in library positions nationwide and around the world.
Internationally, Stueart has contributed to library and information management education in Eastern Europe and throughout Asia. He has been instrumental in developing programs to strengthen libraries and library education in Thailand, where he established the first Ph.D. program in information studies, and in Vietnam, where his efforts resulted in the development of library systems, services and model programs and in the education of new librarians. Stueart received a Fulbright Senior Scholar grant and John F. Kennedy International Scholar Award to support and develop these projects. He continues to consult internationally on library development and management.
Honorary membership may be conferred on a living citizen of any country whose contribution to librarianship or a closely related field is so outstanding that it is of lasting importance to the advancement of the whole field of library service. The designation is intended to reflect honor upon the ALA as well as upon the individual. Honorary members are elected for life by vote of the ALA Council on recommendation of the ALA Executive Board.
Joseph W. Lippincott Award
Betty J. Turock is the 2006 recipient of the ALA Joseph W. Lippincott Award, which recognizes an individual for distinguished service to the profession of librarianship. Founded in 1938 by the late Joseph W. Lippincott, Lippincott’s grandson, Joseph W. Lippincott, III, now donates the award. Turock has contributed to advancing the profession of librarianship through her service in countless leadership roles in professional service organizations at both the state and national levels. Her contributions to the ALA have been manifold: as an outspoken member of the association’s governing Council, as a member of the Executive Board and ultimately as president (1995–96). Turock was one of the creators of the Spectrum Scholarship Program, and she and her family also established the Betty J. Turock Scholarship endowment to support minority scholars.
James Madison Award
The ALA presented the 2006 James Madison Award to Steve Aftergood, creator of the Federation of American Scientists Project on Government Secrecy Website and of its email publication, Secrecy News. The Madison Award, named for President James Madison, is presented annually on the anniversary of his birth to honor those who have championed, protected and promoted public access to government information and the public’s right to know. Aftergood is a widely respected and effective advocate for government accountability and transparency.
SirsiDynix–ALA-APA Award
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Pictured from left to right: Jim Fish (winner), Elissa Cadillic (winner), Ron Stoch (jury), Alison Hendon (honorable mention), Peter McDonald (jury), Jennifer Kutzkik (jury), and Jim Wilson (SirsiDynix).
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The 2006 winners of the SirsiDynix–ALA-APA Award for Outstanding Achievement in Promoting Salaries and Status for Library Workers were the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 1526 of the Boston Public Library and James Fish, director of the Baltimore County (Md.) Public Library. Eileen Muller, president of the Brooklyn Library Guild, Local 1482, received an honorable mention. AFSCME received $3,000 and Fish $2,000. AFSCME Local 1526 “did an outstanding job in their last contract negotiations to win upgrades for all 76 library support staff in 26 of the 27 branches of the city public library system,” said Jury Chair Peter McDonald. Fish, using a 2000-2001 salary study, began and was successful at what jury member Jennifer Kutzik called “the relentless education of the Board of Library Trustees and the county executives” concerning librarian salaries, which were 17 percent lower than those in comparable employment categories. The ALA-APA is the American Library Association–Allied Professional Association, which has a new tagline, the Organization for the Advancement of Library Employees.
ACRL Awards
Ray English, Azariah Smith Root director of libraries at Oberlin (Ohio) College, was the 2006 winner of the Association of College and Research Libraries’ (ACRL) top honor, the Academic or Research Librarian of the Year Award. Augustana College, Rock Island, Ill., won the ACRL’s Excellence in Academic Libraries Award in the college category, and the Rochester (N.Y.) Institute of Technology Libraries won in the university category; ACRL and Blackwell’s Book Services sponsor the award.
ALA receives Freedom of Speech Award
The Newberry Library in Chicago presented the 2006 John Peter Altgeld Freedom of Speech Award to the ALA “for its principled defense over many years of the freedom to read, think, write and speak.” The award, named for the former Illinois governor who pardoned the Haymarket anarchists of 1886, is presented each year to “a courageous defender of free speech and ideas.”
Library Interior Design Award
The first biennial Library Interior Design Award, awarded by the Library Administration and Management Association in partnership with the International Interior Design Association, went to Diamond & Schmitt Architects, Inc., Toronto, for its project at University Library, University of Ontario Institute of Technology, Oshawa, Ontario. The award was presented at the 2006 Annual Conference.
Diversity Research grants, award
The three winning research proposals in the 2006 round of the Annual Diversity Research Grant program each won a $5,000 award. They were: “Analysis and Adaptation of ‘Earphone English’: A Public Library Program for Limited English Proficient Youth,” by Timnah Card, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; “End-User Searching: Comparing ESL Students and Native English Students,” by Jolie Ogg Graybill, Charlene Maxey-Harris, Charity Martin and Elizabeth Rodacker, University of Nebraska at Lincoln; and “Shaping Institutional Change: Assessment of Diversity Programming at a Comprehensive University Library,” by Liza Palmer and Anne Pemberton, University of North Carolina at Wilmington. The Office for Diversity began sponsorship of the program in 2002 to address critical gaps in the knowledge of diversity issues within library and information science and as part of the ALA’s continuing commitment to diversity. The Office for Diversity also announced that Ethelene Whitmire, an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin at Madison School of Library and Information Studies whose research on diversity and undergraduates has been widely published, was the third annual recipient of the Achievement in Library Diversity Research Award.
Business research award established
The Reference and User Services Association has established the Emerald Research Grant Award. Beginning in 2007, two $5,000 awards will be awarded to individuals seeking support to conduct research in business librarianship. The Emerald Group Publishing Limited funds the award.
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