LibGuides: Children and Adolescent Literature: Introduction

Library Juvenile/Children Collection

The purpose of Malone University Library's Children's collection is to support the College of Education curriculum. Intended for MU students, and faculty members, the collection is also used by Malone community borrowers and OhioLINK patrons.

The juvenile collection includes award winning titles including Newbery and Caldecott winners and honor books, Coretta Scott King award books, ALA Best Books for Young Adults, Notable Children's books, and Children's and Teacher's Choice award books.

Students are encouraged to preview, read and evaluate books before using them in a classroom setting. This step is necessary to determine if selected titles are appropriate for individual classroom situations. If you have questions about a particular title, consult with your professor or cooperating teacher before using it in the classroom.

Take time to explore this guide and feel free to recommend additions to the existing resources by contacting the profiled librarian.

2019 Coretta Scott King-Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement

Dr. Pauletta B. Bracy, the 2019 recipient of the Coretta Scott King-Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement

Dr. Pauletta Bracy, is Professor of Library Science and Director of the Office of University Accreditation at North Carolina Central University (NCCU). She has successfully merged scholarship and service with publications such as “Libraries, Literacy and African American Youth” (co-edited with Sandra Hughes Hassell and Casey H. Rawson) as well as her work with the Coretta Scott King Book Awards and with workshops and conferences dedicated to promoting African American books for children and teens. She recently served as co-organizer for Celebrating Our Voices: Black Children’s Literature Symposium and Book Festival held at NCCU.

Libraries, Literacy, and African American Youth: Research and Practice
ISBN: 9781440838729
Publication Date: 2016
This important book is a call to action for the library community to address the literacy and life outcome gaps impacting African American youth. It provides strategies that enable school and public librarians to transform their services, programs, and collections to be more responsive to the literacy strengths, experiences, and needs of African American youth.

Margaret A. Edwards Award, 2019

tobinGiven for an author's significant and lasting contribution to young adult literature.

Matthew Tobin Anderson, known as M.T. Anderson (born November 4, 1968), is an American writer of children's books that range from picture books to young adult novels. He won the National Book Award for Young People's Literature in 2006 for The Pox Party, the first of two "Octavian Nothing" books, which are historical novels set in Revolution-era Boston.Anderson is known for using wit and sarcasm in his stories, as well as advocating that young adults are capable of mature comprehension ~ Wikipedia

The Assassination of Brangwain Spurge
ISBN: 9780763698225
Publication Date: 2018
Uptight elfin historian Brangwain Spurge is on a mission: survive being catapulted across the mountains into goblin territory, deliver a priceless peace offering to their mysterious dark lord, and spy on the goblin kingdom — from which no elf has returned alive in more than a hundred years. Brangwain’s host, the goblin archivist Werfel, is delighted to show Brangwain around. They should be the best of friends, but a series of extraordinary double crosses, blunders, and cultural misunderstandings throws these two bumbling scholars into the middle of an international crisis that may spell death for them — and war for their nations.

Hello lighthouse by Spphie Blackall
ISBN: 9780316362382
Publication Date: 2018
Watch the days and seasons pass as the wind blows, the fog rolls in, and icebergs drift by. Outside, there is water all around. Inside, the daily life of a lighthouse keeper and his family unfolds as the keeper boils water for tea, lights the lamp's wick, and writes every detail in his logbook. Step back in time and through the door of this iconic lighthouse into a cozy dollhouse-like interior with the extraordinary award-winning artist Sophie Blackall.

Merci Suárez Changes Gears by Meg Medina
ISBN: 9780763690496
Publication Date: 2018
In a coming-of-age tale full of humor and wisdom, award-winning author Meg Medina gets to the heart of the confusion and constant change that defines middle school — and the steadfast connection that defines family.

2019 Honor Books

Caldecott
Newbery

Alma and How She Got Her Name by Juana Martinez-Neal
ISBN: 9780763693558
Publication Date: 2018
If you ask her, Alma Sofia Esperanza José Pura Candela has way too many names: six! How did such a small person wind up with such a large name? Alma turns to Daddy for an answer and learns of Sofia, the grandmother who loved books and flowers; Esperanza, the great-grandmother who longed to travel; José, the grandfather who was an artist; and other namesakes, too. As she hears the story of her name, Alma starts to think it might be a perfect fit after all — and realizes that she will one day have her own story to tell.
A Big Mooncake for Little Star by Grace Lin
ISBN: 9780316404488
Publication Date: 2018
In this stunning picture book that shines as bright as the stars in the sky, Newbery Honor author Grace Lin creates a heartwarming original story that explains phases of the moon.
The Rough Patch by Brian Lies
ISBN: 9780062671271
Publication Date: 2018
Evan and his dog do everything together, from eating ice cream to caring for their prize-winning garden, which grows big and beautiful. One day the unthinkable happens: Evan’s dog dies. Heartbroken, Evan destroys the garden and everything in it. The ground becomes overgrown with prickly weeds and thorns, and Evan embraces the chaos. But beauty grows in the darkest of places, and when a twisting vine turns into an immense pumpkin, Evan is drawn out of his isolation and back to the county fair, where friendships—old and new—await.
Thank you, Omu! by Oge Mora
ISBN: 9780316431248
Publication Date: 2018
Everyone in the neighborhood dreams of a taste of Omu's delicious stew! One by one, they follow their noses toward the scrumptious scent. And one by one, Omu offers a portion of her meal. Soon the pot is empty. Has she been so generous that she has nothing left for herself?

The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani
Call Number: 2018
ISBN: 9780735228511
It's 1947, and India, newly independent of British rule, has been separated into two countries: Pakistan and India. The divide has created much tension between Hindus and Muslims, and hundreds of thousands are killed crossing borders. Half-Muslim, half-Hindu twelve-year-old Nisha doesn't know where she belongs, or what her country is anymore. When Papa decides it's too dangerous to stay in what is now Pakistan, Nisha and her family become refugees and embark first by train but later on foot to reach her new home. The journey is long, difficult, and dangerous, and after losing her mother as a baby, Nisha can't imagine losing her homeland, too. But even if her country has been ripped apart, Nisha still believes in the possibility of putting herself back together.
The Book of Boy by Catherine Gilbert Murdock
ISBN: 9780062686206
Publication Date: 2018
Boy has always been relegated to the outskirts of his small village. With a hump on his back, a mysterious past, and a tendency to talk to animals, he is often mocked by others in his town—until the arrival of a shadowy pilgrim named Secondus. Impressed with Boy’s climbing and jumping abilities, Secondus engages Boy as his servant, pulling him into an action-packed and suspenseful expedition across Europe to gather seven precious relics of Saint Peter.

2019 Coretta Scott King Book Awards

Award Winners
Honor Books

A Few Red Drops: The Chicago Race Riot of 1919 by Claire Hartfield
ISBN: 9780544785137
Publication Date: 2018
On a hot day in July 1919, five black youths went swimming in Lake Michigan, unintentionally floating close to the "white" beach. An angry white man began throwing stones at the boys, striking and killing one. Racial conflict on the beach erupted into days of urban violence that shook the city of Chicago to its foundations. This mesmerizing narrative draws on contemporary accounts as it traces the roots of the explosion that had been building for decades in race relations, politics, business, and clashes of culture. Archival photos and prints, source notes, bibliography, index.

ILLUSTRATOR AWARD

The Stuff of Stars by Ekua Holmes, illustrator written by Marion Dane
ISBN: 9780763678838
Publication Date: 2018
Before the universe was formed, before time and space existed, there was . . . nothing. But then . . . BANG! Stars caught fire and burned so long that they exploded, flinging stardust everywhere. And the ash of those stars turned into planets. Into our Earth. And into us. In a poetic text, Marion Dane Bauer takes readers from the trillionth of a second when our universe was born to the singularities that became each one of us, while vivid illustrations by Ekua Holmes capture the void before the Big Bang and the ensuing life that burst across galaxies. A seamless blend of science and art, this picture book reveals the composition of our world and beyond — and how we are all the stuff of stars.

Finding Langston by Lesa Cline-Ransome
ISBN: 9780823439607
Publication Date: 2018
When eleven-year-old Langston's father moves them from their home in Alabama to Chicago's Bronzeville district, it feels like he's giving up everything he loves...But Langston's new home has one fantastic thing. Unlike the whites-only library in Alabama, the Chicago Public Library welcomes everyone. There, hiding out after school, Langston discovers another Langston--a poet whom he learns inspired his mother enough to name her only son after him.
The Parker Inheritance by Varian Johnson
ISBN: 9780545946179
Publication Date: 2018
When Candice finds a letter in an old attic in Lambert, South Carolina, she isn't sure she should read it. It's addressed to her grandmother, who left the town in shame. But the letter describes a young woman. An injustice that happened decades ago. A mystery enfolding its writer. And the fortune that awaits the person who solves the puzzle. So with the help of Brandon, the quiet boy across the street, she begins to decipher the clues. The challenge will lead them deep into Lambert's history, full of ugly deeds, forgotten heroes, and one great love; and deeper into their own families, with their own unspoken secrets. Can they find the fortune and fulfill the letter's promise before the answers slip into the past yet again?
The Season of Styx Malone by Kekla Magoon
ISBN: 9781524715953
Publication Date: 2018
Caleb Franklin and his big brother Bobby Gene are excited to have adventures in the woods behind their house. But Caleb dreams of venturing beyond their ordinary small town. Then Caleb and Bobby Gene meet new neighbor Styx Malone. Styx is sixteen and oozes cool. Styx promises the brothers that together, the three of them can pull off the Great Escalator Trade--exchanging one small thing for something better until they achieve their wildest dream. But as the trades get bigger, the brothers soon find themselves in over their heads. Styx has secrets--secrets so big they could ruin everything

Library Liaison

Kristine Owens

Email Me

YALSA Award

YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults, Winner, 2018

Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers by Deborah Heiligman
ISBN: 9780805093391
Publication Date: 2017
The deep and enduring friendship between Vincent and Theo Van Gogh shaped both brothers' lives. Confidant, champion, sympathizer, friend―Theo supported Vincent as he struggled to find his path in life. They shared everything, swapping stories of lovers and friends, successes and disappointments, dreams and ambitions. Meticulously researched, drawing on the 658 letters Vincent wrote to Theo during his lifetime, Deborah Heiligman weaves a tale of two lives intertwined and the extraordinary love of the Van Gogh brothers.

Michael L. Printz Award, 2019

For excellence in literature written for young adults

The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
ISBN: 9780062662804
Publication Date: 2018
Xiomara Batista feels unheard and unable to hide in her Harlem neighborhood. Ever since her body grew into curves, she has learned to let her fists and her fierceness do the talking. But Xiomara has plenty she wants to say, and she pours all her frustration and passion onto the pages of a leather notebook, reciting the words to herself like prayers—especially after she catches feelings for a boy in her bio class named Aman, who her family can never know about. With Mami’s determination to force her daughter to obey the laws of the church, Xiomara understands that her thoughts are best kept to herself. So when she is invited to join her school’s slam poetry club, she doesn’t know how she could ever attend without her mami finding out. But she still can’t stop thinking about performing her poems. Because in the face of a world that may not want to hear her, Xiomara refuses to be silent.

Theodor Seuss Geisel Award, 2019

Fox the Tiger by Corey R. Tabor
ISBN: 9780062398673
Publication Date: 2018
Fun-loving, mischievous Fox wishes he were a tiger. Tigers are big and fast and sneaky. So he decides to become one! Soon Turtle and Rabbit are joining in the fun. But will Fox want to be a tiger forever? In Fox the Tiger, this winning trickster character and his animal friends learn that the best thing to be is yourself.

Children and Adolescent Literature: Introduction