'The Notorious Benedict Arnold: A True Story of Adventure, Heroism &Treachery' wins 2012 YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults

DALLAS –“The Notorious Benedict Arnold: A True Story of Adventure, Heroism & Treachery,”written bySteve Sheinkin and published by Flash Point/Roaring Brook Press, an imprint of Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group, has been named the 2012 winner of the YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults, the first national award that honors the best nonfiction books for teens. The award was presented today by the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) at the American Library Association’s Midwinter Meeting, held Jan.20 – 24 in Dallas.

Treating history as mystery, Steve Sheinkin explores the means, motives and opportunities of America’s most infamous spy and as he reveals Arnold’s path towards treason. This cradle to grave biography emphasizes the political, social and military issues within the Colonial army and how Arnold ambitiously maneuvered his own career through grit and determination.

“In this illuminating biography, Sheinkin proves that spoilers don’t matter—it’s not whether or not Arnold betrayed his country, but why,” said YALSA Nonfiction Award Chair Jennifer Hubert.

The YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults honors the best nonfiction book published for young adults (ages 12-18) during a Nov. 1 – Oct. 31 publishing year. Award winners are announced annually during the ALA Midwinter Meeting’s Youth Media Awards. The award will be presented to Steve Shenkinat a reception in Dallas on Jan. 23, 10:30 a.m. – noon,at theOmni Hotel in the Dallas E room.

2012 YALSA Nonfiction Award finalists, which were announced in December, include: “Sugar Changed the World: A Story of Magic, Spice, Slavery, Freedom and Science,” written by Mark Aronson and Marina Budhos, published by Clarion Books, an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; “Bootleg: Murder, Moonshine, and the Lawless Years of Prohibition,” written by Karen Blumenthal, published by Flash Point/Roaring Brook Press, an imprint of Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group; “Wheels of Change: How Women Rode the Bicycle to Freedom (With a Few Flat Tires Along the Way),” written by Sue Macy, published by National Geographic Children’s Books; and “Music Was IT: Young Leonard Bernstein,” written by Susan Goldman Rubin, published by Charlesbridge. The full list of official nominations for the award will be available online at www.ala.org/yalsa/nonfiction.

Members of the 2012 YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults award committee are: Chair Jennifer Hubert, Little Red School House & Elisabeth Irwin High School, New York; Mary Burkey, Olentangy Local Schools, Columbus, Ohio; Elizabeth Burns, New Jersey State Library Talking Book & Braille Center, Trenton, N.J.; Betty Carter, Consultant, Coppell, Texas; Diane Colson, Youth Services Librarian, Palm Harbor (Fla.) Library; Megan Fink, Charlotte (N.C.) Country Day Middle School; Pam Spencer Holley, Consultant, Hallwood, Va.; David C. Mowery, Brooklyn (N.Y.) Public Library; Mary Anne Nichols, Kent State University of Library and Information Science, Kent, Ohio; John Sexton, Greenburgh, New York; and Dan Kraus, Booklist Magazine, Chicago.

For more than 50 years, YALSA has been the world leader in selecting books, videos and audio books for teens. For more information about YALSA or for lists of recommended reading, viewing and listening, go to www.ala.org/yalsa/booklists.

For more information on the YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults and other ALA Youth Media Awards, please visitwww.ala.org/yma.

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