2018 Sydney Taylor Book Award Winners Announced

For More Information Contact:
Susan Kusel, Chair Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee
Association of Jewish Libraries
sydneytaylorbookaward@jewishlibraries.org

January 10, 2018
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

2018 Sydney Taylor Book Award Winners Announced

Winners of the annual Sydney Taylor Book Award were announced by the Association of Jewish Libraries today. Named in memory of Sydney Taylor, author of the classic All-of-a-Kind Family series, the award recognizes books for children and teens that exemplify high literary standards while authentically portraying the Jewish experience. 

2018 is the 50th Anniversary of the Sydney Taylor Awards. The first winner was The Endless Steppe: Growing Up in Siberia by Esther Hautzig in 1968, published by the Thomas Y. Crowell Company.

GOLD MEDALISTS

The Language of Angels: A Story About the Reinvention of Hebrew by Richard Michelson, illustrated by Karla Gudeon, published by Charlesbridge, won the Sydney Taylor Book Award in the Younger Readers category. This beautiful picture book tells the story of how Hebrew became an everyday language in Israel, after being out of use for two thousand years. The folk art illustrations are an illuminating match. 

Refugee by Alan Gratz, published by Scholastic Press, an imprint of Scholastic, won the Sydney Taylor Book Award in the Older Readers category. The journeys of three different young refugees from Nazi Germany, 1990s Cuba and present-day Syria come together to form an emotional and timely narrative about the refugee experience.

The Librarian of Auschwitz by Antonio Iturbe, translated by Lilit Thwaites, published by Godwin Books, an imprint of Henry Holt and Company, a division of Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, won the Sydney Taylor Book Award in the Teen Readers category. This powerful story of Dita Kraus and her protection of a handful of books in the Auschwitz concentration camp shows the importance of hope in the darkest of times. 

Harold Grinspoon and PJ Library won the Sydney Taylor Body of Work Award. PJ Library, a project of the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, is a family engagement program that sends free books celebrating Jewish values and culture to families with children 6 months through 8 years old. This program has revolutionized the field of Jewish children’s literature by providing dramatically improved access to Jewish books for families. It has also significantly increased the publication of children’s books with Jewish content. The Body of Work Award has been given twelve times in the 50-year history of the Sydney Taylor Awards. The last recipient was author Eric Kimmel in 2004. 

SILVER MEDALISTS

Eight Sydney Taylor Honor Books were also recognized.  For Younger Readers, the Honor Books are: Yaffa and Fatima: Shalom, Salaam adapted by Fawzia GilaniWilliams, illustrated by Chiara Fedele, published by Kar-Ben Publishing, a division of Lerner Publishing Group and Drop by Drop: A Story of Rabbi Akiva by Jacqueline Jules, illustrated by Yevgenia Nayberg, published by Kar-Ben Publishing, a division of Lerner Publishing Group.

For Older Readers, the Honor Books are: Viva, Rose! by Susan Krawitz, published by Holiday House, which was also the recipient of the 2015 Sydney Taylor Manuscript Award; This Is Just a Test by Madelyn Rosenberg and Wendy Wan-Long Shang, published by Scholastic Press, an imprint of Scholastic; and The Six-Day Hero by Tammar Stein, published by Kar-Ben Publishing, a division of Lerner Publishing Group.

For Teen Readers, the Honor Books are: To Look a Nazi in the Eye: A Teen’s Account of a War Criminal Trial by Kathy Kacer with Jordana Lebowitz, published by Second Story Press; Almost Autumn by Marianne Kaurin, translated by Rosie Hedger, published by Arthur A. Levine Books, an imprint of Scholastic; and The Girl with the Red Balloon by Katherine Locke, published by Albert Whitman & Company.

In addition to the medal winners, the Award Committee designated twelve Notable Books of Jewish Content for 2018. More information about the Sydney Taylor Book Award and a complete listing of the award winners and notables can be found at www.sydneytaylorbookawards.org.

Winning authors and illustrators will receive their awards at the Annual Conference of the Association of Jewish Libraries, to be held in Boston, MA from June 18-20, 2018. Gold and silver medalists will also participate in a blog tour February 4-8, 2018. For more information about the blog tour please visit www.jewishlibraries.org/blog.

The Language of Angels and Refugee were also named winners of the 67th Annual National Jewish Book Awards, which were announced today as well. A full list of all the winners can be found on the Jewish Book Councils website here. 

Members of the 2018 Sydney Taylor Book Award committee are: Chair Susan Kusel, Temple Rodef Shalom Library, Falls Church, VA; Rena Citrin, Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School, Chicago, IL; Elissa Gershowitz, Horn Book Magazine, Boston, MA; Rebecca Levitan, Baltimore County Public Library, Pikesville Branch, Baltimore, MD; Heather Lenson, Joseph & Florence Mandel Jewish Day School, Beachwood, OH; Marjorie Shuster, Congregation Emanuel of the City of New York, New York, NY; and Rivka Yerushalmi, Silver Spring, MD.

###

The 2018 Sydney Taylor Book Awards
Association of Jewish Libraries

The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Younger Readers

The Language of Angels: A Story About the Reinvention of Hebrew by Richard Michelson, illustrated by Karla Gudeon, published by Charlesbridge

The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Older Readers

Refugee by Alan Gratz, published by Scholastic Press, an imprint of Scholastic

The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Teen Readers

The Librarian of Auschwitz by Antonio Iturbe, translated by Lilit Thwaites,  published by Godwin Books, an imprint of Henry Holt and Company,  a division of Macmillan Children's Publishing Group

The Sydney Taylor Body of Work Award Winner

Harold Grinspoon and PJ Library

~~~~~~

Sydney Taylor Honor Books for Younger Readers

Yaffa and Fatima: Shalom, Salaam adapted by Fawzia Gilani-Williams, illustrated by Chiara Fedele

published by Kar-Ben Publishing, a division of Lerner Publishing Group

Drop by Drop: A Story of Rabbi Akiva by Jacqueline Jules, illustrated by Yevgenia Nayberg

published by Kar-Ben Publishing, a division of Lerner Publishing Group

Sydney Taylor Honor Books for Older Readers

Viva, Rose! by Susan Krawitz, published by Holiday House 

This Is Just a Test by Madelyn Rosenberg and Wendy Wan-Long Shang,  published by Scholastic Press, an imprint of Scholastic

The Six-Day Hero by Tammar Stein, published by Kar-Ben Publishing,  a division of Lerner Publishing Group

Sydney Taylor Honor Books for Teen Readers

To Look a Nazi in the Eye: A Teen’s Account of a War Criminal Trial by Kathy Kacer with Jordana Lebowitz, published by Second Story Press

Almost Autumn by Marianne Kaurin, translated by Rosie Hedger published by Arthur A. Levine Books, an imprint of Scholastic

The Girl with the Red Balloon by Katherine Locke, published by Albert Whitman & Company

 ~~~~~~

Notable Books for Younger Readers

Yom Kippur Shortstop by David A. Adler, illustrated by Andre Ceolin published by Apples & Honey Press, an imprint of Behrman House 

Under the Sabbath Lamp by Michael Herman, illustrated by Alida Massari published by Kar-Ben Publishing, a division of Lerner Publishing Group

Big Sam: A Rosh Hashanah Tall Tale by Eric A. Kimmel, illustrated by Jim Starr published by Apples & Honey Press, an imprint of Behrman House 

The Knish War on Rivington Street by Joanne Oppenheim, illustrated by Jon Davis published by Albert Whitman & Company

Ruth Bader Ginsburg: The Case of R.B.G. vs. Inequality by Jonah Winter, illustrated by Stacy Innerst, published by Abrams Books for Young Readers, a division of Abrams

 Notable Books for Older Readers

Hedy’s Journey: The True Story of a Hungarian Girl Fleeing the Holocaust by Michelle Bisson, illustrated by El primo Ramón published by Capstone Press, a Capstone imprint

The Children of Willesden Lane: A True Story of Hope and Survival During World War II:  Young Readers Edition by Mona Golabek and Lee Cohen and adapted by Emil Sher published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, a division of Hachette Book Group

Wordwings by Sydelle Pearl, published by Guernica Editions

The Dollmaker of Krakow by R.M. Romero published by Delacorte Press, a division of Random House Children’s Books

 Notable Books for Teen Readers

Man’s Search for Meaning: Young Reader Edition by Viktor E. Frankl, published by Beacon Press

Ronit & Jamil by Pamela L. Laskin published by Katherine Tegen Books, a division of HarperCollins Publishers

Stolen Secrets by L.B. Schulman, published by Boyds Mills Press, a division of Highlights

 ~~~~~~

For more information contact:

Susan Kusel, Chair Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee, Association of Jewish Libraries sydneytaylorbookaward@jewishlibraries.org

www.sydneytaylorbookawards.org

2018 Sydney Taylor Manuscript Award Winner Chosen

For More Information Contact:
Aileen Grossberg, Coordinator Sydney Taylor Manuscript Award Committee
Association of Jewish Libraries
STMACAJL@AOL.com
tinyurl.com/stma18

January 10, 2018
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

2018 Sydney Taylor Manuscript Award Winner Chosen 

The Sydney Taylor Manuscript Award Competition committee is pleased to announce the recipient of the 2018 award. Judith Pransky, author of The Seventh Handmaiden, will receive the award at the annual conference of the Association of Jewish Libraries to be held in Boston, MA, from June 18-20, 2018. The Award is offered annually to an unpublished manuscript that has broad appeal to readers aged 8-13 and presents Jewish life in a positive light.

Set in the time of King Xerxes of Persia, the novel begins with the kidnapping of a young girl and then flashes forward several years to focus on Darya, a young slave who is uncertain of her origins. The story follows Darya and her free friend Parvaneh from service in the household of a Persian army captain to positions in Xerxes’s palace as handmaidens to Queen Esther. Swirling around the girls’ everyday activities is palace intrigue orchestrated by Haman’s henchmen including Behrooz, who has a mysterious and frightening connection to Parveneh’s mother. 

Filled with historical details, intrigue, mystery, politics and a host of issues that contemporary readers can identify with, the story has a satisfying ending for both Darya and her mistress Esther and fleshes out the story found in the Megillah. The judges were impressed by the unique approach to the story of Esther, the strongly nuanced characters, the touch of mystery and the relevance of the issues to today’s world.

According to Ms Pransky, The Seventh Handmaiden was written with her sixth grade ancient history students in mind, and tries “to bring the history and lifestyle of Persia to life, as well as the characters that populate the Megillah and the Jewish story that permeates it.” Ms Pransky, a middle school language arts/history teacher, has contributed to Philadelphia area magazines and edited the Marmac Guide to Philadelphia. She has also taught writing to adults and worked as an editor for a textbook publishing company before returning to teaching. The Seventh Handmaiden is her first novel for young readers.

In an unusually strong year, the Committee is pleased to name three honorable mention manuscripts: Go To Yourself by Stuart Melnick is the story of an Orthodox boy preparing for his bar mitzvah. Through sports he experiences the outside world for the first time and learns about friendship, decisions and their consequences. Diverse characters and a warm family setting are hallmarks of this story. Raising Canaans by Catherine Orkin Oskow uses humor to tell the story of a dog-crazy preteen who obsesses over the Canaan dogs that her aunt raises and finally comes to accept that she cannot have a dog. Reeni’s Turn by Carol Coven Grannick uses verse to follow ballet dancer Reeni from doubt about herself to self-acceptance. The contemporary story focuses on issues common in today’s families.

###

2016 Sydney Taylor Book Awards Announced

Lesléa Newman and Amy June Bates, author and illustrator of Ketzel, the Cat who Composed, Aharon Appelfeld, Philippe Dumas and Jeffrey M. Green, author, illustrator and translator of Adam and Thomas, and Laura Amy Schlitz, author of The Hired Girl, are the 2016 winners of the Sydney Taylor Book Award.

The Sydney Taylor Book Award honors new books for children and teens that exemplify the highest literary standards while authentically portraying the Jewish experience.  The award memorializes Sydney Taylor, author of the classic All-of-a-Kind Family series.  The winners will receive their awards at the Association of Jewish Libraries Conference in Charleston, South Carolina this June.

Newman and Bates will receive the 2016 gold medal in the Sydney Taylor Book Award’s Younger Reader category for Ketzel, the Cat Who Composed, published by Candlewick Press.  This delightful picture book tells the true story of musician Morris Moshe Cotel, whose cat helped him compose a one-minute composition that received an honorable mention in the Paris New Music Review competition.  The illustrations are heartwarming and add much charm to the story.  Appelfeld, Dumas and Green will receive the 2016 gold medal in the Sydney Taylor Book Award’s Older Readers category for Adam and Thomas, published by Seven Stories Press.  This sweet story tells of two nine-year-old Jewish boys who survive the last winter of World War II, helping each other so that one grows physically stronger and braver and the other grows spiritually.  Laura Amy Schlitz will receive the 2016 gold medal in the Sydney Taylor Book Award’s Teen category for The Hired Girl, published by Candlewick Press. This sensitive story tells how fourteen-year-old Catholic Joan Skraggs becomes a hired girl to a Jewish family where she learns and grows in unexpected ways.

Five Sydney Taylor Honor Books were named for 2016.  For Younger Readers, the Honor Books are Everybody Says Shalom written by Leslie Kimmelman and illustrated by Talitha Shipman, published by Random House, and Shanghai Sukkah written by Heidi Smith Hyde and illustrated by Jing Jing Tsong, published by Kar-Ben Publishing.  Hereville:  How Mirka Caught a Fish by Barry Deutsch, published by Amulet Books, is the Honor book in the Older Reader category.  For Teen Readers, the Honor books are Serendipity’s Footsteps by Suzanne Nelson, published by Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House, and Stones on a Grave by Kathy Kacer, published by Orca Book Publishers.

Winners and Honor recipients will be participating in a Blog Tour from February 7-12, 2016. For more information about the blog please visit www.jewishlibraries.org/blog.

In addition to the medal winners, the Award Committee designated twelve Notable Books of Jewish Content for 2016.  More information about the Sydney Taylor Book Award can be found at www.SydneyTaylorBookAward.org.

Click here for a pdf of 2016 winners, honor books, and notable books.
 
For more information, contact:
Diane Rauchwerger, Chair
Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee
Association of Jewish Libraries
(408) 245-7641
chair@sydneytaylorbookaward.org

THE WINNERS

The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Younger Readers:

Ketzel, the Cat who Composed by Lesléa Newman with illustrations by Amy June Bates
(Candlewick Press)

The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Older Readers:

Adam & Thomas by Aharon Appelfeld, translated by Jeffrey M. Green
with illustrations by Philippe Dumas
(Seven Stories Press)

The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Teen Readers:

The Hired Girl by Laura Amy Schlitz
(Candlewick Press)

Sydney Taylor Honor Books for Younger Readers:

Everybody Says Shalom by Leslie Kimmelman with illustrations by Talitha Shipman
(Random House)

Shanghai Sukkah by Heidi Smith Hyde with illustrations by Jing Jing Tsong
(Kar-Ben Publishing)

Sydney Taylor Honor Book for Older Readers:

Hereville: How Mirka Caught a Fish by Barry Deutsch
(Amulet Books)

Sydney Taylor Honor Books for Teen Readers:

Serendipity’s Footsteps by Suzanne Nelson
(Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of Random House)

Stones on a Grave by Kathy Kacer
(Orca Book Publishers)

Notable Books for Younger Readers:

Hanukkah Cookies with Sprinkles by David A. Adler, illustrated by Jeffrey Ebbeler
(Apples & Honey Press, an imprint of Behrman House & Gefen Publishing House)

The Parakeet Named Dreidel by Isaac Bashevis Singer illustrated by Suzanne Raphael Berkson
(Farrar Straus Giroux)

Sadie and Ori and the Blue Blanket by Jamie Korngold illustrated by Julie Fortenberry
(Kar-Ben Publishers)

Notable Books for Older Readers:

The Girl in the Torch by Robert Sharenow
(Balzer + Bray, an imprint of Harper Collins Publishers)

Mr. Doctor: Janusz Korczak and the Orphans of the Warsaw Ghetto
by Irene Cohen-Janca and illustrated by Maurizio A. C. Quarello
(Annick Press)

The Safest Lie by Angela Cerrito
(Holiday House)

Watch Out for Flying Kids!: How Two Circuses, Two Countries, and Nine Kids Confront Conflict and Build Community by Cynthia Levinson
(Peachtree)

The Wren and the Sparrow, by J. Patrick Lewis, illustrated by Yevgenia Nayberg
(Kar-Ben Publishers)

Notable Books for Teens:

Courage & Defiance: Stories of Spies, Saboteurs, and Survivors in WWII Denmark by Deborah Hopkinson
(Scholastic Press)

Deep Sea by Annika Thor
(Delacorte Press)

Imagining Katherine by Carol Solomon
(Tova Press)

Last Night at the Circle Cinema by Emily Franklin
(Carolrhoda Lab)

2014 Sydney Taylor Book Awards Announced by AJL

 

Laurel Snyder and Catia Chien, author and illustrator of The Longest Night: A Passover Story, Patricia Polacco, author and illustrator of The Blessing Cup, and Neal Bascomb, author of The Nazi Hunters: How a Team of Spies and Survivors Captured the World’s Most Notorious Nazi, are the 2014 winners of the Sydney Taylor Book Award. 

 
The Sydney Taylor Book Award honors new books for children and teens that exemplify the highest literary standards while authentically portraying the Jewish experience. The award memorializes Sydney Taylor, author of the classic All-of-a-Kind Family series. The winners will receive their awards at the Association of Jewish Libraries Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada this June. 

Snyder and Chien will receive the 2014 gold medal in the Sydney Taylor Book Award’s Younger Readers category for The Longest Night: A Passover Story, published by Schwartz & Wade, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books. Written in gentle verse, the tumultuous days leading up to the Jews’ flight from Egypt are described from the perspective of an unnamed slave girl in this beautifully illustrated story. It provides a unique introduction to the Passover holiday for young readers in an honest, but age-appropriate way. 

 

The gold medal in the Older Readers category will be presented to Patricia Polacco for The Blessing Cup, a Paula Wiseman Book, published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. In this prequel to The Keeping Quilt, Polacco shares the story of a treasured family heirloom. The miraculous journey from the shtetl to America of the remaining teacup from a china tea set, deliberately left behind when her Jewish ancestors were forced to leave Czarist Russia, will strike an emotional chord with readers. In 1988, The Keeping Quilt was the Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Younger Readers. 

Neal Bascomb will receive the 2014 gold medal in the Sydney Taylor Book Award’s Teen Readers category for The Nazi Hunters: How a Team of Spies and Survivors Captured the World’s Most Notorious Nazi, published by Arthur A. Levine Books, an imprint of Scholastic. A stunning account of the mission to capture Adolf Eichmann by an elite team of Israeli spies is dramatically brought to life by Neal Bascomb.

  

Sydney Taylor Honor Books Selected for 2014:

Younger Readers:

• Stones for Grandpa by Renee Londoner with illustrations by Martha Avilés 
• Rifka Takes a Bow by Betty Rosenberg Perlov with illustrations by Cosei Kawa. (both by Kar-Ben, a division of Lerner Publishing Group)

Older Readers:

• The Boy on the Wooden Box: How the Impossible Became Possible...on Schindler’s List by Leon Leyson with Marilyn J. Harran and Elisabeth B. Leyson (Atheneum Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division) 
• Dear Canada: Pieces of the Past: The Holocaust Diary of Rose Rabinowitz, Winnipeg, Manitoba, 1948 by Carol Matas (Scholastic Canada)

Teen Readers:

• Dancing in the Dark by Robyn Bavati (Flux, an imprint of Llewellyn Worldwide) 
• The War Within These Walls by Aline Sax with illustrations by Caryl Strzelecki and translated by Laura Watkinson (Eerdmans Books for Young Readers)

Gold and silver medalists will be participating in a blog tour beginning February 16, 2014. 

In addition to the medal winners, the Award Committee designated thirteen Notable Books of Jewish Content for 2014. 

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Poster Series: I Want You at the AJL Conference

48th Annual Association of Jewish Libraries Conference

June 16-19, 2013

Houston, TX

www.jewishlibraries.org

2012 Sydney Taylor Book Awards Announced by the Association of Jewish Libraries

Michael J. Rosen and Robert Sabuda, author and artist of Chanukah Lights, Susan Goldman Rubin, author of Music Was It: Young Leonard Bernstein, and Robert Sharenow, author of The Berlin Boxing Club, are the 2012 winners of the prestigious Sydney Taylor Book Award. The awards were announced at the mid-winter meeting of the School, Synagogue and Community Center Division of the Association of Jewish Libraries.

The Sydney Taylor Book Award honors new books for children and teens that exemplify the highest literary standards while authentically portraying the Jewish experience. The award memorializes Sydney Taylor, author of the classic All-of-a-Kind Family series. The winners will receive their awards at the Association of Jewish Libraries convention in Pasadena, California this June.

Rosen and Sabuda will receive the 2012 gold medal in the Sydney Taylor Book Award’s Younger Readers Category for Chanukah Lights, published by Candlewick Press. This exquisite book celebrates Jewish history by pairing poetic prose with intricate paper cut pop-up art. Barbara Bietz, Chair of the Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee, said: “From the shtetl to skyscrapers, the white pop-up scenes against a background of deep rainbow colors illuminate Jewish life for the eight nights of Chanukah. Together, children and adults will marvel at the stunning scenes that magically unfold with each turn of the page.”

The gold medal in the Sydney Taylor Book Award’s Older Readers Category will be presented to Susan Goldman Rubin for Music Was It: Young Leonard Bernstein, published by Charlesbridge Publishing. This biography shares the inspiring story of the young musician and his commitment to succeed in spite of his family’s opposition. Through hard work, determination and a spirit that won’t quit, Bernstein’s dream is realized as he takes the stage as a conductor at Carnegie Hall. Numerous photos help bring Bernstein’s journey to life. Committee member Barbara Krasner commented: “Music Was It shows the struggle between the old and new worlds - the immigrant generation and the American generation. Susan Goldman Rubin's well-researched and polished narrative was filled with tension that today's kids can relate to.”

In 2000, Goldman Rubin received the Sydney Taylor Honor Award for Fireflies in the Dark: The Story of Friedl Dicker-Brandeis. Her book, The Cat with the Yellow Star: Coming of Age in Terezin, was a 2006 Sydney Taylor Honor Book.

Robert Sharenow will receive the 2012 gold medal in the Sydney Taylor Book Award’s Teen Readers Category for The Berlin Boxing Club, published by HarperTeen, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishing. This historical novel reveals the history of Nazi Germany through the eyes of Karl Stern, a typical 14-year-old German boy. Karl never gave much thought to being Jewish and had little connection with any religious life. When classmates bully Karl, he is forced to face the dangers in his own community. Given the opportunity to learn boxing from German champion Max Schmeling, Karl jumps at the chance. He grows strong and learns to defend himself. But as the Nazi’s gain power and his family is in peril, Karl questions who he can trust. Aimee Lurie, incoming Chair of the Award Committee noted: “The superb writing, meticulous research, and dramatic look into the world of boxing pack a punch that will leave teens mesmerized! Readers will be captivated and inspired by Karl's transformation from being the victim of anti-semitic violence to a strong, confident young man who is able to protect his family.”

Eight Sydney Taylor Honor Books were named for 2012. Naamah and the Ark at Night by Susan Campbell Bartoletti with illustrations by Holly Meade (Candlewick Press) and Around the World in One ShabbatLily Renee, Escape Artist: from Holocaust Survivor to Comic Book Pioneer by Trina Robbins with illustrations by Anne Timmons and Mo Oh (Graphic Universe, an imprint of Lerner Publishing Group, Inc.), Hammerin’ Hank Greenberg: Baseball Pioneer by Shelley Sommer (Calkins Creek, an imprint Boyds Mills Press), and Irena’s Jars of Secrets by Marcia Vaughan with illustrations by Ron Mazellan (Lee & Low Books). For teen readers, the Honor Books are ThenThe Blood Lie by Shirley Reva Vernick (Cinco Puntos Press). written and illustrated by Durga Yael Bernhard (Jewish Lights Publishing) are recognized in the Younger Readers Category. Sydney Taylor Honor Books for Older Readers include: by Morris Gleitzman (Henry Holt and Company) and
In addition to the medal-winners, the Award Committee designated eighteen Notable Books of Jewish Content for 2012.

# # #

THE 2012 SYDNEY TAYLOR BOOK AWARDS
ANNOUNCED BY THE ASSOCIATION OF JEWISH LIBRARIES


The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Younger Readers:
Chanukah Lights by Michael J. Rosen with artwork by Robert Sabuda
(Candlewick Press)


The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Older Readers:
Music Was It: Young Leonard Bernstein by Susan Goldman Rubin
(Charlesbridge Publishing)


The Sydney Taylor Book Award Winner for Teen Readers:
The Berlin Boxing Club by Robert Sharenow
(Harper Teen, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers)



Sydney Taylor Honor Books for Younger Readers:
Naamah and the Ark at Night by Susan Campbell Bartoletti with illustrations by Holly Meade
(Candlewick Press)
Around the World in One Shabbat written and illustrated by Durga Yael Bernhard
(Jewish Lights Publishing)


Sydney Taylor Honor Books for Older Readers:
Lily Renee, Escape Artist: from Holocaust Survivor to Comic Book Pioneer
 by Trina Robbins with illustrations by Anne Timmons and Mo Oh
(Graphic Universe, an imprint of Lerner Publishing Group, Inc.)
Hammerin’ Hank Greenberg: Baseball Pioneer by Shelley Sommer
(Calkins Creek, an imprint Boyds Mills Press)
Irena’s Jars of Secrets by Marcia Vaughan with illustrations by Ron Mazellan
(Lee & Low Books)


Sydney Taylor Honor Books for Teen Readers:
Then by Morris Gleitzman
(Henry Holt and Company)
The Blood Lie by Shirley Reva Vernick
(Cinco Puntos Press)

Notable Books for Younger Readers:
Picnic at Camp Shalom by Jacqueline Jules with illustrations by Debbie Melmon
(Kar-Ben, an imprint of Lerner Publishing Group)
The Golem’s Latkes by Eric A. Kimmel with illustrations by Aaron Jasinski
(Marshall Cavendish Children’s Books)
Joseph and the Sabbath Fish by Eric A. Kimmel with illustrations by Martina Peluso
(Kar-Ben, an imprint of Lerner Publishing Group)
Sadie’s Sukkah Breakfast by Jamie Korngold with illustrations by Julie Fortenberry
(Kar-Ben, an imprint of Lerner Publishing Group)
The Shabbat Princess by Amy Meltzer with illustrations by Martha Aviles
 (Kar-Ben, an imprint of Lerner Publishing Group)
Lipman Pike: America’s First Home Run King by Richard Michelson with illustrations by Zachary Pullen
(Sleeping Bear Press, an imprint of Gale)
The Littlest Mountain by Barb Rosenstock with illustrations by Melanie Hall
(Kar-Ben, an imprint of Lerner Publishing Group)
I Will Come Back for You: A Family in Hiding during World War II by Marisabina Russo
(Schwartz & Wade Books, an imprint of Random House)
Marcel Marceau: Master of Mime by Gloria Spielman with illustrations by Manon Gauthtier
(Kar-Ben, an imprint of Lerner Publishing Group)
One Little Chicken by Elka Weber with illustrations by Elisa Kleven
(Tricycle Press, an imprint of Random House)


Notable Books for Older Readers:
The Mishkan: Its Structure and Its Sacred Vessels by Rabbi Avrohom Biderman
(Artscroll/Mesorah Publication)
Flesh & Blood So Cheap: The Triangle Fire and Its Legacy by Albert Marrin
(Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of Random House)
The Cats in the Doll Shop by Yona Zeldis McDonough with illustrations by Heather Maione
(Viking, an imprint of the Penguin Group (USA) Inc.)
When Life Gives You OJ by Erica S. Perl
(Knopf Books for Young Readers)
Irena Sendler and the Children of the Warsaw Ghetto by Susan Goldman Rubin
with illustrations by Bill Fransworth (Holiday House)
Terezin: Voices from the Holocaust by Ruth Thomson
(Candlewick Press)


Notable Books for Teens:
OyMG  by Amy Fellner Dominy
(Walker & Company)
Requiem: Poems of the Terezin Ghetto   by Paul Janeczko
(Candlewick Press)

The 2011 Sydney Taylor Book Award Blog Tour

The Sydney Taylor Book Award is celebrating and showcasing its 2011 gold and silver medalists with a Blog Tour, February 6-11, 2011! Interviews with winning authors and illustrators are appearing all week on various sites across the blogosphere - catch the daily roundup at AJL's blog People of the Books, or just follow the links below!

THE 2011 SYDNEY TAYLOR BOOK AWARD BLOG TOUR

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 6, 2011

Carla Jablonski, author of Resistance
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Older Readers Category
at Jewish Comics

Leland Purvis, illustrator of Resistance
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Older Readers Category
at Shelf-Employed

Sarah Gershman, author of Modeh Ani: A Good Morning Book
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at Biblio File

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2011

Linda Glaser, author of Emma’s Poem: The Voice of the Statue of Liberty
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at ASHarmony

Claire Nivola, illustrator of Emma’s Poem: The Voice of the Statue of Liberty
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at Lori Calabrese

Evelyn Krieger, author of One Is Not a Lonely Number
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Older Readers Category
at Ima On and Off the Bima

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2011

Barbara Diamond Goldin, author of Cakes and Miracles: A Purim Tale
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at Great Kid Books

Jaime Zollars, illustrator of Cakes and Miracles: A Purim Tale
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at The Book of Life

Susan Lynn Meyer, author of Black Radishes
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Older Readers Category
at The 3 Rs – Reading, ‘Riting & Research

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2011

Howard Schwartz, author of Gathering Sparks
Sydney Taylor Book Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at Boston Bibliophile

Barry Deutsch, author and illustrator of Hereville: How Mirka Got Her Sword
Sydney Taylor Book Award winner in the Older Readers Category
at BewilderBlog

Dana Reinhardt, author of The Things a Brother Knows
Sydney Taylor Book Award winner in the Teen Readers Category
at A Chair, a Fireplace, and a Tea Cozy

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2011

Kristina Swarner, illustrator of Gathering Sparks
Sydney Taylor Book Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
And illustrator of Modeh Ani: A Good Morning Book
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at Alice Pope’s SCBWI Children’s Market Blog

Sarah Darer Littman, author of Life, After
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Teen Readers Category
at Into the Wardrobe

Eishes Chayil, author of Hush
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Teen Readers Category
at Frume Sarah’s World

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2011

Morris Gleitzman, author of Once
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Teen Readers Category
at The Fourth Musketeer

Sydney Taylor Award Winners – Wrap-Up
All winners, all categories
at The Whole Megillah

3,548 Library Lovers Celebrate Jewish Library Snapshot Day

Library Snapshot Day 2010

The People of the Book really do love libraries! In November 2010, during Jewish Book Month, 30 Jewish libraries participated in Library Snapshot Day. The event, sponsored by the Association of Jewish Libraries, was created to let all types of Judaic libraries record what happens in a day in the life of a library. Across North America, libraries in synagogues, day schools, community centers and universities picked one day during the first two weeks of November to hold the event. Collectively, participating libraries served 3,548 patrons on Library Snapshot Day.

The Activities

From Jewish hubs like Chicago, IL to smaller Jewish communities like Tulsa, OK, from sunny Miami, FL to chilly Montreal, Quebec, Jewish libraries held author visits, study groups, literary and computer quizzes, artist receptions, book discussions, book sales, scavenger hunts, craft projects, parenting programs, charity drives, and children’s story times. Eleven of the participating libraries shared their circulation statistics, revealing that at least 745 books were checked out during Library Snapshot Day.

The Feedback

Every participating library reported overwhelmingly positive feedback from its community. Common themes included praise for the library as a quiet, peaceful environment in which to read and work, kudos for the hard work of librarians (many of whom, apparently, “rock”), and appreciation for the many print and digital resources provided. A patron at North Shore Hebrew Academy High School in Great Neck, NY said “The library is a great place to study and clear your head. I always feel relaxed and very welcomed when I come to the library, and I love the librarian.” A sixth-grader at the Sheila Sporn Library at Valley Beth Shalom in Encino, CA said “Libraries are important because they let people who don’t have enough money get books to read.” A patron of the Brenner Library at Temple Emanuel in Denver, CO drives 150 miles from the mountains to make use of the facilities. Perhaps the general sentiments of library users are best summed up by a patron at the Feldman Library at Congregation B’nai Israel in Boca Raton, FL, who said “The library helps us to continue to be the People of the Book!”

What It All Means

Library Snapshot Day captured the diversity of services offered by Jewish libraries and underscored the importance of libraries in Jewish life. “Libraries and librarians often fly under the radar in their communities,” said Association of Jewish Libraries Vice-President, Heidi Estrin. “We are thrilled that, on Library Snapshot Day, over three thousand people expressed their love of Jewish libraries. We hope that the event will encourage even more people to use these amazing resources year-round.” A slide show of selected photographs submitted by participants may be viewed on AJL’s blog “People of the Books” at jewishlibraries.org/blog.

The concept of Library Snapshot Day originated with the American Library Association, of which AJL is an affiliate. Click here for more information on ALA’s Library Snapshot Day.

Please feel free to share this article and/or video on your site or via social networking. You can find AJL online at jewishlibraries.org, at facebook.com/jewishlibraries, and on Twitter @jewishlibraries.

Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee Call for Submissions

If you are an author, editor, or publisher of Jewish books for children or teens please submit your 2010 titles for consideration. For more information visit www.Jewishlibraries.org or e-mail Chair@SydneyTaylorBookAward.org.

AJL Convention Blog

The AJL Convention starts today! Several hundred AJL members have gathered in Chicago, IL for our annual meeting, and we're going to be blogging it. Watch ajl09.posterous.com now and beyond the conference for announcements, impressions, and a "you are there" experience!

Oyster Hotel Reviews Supports AJL

Shoshanah Seidman, one of the organizers of this year's AJL convention in Chicago, is proud to announce that two of her sons are helping to support the convention through their business, Oyster Hotel Reviews. Elie and Eytan Seidman will be sponsoring either the author's luncheon or one of the coffee breaks.

Oyster Hotel Reviews at oyster.com offers expert hotel reviews and undoctored photography to show you the good AND the bad aspects of places where you might be considering a vacation. They send people to sleep in the beds, swim in the pools, eat in the hotel restaurants, and to report back honestly. So far they cover a handful of locations, Miami being one of them.

Thanks to Oyster for supporting AJL!

Publicity Opportunities through AJL

Here's some info from National AJL about some great opportunities for publicity. Pass it on!

2009 AJL Convention Ads, Exhibits & Sponsorships

44th Annual Association of Jewish Libraries Convention
Sheraton Chicago Hotel and Towers
301 E. North Water Street Chicago, IL 60611
July 5-8, 2009

Would you like to reach hundreds of Judaica professionals from around the world? Join us as the Association of Jewish Libraries presents its 44nd annual convention in Chicago July 5-8, 2009.

Our members represent synagogues and schools, major universities, research centers, and other settings. You can participate in a number of ways

• Exhibit products and/or services in the Convention Exhibit Hall
• Advertise in the convention program book
• Sponsor a convention event, with recognition at the event and in the program book
• Congratulate the organization, or members you know, with a message in the program book

You can support the work of this respected and successful organization, while bringing your own work or good wishes to the members’ attention. Information about Advertising, Exhibits, and Sponsorships may be found here.

The deadline for these opportunities is MAY 27, 2009.

Credit card payments will be processed via PayPal.

A preview of some of the info you'll find at the AJL website...

EXHIBITS

All single booths will be set with (1) 6 x 30 table and (2) chairs.
Cost = $300 per table
Half-table price = $175
Table with no sales rep [books only] = $125
Double booth (2) tables = $500
Larger booths will be individually priced: contact ajlchicagoexhibits@gmail.com

ADVERTISING

Click here for full ad specs. Please note the special discount on full page ads available to exhibitors.

Page size	Price
Full page	Exhibitors $400, Non-exhibitors $450
Half page	$300
Quarter page	$150
Eighth page (business card)	$75
Web ad placement on AJL Convention web page (to run May 1- July 10, 2009)	$500

Please note we have a new discount offer! If you also purchase advertising for 1 year in the AJL Newsletter (4 issues, beginning in Fall 2009), you can receive a 5%-15% discount on your Convention Program Ad.

SPONSORSHIP
Please contact Shoshanah Seidman at (847) 491-7585 or sseidman@northwestern.edu if you are interested in any of the following sponsorship opportunities.

Event	Date	Rate
Keynote speaker: Peter Hayes, Prof. Northwestern University	Sunday, July 5	$3,000
Exhibit Hall Coffee Break	July 6 (am) July 6 (pm) July 7 (am) July 7 (pm)	$3,000 each
Awards Luncheon	July 6	$3,000
Pre-Banquet Reception	July 7	$3,000
Banquet	July 7	$4,000-$6,000
Special sessions: Israel, Yiddish & Israeli Theater, Music, Jewish Art	July 5-6-7	$1,500-$3,000
Complimentary Meals for Speakers and Volunteers		$3,000
Authors Program	July 7	$3,000
Hospitality Suite		$3,000
Reception in honor of Mrs. Barbara Schneider-Kempf, General Direktor, Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin	July 6	$3,000-$5,000
Audiovisual	July 5-6-7-8	$3,000-$8,000

New Podcast Episodes

For your podcasting enjoyment, please visit:

AJL Podcast's newest episode, "How to Run an Effective AJL Chapter" - a panel discussion recorded at the 2008 Association of Jewish Libraries convention.

The Book of Life Podcast's newest episode, "Sing, Little Birdie" - an interview with Orit Shimoni, leader of the Canadian band Little Birdie.

AJL Goes Print-on-Demand

The Association of Jewish Libraries has begun publishing materials using the CreateSpace print-on-demand service from Amazon.com. This allows AJL to offer high-quality professionally printed and bound monographs. To kick off AJL's relationship with this service, they offer two important titles:



Creating a Collection
The newly-revised fifth edition of Creating a Collection: A Resource Booklist for a Beginning Judaic Library by Merrily Hart is now available for purchase. This very useful annotated subject bibliography is a guide to developing a core collection in a synagogue, school, or community center library.





Jewish Classics for Kids
This annotated bibliography of Jewish children's classics by expert Linda R. Silver is a compilation of classic titles from biblical to modern times, organized by subject with a glossary, and title and author indexes.




Both monographs may be ordered through Amazon's web site.

Creating a Collection on Amazon
Jewish Classics for Kids on Amazon

The list price is $20.00 plus shipping. Both titles are eligible for Amazon's Free Super Saver Shipping program if included in an order totaling over $25.00.

AJL's Reference & Bibliography Awards Announced

Rachel Leket-Mor, Chair of the Judaica Reference and Bibliography Award Committee for the Association of Jewish Libraries, has released the following statement:


On behalf of the Research Libraries, Archives, and Special Collections Division of the Association of Jewish Libraries, I am pleased to announce the winners of the 2008 Judaica Reference and Bibliography Awards:

Reference Award: Hundert, Gershon David. 2008. The YIVO encyclopedia of Jews in Eastern Europe. New Haven [Conn.]: Yale University Press.

Bibliography Award: Richler, Binyamin, Malachi Beit-Arié, and Nurit Pasṭernaḳ. 2008. Hebrew manuscripts in the Vatican Library: catalogue. Città del Vaticano: Biblioteca apostolica Vaticana. [See video below.]

Bibliography Honorable Mention: Lubetski, Edith, and Meir Lubetski. 2008. The book of Esther: a classified bibliography. Bible bibliographies. Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix Press.

I would like to thank the Judaica Reference and Bibliography Awards committee for their hard work: Jim Rosenbloom, Barry Walfish, Daniel Rettberg, Rachel Simon, Philip Miller, and Rachel Ariel.

Please join me in congratulating Dr. Gershon Hundert and the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research; Benjamin Richler, Malachi Beit-Arié, Nurit Pasternak, and the Staff of the Institute of Microfilmed Hebrew Manuscripts at the Jewish National and University Library (National Library of Israel); and our association member Edith Lubetski, and her spouse Meir Lubetski.

Podcaster Mark Blevis to Appear at AJL Convention

Mark Blevis, Social Media strategist, producer, speaker, community developer, columnist and podcasting conference organizer, will be a featured speaker at the AJL Convention in Chicago in July, 2009. He is well-known in the podcasting community, especially in his native Canada. Of the many podcasts he produces, my two favorites are The Canadian Podcast Buffet (a show about podcasting for podcasters) and Just One More Book (a show about children's literature).

His session will be called "How I learned about Amazing Jewish Books through Social Media." He says "I’ll be highlighting ways in which Jewish children’s books and their authors and illustrators are being promoted using the Internet, and how communities of people are engaging in the conversation about Jewish literature."

AJL's own Sydney Taylor Book Award gold medalist, Richard Michelson, has been featured on Just One More Book. Mark and his family visited Richard's gallery for their 19th annaul Children's Illustration Show. Click here to enjoy Mark's coverage of Richard and his work.

Things to Sign Up For

ANNUAL AJL CONVENTION

Registration information and forms for the 2009 AJL convention are available on the AJL web site at www.jewishlibraries.org. If you go to the website, on the left you will see a drop-down for the Convention. From there, you can download the registration form (actually, you can type it up ON the website, and then just print it up), links to the hotel for reservations, and information for exhibitors and advertisers. And the tentative schedule is online as well.

The dates of the convention are July 5 – July 8, just before the ALA convention in Chicago. You are invited to register NOW, since they've set a "recession special", and have rolled the prices back to less than those of Convention 2007 – the full 2009 registration price is $450.

For information, feel free to contact convention organizers Cheryl.Banks@gmail.com or Shoshanah Seidman at sseidman@northwestern.edu.


COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIPS

The Association of Jewish Libraries is pleased to announce scholarships of $500 to students enrolled or accepted in graduate schools of library and information science. Prospective candidates should have a knowledge of and interest in Jewish Studies, and demonstrate the potential, ability, and intention of pursuing a career in Judaica Librarianship.

STUDENTS WHO WISH TO APPLY FOR SCHOLARSHIPS SHOULD SUBMIT APPLICATIONS BY APRIL 1, 2009

The application is available on the AJL website at www.jewishlibraries.org/ajlweb/scholarships/scholarship.htm.

German Library Director Addresses Jewish Librarians' Convention

Barbara Schneider-Kempf, the Director General of the Berlin State Library in Germany, has accepted an invitation to speak at the Association of Jewish Libraries annual convention in Chicago in July, 2009. She will present the findings of the Berlin State Library's study of books stolen by the Nazis and incorporated into German libraries. According to the German newspaper Die Welt, it is estimated that up to 150,000 of the books at Berlin's Central and Regional Library headquarters are thought to have been stolen by the Nazis from Jews, freemasons, social democrats, and others persecuted under Hitler's regime. A major aim of the new research project is to identify volumes that can be restored to the original owners or their heirs.

"In keeping with our convention theme of 'Empowering Librarians for the 21st Century,' we owe this amazing opportunity to electronic communications," said AJL President Susan Dubin. "An AJL member read about the study online and posted a link to AJL's listserv; our convention committee read that posting and subsequently emailed the Berlin State Library. We're excited to be able to connect in this way, and we're so pleased that we'll soon be connecting in person."

The Association of Jewish Libraries' 44th annual convention will be held July 5-8, 2009 in Chicago, Illinois. Librarians, archivists and scholars from numerous disciplines will meet to share their interest in Judaica librarianship and related areas. Ms. Schneider-Kempf's presentation, "Stolen Books: The Third Reich's Exchange Center and the Prussian State Library,1933-1945," will be a highlight of the convention, and will complement the keynote address by Northwestern University scholar Peter Hayes who has written numerous books on the Holocaust. For more information about AJL and its convention, visit www.jewishlibraries.org.

National AJL Blog

National AJL has recently started its own blog, People of the Books at jewishlibraries.org/blog. Susan Dubin, AJL President, is the blog host, but she will welcome content from other AJL contributers. Subscribing to this blog through its feed or via email is a good way to keep up with national AJL news.