The big deal event at ALA’s Midwinter meeting is the announcement of several book awards, most notably the Newbery and Caldecott. People start lining up outside the room an hour before the ceremony, and through the convention center walls, from the adjoining room, I could hear shouts and applause and jubilation as I sat in the Cognotes office typing up a story. Listening to the ceremony from another room was akin to standing outside a sports bar during the Super Bowl. I’m pretty sure no one was drunk at the 9 a.m. ceremony, though–just hopped up on $4.00 double-shot Starbucks and the supernatural energy inherent in youth services librarians. Kate DiCamillo got word Monday morning about her Newbery award for The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread, and burst into tears, according to this USA Today story. Mordicai Gerstein, illustrator and author snagged the Caldecott for “The Man Who Walked Between the Towers.”
The big deal event at ALA’s Midwinter meeting is the announcement of several book awards, most notably the Newbery and Caldecott. People start lining up outside the room an hour before the ceremony, and through the convention center walls, from the adjoining room, I could hear shouts and applause and jubilation as I sat in the Cognotes office typing up a story. Listening to the ceremony from another room was akin to standing outside a sports bar during the Super Bowl. I’m pretty sure no one was drunk at the 9 a.m. ceremony, though–just hopped up on $4.00 double-shot Starbucks and the supernatural energy inherent in youth services librarians. Kate DiCamillo got word Monday morning about her Newbery award for The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread, and burst into tears, according to this USA Today story. Mordicai Gerstein, illustrator and author snagged the Caldecott for “The Man Who Walked Between the Towers.”
I had hoped to file some breathless, chock-full-o’-news dispatches from the conference floor (in sunny San Diego) but my double duties as Councilor and conference newspaper editor kept me hopping. Cuba was a major issue for Council, one that was addressed and acted on. I’m sure there will be something to link to in the next week, and I’ll attempt to give a conference summary soon. For now, though, I need to adjust to a two-hour time difference, 40 degree temperature drop and a week’s worth of sleep deprivation. There’s no place like home…
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