The Stakes Have Risen: It’s Nomination Season
In the spirit of attempting to follow the procedures of the real Newbery Committee when we can, Heavy Medal uses the “nomination” process. On the real Committee, each of the 15 members will nominate 7 titles over the next few months: three in October, two in November, and two more in December. Members include “written justifications” with each nominated title, and this is typically the first chance they have to share their thoughts with the rest of the Committee, beyond a “practice discussion” that takes place in the summer. The nominated titles are the ones that will be on the table when the Committee meets at LibLearnX in January.
The Newbery Manual notes that the nominations “ serve as a focus for all suggestions made during the year” “make each committee member aware of which books require their closest scrutiny and which they need to re-read.” and “The written justifications serve as preparation for oral discussion at Midwinter and provide practice in stating clearly and succinctly your ideas about books that seem distinguished.”
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Here’s how nominations work on Heavy Medal:
Nominate three titles in the comments below. Like the real Committee, we’ll require three exactly. Your grand total is seven, so choose wisely.
All we need is the three titles and authors, but if you would like to share a bit about why any of them made your list, or any strategic rationale, that would be great!
The first nomination period runs through the end of Saturday, October 8th. We’ll post the totals on the 10th.The nominations list helps Steven and I decide which books to feature in future posts. It also helpus us create the Heavy Medal Book List, which we announce in early December.
Add your titles to the list below. If you have any questions about our nomination process or about how it works on the real Committee feel free to ask those in the comments.
Filed under: Nominations
About Emily Mroczek-Bayci
Emily Mroczek (Bayci) is a freelance children’s librarian in the Chicago suburbs. She served on the 2019 Newbery committee. You can reach her at emilyrmroczek@gmail.com.
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Star Child by Ibi Zoboi
The Ogress and the Orphans by Kelly Barnhill
Ain’t Burned All the Bright by Jason Reynolds and Jason Griffin
HEALER AND WITCH
AND WE RISE
VIOLET AND JOBIE IN THE WILD – remember To Night Owl from Dogfish? The first section of that book was perfectly pleasant and well-written and you thought you had it figured out. Then the further you went, the more you realized it was blooming into something almost profound. VIOLET AND JOBIE is somewhat similar. It seems to be a perfectly pleasant, well-written cute animal book for young middle grade. Those of you who don’t like cute animal books may at some point assume you have the book pegged and not feel the urge to finish. I say to you, this book also blooms.
I would nominate:
Wave by Diana Farid
New from Here by Kelly Yang
Invisible by Christina Diaz Gonzales
My three:
Love in the Library, by Maggie Tokuda-Hall — a gorgeously told story that I think works even without the images.
Different Kinds of Fruit, by Kyle Lukoff — a very readable yet complex examination of identity, gender, and generational divides and connection in the queer community.
The Last Mapmaker, by Christina Soontornvat — a lush fantasy world and adventure story that has fantastic messages about colonialism & explanation without being didactic.
Oops, that should be *exploration, not explanation.
My nominations are:
I Must Betray You
The Last Mapmaker
Love in the Library
My nominations are:
Cress Watercress by Gregory Maguire
Swim Team by Johnnie Christmas
Berry Song by Michaela Goade
My nominations
I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys
The Last Mapmaker by Christina Soontornvant
A Duet for Home by Karina Yen Glaser just finished recently and loved it was a nice look at homlessness with good characters. I’m a musician and play the violen so I enjoyed that aspect of the book. Already discussed why I like the other books in the top two contenders post.
Here are my three, plus a bit about what I would try to accomplish when I wrote the written justification which the other committee members would read:
HOW TO BUILD A HUMAN
My top non-fiction, and possibly my strongest book of the year so far. In my justification, I would highlight the creative presentation of information and try to show how the use of humor is not just fun, but also helps to build the reader’s knowledge.
I MUST BETRAY YOU
I’m not sure that this is my top fiction title, but I think my other contenders would get support from others. I might have some concern that others might see this as outside the Newbery range, so I would try to address that in my justification (violence is necessarily included, but not sensationalized). I would also want to point out the areas where the book would connects strongly with readers in the 12-14 year old range, including plot (complex, but easy to follow), presentation of information (historical background presented smoothly), and characterization (engaging, believable main character).
MARSHMALLOW CLOUDS
Poetry can be overlooked, so I’d want this in the first nominations round to make sure everyone has a chance to read and consider its strengths (although this one is on Fuse #8’s predictions, so I would hope everyone paying attention would be alerted to it). I would work hard in my written justification to point out specific examples of distinguished writing in individual poems and also how the collection as a whole fits together.
Ack, I feel so behind!
Air by Monica Roe, for excellent and much-needed wheelchair representation.
The First Thing About You by Chaz Hayden for excellent YA wheelchair representation. (2 wheelchair books in one year! There’s actually another MG too!). It’s probably a little too old, but the character is a sophomore, so not upper YA.
Healer and Witch by Nancy Werlin for being absolutely fantastic. (Thank you for the recommendation, Leonard!)
I Must Betray You
Love in the Library
The Ogress and the Orphans
1. Anybody Here Seen Frenchie? by Leslie Connor. Descriptions of the Maine countryside and individualism of the residents give the book a strong sense of place.
2. Star Child by Ibi Zoboi. Combines poems, prose and journal entries to create a unique biography of one of the first Black women to write science fiction.
3. Those Kids from Fawn Creek by Erin Entrada Kelly. When a newcomer joins a small town class of students who know only each other for years, they discover additional aspects of themselves.
I totally agree about the Maine descriptions and the delightful residents in Anybody Here Seen Frenchie, and I thought Aurora was a really unique and well-drawn character. I also found parts of it really moving, and the mystery/suspense made it super engaging.
That said, I did think that the depiction of Frenchie was pretty stereotypical and that there wasn’t enough of his POV. I know (or I think?) that the Newbery doesn’t take into account author’s notes/acknowledgements and other back matter, but I was turned off by the fact that Leslie Connor said that her research involved talking to parents of autistic children, but not talking to or reading accounts of (young or older) autistic people directly, and I felt like this was reflected in the book. Did anyone else feel this way? I’m not sure if I’m being overly sensitive/critical here.
Swim Team by Johnnie Christmas
The Last Mapmaker by Christina Soontornvant
New From Here by Kelly Yang
I still have a lot of reading to do, but here are my 3 for now:
Ain’t Burned All the Bright
In the Key of Us
Northwind
Aviva and the Dybbuk by Mari Lowe
Jennifer Chan is Not Alone by Tae Keller
A Duet for Home by Karina Yan Glaser
The Last Mapmaker by Christina Soontornvat
The Ogress and the Orphans by Kelly Barnhill
How to Build a Human by Pamela S. Turner
My nominations are
The Ogress and the Orphans Kelly Barnhill
How to Build a Human Pamela S. Turner
Invisible Christina Diaz Gonzalez
The Last Mapmaker by Christina Soontornvat
Those Kids from Fawn Creek by Erin Entrada Kelly
Swim Team by Johnie Christmas
Mighty Inside by Sundee Frazier
Moonwalking by Zetta Elliott
Swim Team by Johnnie Christmas
Maizy Chen’s Last Chance by Lisa Yee
Alias Anna by Susan Hood
Last Mapmaker by Christina Soontornvat
Love in the Library by Maggie Tokuda-Hall
Anybody Here Seen Frenchie? by Leslie Connor
Falling Short by Ernesto Cisneros
1. Windswept, by Margi Preus. Fast-paced, fun but also thought-provoking, this novel explores the roles of children and how storytelling and other seemingly insignificant talents can make a difference. The suspense will grab kids from the start, and the characters are fully realized. Exploration of themes are well-done also.
2. The Patron Thief of Bread, by Lindsay Eagar. An immersive, medieval setting, rich characterization and a protagonist who discovers agency make this book stand out. The relationships are real and meaningful in the story.
3. I Must Betray You, by Ruta Sepetys. Strong characterization and a thought-provoking theme make this book stand out. Also, the plot is fast-paced and attention-grabbing.
Hmm, Meredith, I am reading WINDSWEPT right now and feel like I am reading a different book than you described. It’s not bad, but I hoped for more, and pacing and characterizations are specific areas where I am responding differently from you.
How to Build a Human by Pamela S. Turner for being distinguished in its presentation of information – finding just the right balance of lightness of tone to convey a ton of information without feeling dense or impenetrable.
Jennifer Chan is Not Alone – The delineation of character was spot-on, the structure of the book was effective, and the themes of the ways in which the past shapes you without defining your were strong and evidenced in multiple places.
I don’t have a third nomination yet, I’m way behind in my reading and several books others have loved I wasn’t impressed by.
1. The Last Mapmaker
2. Jennifer Chan is Not Alone
3. A Comb of Wishes
AFRICAN TOWN by Irene Lathan & Charles Waters
AND WE RISE by Erica Martin
I MUST BETRAY YOU by Ruth Sepetys
In no particular order:
Aviva vs. the Dybbuk by Mari Lowe
Moonwalking by Zetta Elliott
And We Rise by Erica Martin
Seen and Unseen by Elizabeth Partridge
The Woman Who Split the Atom by Marissa Moss
Secrets of the Lost City by Sandra Markle
I almost miss this!
My three nominations:
CRESS WATERCRESS by Gregory Maguire
AIN’T BURNED ALL THE BRIGHT by Jason Reynolds
LOVE IN THE LIBRARY by Maggie Tokuda-Hall
The Ogress and the Orphans
The Last Mapmaker
Ain’t Burned All the Bright
* My Own Lightning / Wolk – I still stand by this sequel for its gorgeous writing and characterization, despite the fact that it is a sequel (particularly since there have been other wonderful sequels awarded the medal in the past, including The High King, The Grey King, A Year Down Yonder, and Dicey’s Song).
*To Build a Human in 7 Evolutionary Steps / Turner – I love the idea of a non-fiction title winning the medal, and the author makes the reading experience so effortless and educational because she presents the information in a humorous and accessible manner.
*Attack of the Black Rectangles / King – This title came out in the past month, and I put it at the top of my to-read list because I have enjoyed King’s quirky YA writings in the past. She presents some compelling issues to consider concerning censorship and mental health while also displaying children finding a voice in the community discourse by standing up for their beliefs. I found it very empowering and inspiring.
I must betray you for delineation of characters, and plot development, africantown for excellent presentation of a lesser known event, and how to build a human for presentation of information, interpretation of theme and appropriateness of style
Footprints Across the Planet by Jennifer Swanson
Absurd Words by Tara Lazar
Me and White Supremacy (Young Readers’ Edition) by Layla F. Saad
Thanks for the nominations Laurie…3 nonfictions! It looks like ME AND WHITE SUPREMACY may not be eligible. The Newbery Manual states that “Children’s books derived from previously published adult books can’t be considered eligible.” You can replace it with another if you want…
ABSURD WORDS brings up another tricky bit of eligibility. As far as I can tell, its copyright date is 2021. But according to amazon.com and Ingram, its actual publication date was 01-02-22. From the Manual: “A book might have a copyright date prior to the year under consideration but, for various reasons, was not published until the year under consideration.” So it should be eligible. (And looks fun…just placed my hold).
Swim Team by Johnnie Christmas
How to Build a Human by Pamela Turner
I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys
October Nominations are now closed. We’ll post results on Oct 10th and open up November Nominations on October 31st.