Book(s) of the Week (February 18, 2008)

Visit the IMC on the 3rd floor of the Library to check out the winners of the 2008 American Library Association's children's book awards. The Caldecott Medal is presented to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children. The Newbery Medal is presented to the author of the most distinguised contribution to American literature for children.

2008 Caldecott Medal Winner:

The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick.

IMC Call Number: PZ 7 .S4654 Inv 2007

From the American Library Association: From an opening shot of the full moon setting over an awakening Paris in 1931, this tale casts a new light on the picture book form. Hugo is a young orphan secretly living in the walls of a train station where he labors to complete a mysterious invention left by his father. In a work of more than 500 pages, the suspenseful text and wordless double-page spreads narrate the tale in turns. Neither words nor pictures alone tell this story, which is filled with cinematic intrigue. Black & white pencil illustrations evoke the flickering images of the silent films to which the book pays homage.

2008 Newbery Medal Winner:

Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village
by Laura Amy Schlitz

IMC Call Number: PS 3619 .C43 C55 2007

From the American Library Association: In “Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village,” thirteenth-century England springs to life using 21 dramatic individual narratives that introduce young inhabitants of village and manor; from Hugo, the lord's nephew, to Nelly, the sniggler. Schlitz's elegant monologues and dialogues draw back the curtain on the period, revealing character and relationships, hinting at stories untold. Explanatory interludes add information and round out this historical and theatrical presentation.“Schlitz adds a new dimension to books for young readers - performance,” said Newbery Committee Chair Nina Lindsay. “Varied poetic forms and styles offer humor, pathos and true insight into the human condition. Each entry is superb in itself, and together the pieces create a pageant that transports readers to a different time and place.”