awards Archives | American Libraries Magazine

Covers for the 2020 Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence in Fiction and Nonfiction

ALA Unveils 2020 Carnegie Medals Shortlist

November 4, 2019

The 2020 Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence in Fiction and Nonfiction shortlist titles include: Nonfiction Figuring, by Maria Popova (Pantheon). Popova brings her zest for facts and passion for biography to this inquiry into the lives of geniuses who “bridged the scientific and poetic,” spinning a fine web connecting such barrier-breakers as Rachel Carson, Frederick Douglass, … Continue reading ALA Unveils 2020 Carnegie Medals Shortlist →

A Job Well Done

By Meredith Farkas | November 1, 2019

Professional awards embody a vocation’s values. But what message is sent when the majority of awards recognize a single large innovative project or publication? When most recognition is for individual achievements, what does that say about how our profession views teamwork? As much as we might wish to believe librarianship is unique, it is still … Continue reading A Job Well Done →

2019 ALA Award Winners

September 3, 2019

Mirah J. Dow Beta Phi Mu Award One nominator wrote of Dow that “her commitment to Beta Phi Mu’s motto, Aliis inserviendo consumor—meaning ‘Consumed in the service of others’—is ever present.” Dow, professor and director of the PhD program at Emporia (Kans.) State University School of Library and Information Management, has spent her career educating … Continue reading 2019 ALA Award Winners →

Volunteers in Colombia unload a Libraries Without Borders mobile Ideas Box. Photo: Libraries Without Borders

International Innovators

By Phil Morehart | July 17, 2019

The Presidential Citations began as an initiative of former ALA President Loriene Roy (2007–2008). Presented by the International Relations Round Table (IRRT), the awards recognize exemplary services and projects that draw attention to the potential for library services to create positive change, demonstrate sustainability, and provide a model for others. The four winning libraries for … Continue reading International Innovators →

Pauletta Bracy (second from left) gets a standing ovation as she receives the Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement during the Coretta Scott King Book Awards 50th Anniversary Breakfast.

Coretta Scott King Book Awards Breakfast

By Regina Carter | June 24, 2019

The Coretta Scott King Book Awards are given annually to outstanding African American authors and illustrators of books for children and young adults that demonstrate an appreciation of African American culture and universal human values. The award commemorates the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and honors his wife, Coretta Scott King, for … Continue reading Coretta Scott King Book Awards Breakfast →

Attendees crowd around travel author Rick Steves for autographs following his Auditorium Speaker Series presentation at the 2019 ALA Midwinter Meeting. Photo: Cognotes

2019 Midwinter Wrap-Up

By Anne Ford | February 5, 2019

The Emerald City played host to more than 9,200 attendees (as compared with 8,036 in 2018 and 8,995 in 2017), who came to soak up the words of big-name speakers, learn from the practices of their peers, and network around subjects practical and theoretical. As with recent Midwinters, many sessions focused on the empowerment of … Continue reading 2019 Midwinter Wrap-Up →

From left: YALSA President Crystle Martin, Coretta Scott King Chair Claudette McLinn, ALSC President Jamie Campbell Naidoo, ALA President Loida Garcia-Febo, and Reforma President Madeline Pena Feliz at the 2019 ALA Youth Media Awards presentation.

2019 Youth Media Award Winners

January 28, 2019

A list of all the 2019 award winners follows: John Newbery Medal for the most outstanding contribution to children’s literature: Merci Suárez Changes Gears, written by Meg Medina, is the 2019 Newbery Medal winner. The book is published by Candlewick Press. Two Newbery honor books also were named: The Night Diary, written by Veera Hiranandani … Continue reading 2019 Youth Media Award Winners →

The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle.

By the Numbers: Picture Book Month

By Alison Marcotte | November 1, 2018

2011 Year that November was designated Picture Book Month by Dianne de Las Casas and fellow children’s book authors and illustrators Katie Davis, Elizabeth Dulemba, Tara Lazar, and Wendy Martin. The international literacy initiative was in response to a 2010 New York Times article, “Picture Books No Longer a Staple for Children.” 12th Century when … Continue reading By the Numbers: Picture Book Month →

Covers for the 2019 Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence in Fiction and Nonfiction: Dopesick: Dealers, Doctors, and the Drug Company That Addicted America, by Beth Macy (Little, Brown); Heavy: An American Memoir, by Kiese Laymon (Scribner); The Line Becomes a River: Dispatches from the Border, by Francisco Cantú (Riverhead); The Great Believers, by Rebecca Makkai (Viking); There There, by Tommy Orange (Knopf); and Washington Black, by Esi Edugyan (Knopf).

ALA Unveils 2019 Carnegie Medals Shortlist

October 24, 2018

2019 Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence in Fiction and Nonfiction shortlist titles include: Nonfiction Dopesick: Dealers, Doctors, and the Drug Company That Addicted America, by Beth Macy (Little, Brown and Company). Macy’s years of reporting on the still-unfolding US opioid crisis earned her remarkable access to people whose lives have been upended. Dopesick is a timely … Continue reading ALA Unveils 2019 Carnegie Medals Shortlist →

2018 ALA Award Winners

September 4, 2018

Clara Chu BETA PHI MU AWARD Chu’s work is notable for extending beyond the classroom, most recently in support of Southeast Asian refugees. Letters in support of her nomination noted her encouragement, intellectual scope, and the care she takes with her students. Her multilingual contributions to the field include more than 40 articles and … Continue reading 2018 ALA Award Winners →

Students at a teacher’s college in Parwan Province, Afghanistan, learn about the Darakht-e Danesh Library.

2018 Presidential Citations

By Phil Morehart | July 18, 2018

Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan, Canada La Biblioteca Móvil, Guatemala Suzhou Library, China Inner Mongolia Library, China The recipients were selected by a team of IRRT members in consultation with then–ALA President Jim Neal, who recognized them at the 2018 ALA Annual Conference and Exhibition in New Orleans during the IRRT International Librarians Reception … Continue reading 2018 Presidential Citations →

Ron Charles is wearing a full suit sitting on an inflatable dragon pool toy.

Newsmaker: Ron Charles

By Jordan Sarti | July 5, 2018

What do you do to make literary criticism approachable? I try to pick books that I think people would enjoy reading, so that’s a start. I try to write about them with enthusiasm and clarity, and I do a few odd things to try and bring in people who are sick and tired of book … Continue reading Newsmaker: Ron Charles →

Latest Library Links

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Phil Morehart writes: “‘Ladies and gentlemen, there are speakers, and there’s Adolph Brown.’ The introduction of the Friday speaker at the AASL National Conference in Louisville was an understatement. A psychology professor at Hampton (Va.) University, Brown donned a sequined jacket and danced around the stage while music cues from James Brown’s 1970 single ‘Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine’ pumped through speakers in the ballroom. Another individual wearing baggy pants, an oversized shirt, a large backpack, and spiked braids soon joined Brown onstage, taking the role of the traditional hip-hop hype man. But it was all a ruse.”

AL: The Scoop, Nov. 19
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Phil Morehart writes: “The AASL National School Library Standards were the focus of concurrent sessions at the AASL 2019 National Conference, held November 14–16 in Louisville, Kentucky. Each program demonstrated how Standards foundations—inquire, include, collaborate, curate, explore, engage—are being applied by school librarians. At ‘Do the Bot: Librarians Using Robots to Impact Learning,’ Archon Auzenne, Lee Glover, and Gloria Miller—librarians from Clear Creek Independent School District in League City, Texas—showed how different types of robots can be used to teach students programming and coding.”

AL: The Scoop, Nov. 19
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The Brooklyn Public Library runs a wealth of programs, among them the Cookmobile, which offers free cooking classes for high schoolers, particularly in neighborhoods where fresh ingredients are in short supply. A compact 5-by-3-by-2-foot unit funded by the Bklyn Incubator, the Cookmobile is fitted with a sink, induction cooktop, convection oven, and enough cooking utensils for up to 30 students. It can be transported from place to place and wheeled right into the library, ready for a class. “We even have a Vitamix,” said Johanna Lewis, a librarian who teaches the classes with Adeeba Rana, also a librarian.

New York Times, Nov. 18
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Chandra Steele and Jason Cohen write: “Web notifications appear in the browser, dropping down from the URL bar to ask whether or not a website can use your location or send you notifications. Autoplay videos are usually sent from specific websites and interrupt your browsing experience. Push notifications are sent from specific services—like Slack, Twitter, or Facebook—and temporarily display over whatever window you have open. Luckily, major browser makers have tools to make certain alerts less invasive. Here’s what you need to know to keep these notifications and pop-ups in check.”

PC Magazine, Nov. 18
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A new analysis released November 18 reveals that more than $1 billion in federal funding for libraries will be allocated to states based on the 2020 Census. Published by Andrew Reamer of the George Washington Institute of Public Policy, the study pinpoints the financial impact the census will have on libraries. The population count in the decennial census determines the level of funding allotted to each state through LSTA, which provides federal funding to state library agencies to support libraries. The program is one of more than 300 federal programs that allocates funding to local communities based on data derived from the census.

ALA Public Policy and Advocacy Office, Nov. 19
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Emily Stochl writes: “There are so many books coming out each week, it can be difficult to keep track of the publication dates of all these amazing new reads. But there are sites and resources that organize upcoming book releases by date, and will make keeping track a lot easier on you. Some catalog upcoming book releases for 2019, others run through early 2020. Here are five different options for you to try.”

Book Riot, Nov. 19
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Kelly Hincks writes: “Recently, a 2nd-grade teacher and I had the opportunity to work together on a project in math. Her class was finishing a unit on graphing and I recommended the book The Great Graph Contest by Loreen Leedy. The book sparked discussion in her classroom and the students wanted to create their own graphs based on questions of their choice. Here are the five steps that were used to complete this project.”

Knowledge Quest blog, Nov. 19

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