A Brief Pause for "Nominations"

by Martha V. Parravano
Nov 22, 2019 | Filed in Blogs

Image of five books laid out on a table -- Double Bass Blues; My Papi Has a Motorcycle; Saturday; Two Brothers, Four Hands; and Vroom!Hello, everyone! As you may be aware, the Real Committee has been busy all year with its regimented system of (informal) suggestions and (formal) nominations. Jules and I thought we would pause in our coverage of 2019 Caldecott-eligible titles to solicit your input. What books are your current top favorites?

Just to briefly recap the system: "suggestions" by committee members have been accumulating for months, in order to put titles of interest on the radars of fellow committee members. A committee member may suggest as many or as few titles as they wish:  

"The Chair solicits suggestions of eligible titles from committee members, usually on a monthly basis. Each time, committee members are asked to suggest books deemed to be strong contenders based on the award criteria."

Nominations are more formal, and occur in a much more regimented way, as follows:

"Prior to the Midwinter Selection Meeting the Chair will request three rounds of nominations from committee members. Committee members will be asked to nominate 3, 2, and 2 books (for a total of 7 distinct nominations) and to provide justification for each book."

(You may, of course, read about the process in more detail in the manual.)

Here at Calling Caldecott, we won't interrupt our coverage three times this fall/winter in order to attempt to exactly replicate this (very thorough and effective!) system of suggestions and nominations. We really are trying to cover as many eligible titles as possible! But we thought we'd pause now and ask you, the readers of this blog, to name four of your top contenders. It's mid-November now; we'll ask for three more nominations in mid-December. That way, if you want to participate, you will end up "nominating" seven titles, just as the Real Committee members will. (Written justifications for your books are not necessary in order to participate.)

So, without further ado: of the 2019 books you've encountered irl or seen covered so far here on Calling Caldecott, what would your top four choices be at the moment? (Remember, you will have a chance to add three more book choices next month.) Please let us know in the comments! 

 

Martha V. Parravano

Martha V. Parravano is a contributing editor to The Horn Book, Inc., and co-author of the Calling Caldecott blog.

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Michele Telerski-Rees

My four favorites thus far are: The Undefeated by Kwame Alexander illustrated by Kadir Nelson;You Are Home by Evan Turks; My Papi has a Motorcycle by Isabel Quintero illustrated by Zeke Pena, and Going Down Home with Daddy by Kelly Starling Lyons and illustrated by Daniel Minter

Posted : Dec 10, 2019 06:30

Ellen Gittes

My nominations (excluding some favorites with ineligible illustrators): Bear Came Along written by Richard T. Morris, illustrated by LeUyen Pham A Stone Sat Still by Brendan Wenzel Sea Bear: A Journey for Survival by Lindsay Moore Hum and Swish by Matt Myers

Posted : Dec 06, 2019 05:47

Susan Dailey

Little Guys by Vera Brosgol, Undefeated by Kwame Alexander illus. by Kadir Nelson, Sea Bear by Lindsay Moore & Sonny's Bridge by Barry Wittenstein illus. by Keith Mallett

Posted : Dec 04, 2019 02:39

Julie Danielson

I also want to thank everyone for leaving your nominations / favorites. I love reading these. Some of these illustrators aren't eligible for the award. I know, for instance, that Matthew Forsythe isn't (though POKKO is one of my favorite picture books this year), and I don't think Eva Eland is eligible (and I also really like her beautiful, sensitive book). Keep the titles coming! Thanks for taking the time to visit and share your favorites.

Posted : Dec 01, 2019 04:03

Sam Juliano

And yes, I'd sign a petition in a heartbeat to have the magnificent "Small in the City" achieve qualification status. That book seriously contends for poll position designation methinks.

Posted : Nov 27, 2019 06:34

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