A Look Ahead: HMAC, HMBL, 2025 Mock
If you’re a frequent reader of Heavy Medal than you probably know what all the above acronyms meant. If not, have no fear- I’m here to explain everything!!
Every year on Heavy Medal we finish up the Newbery season with lots of mimicking the “real” Newbery committee and putting our own spin on all the Newbery fun! And it IS very fun!
In mid-December we form a volunteer committee of 10-15 committed readers: the Heavy Medal Award Committee (HMAC). This group commits to reading every book on our Heavy Medal Book List (HMBL), which is set in early December. The committee members lead online book e discussions of each title (that anyone can participate in) culminating in a final live discussion on Zoom (that anyone can watch live or the recording) where the winning title is selected (by the committee and by webcast viewers). HMAC volunteer forms open up in early December, but now’s a good time to consider if you might be interested. Here’s a rough timeline of the Heavy Medal’s end of the season “Newbery madness.”
Early November
November Nominations: Readers will have the chance to nominate two more top titles during the first week of November. This will be round two of three. Take a look at the October nomination results here.
Mid-November
The Early Six: Ultimately, we’ll put together a list of 12-15 titles for our Heavy Medal Book List (see below). Before that, we’ll choose six titles that will definitely be on that list. That way, you can get started early on reading (or re-reading) titles we will definitely discuss.
Early December
December Nominations: Last chance for readers to nominate two more Newbery-worth books from 2024.
Early December: The Rest of the HMBL
Nine more titles will be added to complete the list of 15 finalists. This happens right after our third and final round of nominations. The nominations list highly influences the choices, and we’ll probably do a final poll, but Steven and I consider variety in formats, styles, length, age level, etc. in order to have a nicely balanced list.
Early- December: Forming the HMAC
Here’s when we make the official call for volunteers to take part in the HMAC. We hope for a list of 10-15 members with a mix of past HMAC participants, first-timers, and even past Newbery committee members.
Late December: Book Discussion Starts
We’ll hold online discussions of about one book per day over 2-3 weeks, covering all 15 titles on the HMBL. We’ll expect heavy participation from the HMAC members, but other readers are welcome to join in as well.
Mid-January: Zoom Discussion and Ballot
HMAC members will take part in a live Zoom event. Based on the online discussions, we’ll narrow down the HMBL from 15 to about 6 of the strongest contenders. Zoom participants will re-discuss each title, then cast ballots, following real Committee procedures, to select a Medal and Honor books. Viewers will take part with live polls. We’ll announce the date for the Zoom event and provide a link to registration later in the fall.
Mid-January: Reader’s Poll
All Heavy Medal readers will be invited to cast votes on our online poll, which will also end with a Medal and Honor books. Sometimes these match the HMAC choices…sometimes they don’t.
January 27th: Real Newbery Announcement
The winner of the Newbery Medal, along with many other ALA-sponsored awards, will be announced on the morning of January 27th in Phoenix, AZ as part of LibLearnX (formerly ALA’s Midwinter Meeting). We’ll post the link to the free live webcast of this event once it’s available.This is what they call “the most exciting powerpoint of the year!” And yes, Steven and I will post our live reactions. (Don’t ask me what will happen next year because LibLearnX is not happening in 2026).
Furthering your involvement in Heavy Medal is a great resume builder, especially if you want to join any official award committees in the future.
For those involved in past years, the process is basically the same and we’re always welcoming new participants. And of course, we’ll have lots of our regular posts in the meantime. Any questions, just ask!
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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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Kate Todd says
Is the Real Newbery Announcement on January 27 or January 22? You have listed both dates in this post.
Steven Engelfried says
January 27th is the date….now corrected above. Thanks for catching, Kate!