CCBC Choices 2013 CCBC Choices 2013 Kathleen T. Horning Merri V. Lindgren Megan Schliesman Cooperative Children’s Book Center School of Education University of Wisconsin–Madison Copyright ©2013, Friends of the CCBC, Inc. ISBN–10: 0–931641–23–3 ISBN–13: 978–0–931641–23–7 CCBC Choices 2013 was produced by the office of University Communications, University of Wisconsin–Madison. Cover design: Lois Ehlert This publication was created by librarians at the Cooperative Children’s Book Center, School of Education, University of Wisconsin–Madison. Funding for the production and printing was provided by the Friends of the CCBC, Inc. For information, see the Appendices, or go to www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/. CCBC Choices 2013 3 Contents Acknowledgments .............................................4 Introduction .................................................5 Organization of CCBC Choices 2013 ..............................6 The Charlotte Zolotow Award ...................................8 A Few Observations on Publishing in 2012 .......................10 The Choices Science, Technology, and the Natural World .....................14 Seasons and Celebrations ....................................20 Folklore, Mythology, and Traditional Literature. 21 Historical People, Places, and Events ...........................22 Biography and Autobiography ................................30 Contemporary People, Places, and Events .......................37 Understanding Oneself and Others ............................41 The Arts ................................................42 Poetry ..................................................46 Concept Books ...........................................47 Picture Books for Babies, Toddlers, and Preschoolers ...............51 Picture Books for School-Age Children .........................59 Books for Beginning Readers .................................72 Books for Newly Independent Readers .........................73 Fiction for Children ........................................75 Fiction for Young Adults ....................................85 Appendices Appendix I: Checklist of Books in CCBC Choices 2013 . 110 Appendix II: About the CCBC ..............................116 Appendix III: About the Compilers ...........................117 Appendix IV: The Friends of the CCBC, Inc ...................119 Friends Membership Form .................................120 Author/Illustrator/Title Index .................................122 Subject Index ...............................................129 4 CCBC Choices 2013 Acknowledgments The Friends of the CCBC underwrites the publication of CCBC Choices each year, making Choices available free of charge to Wisconsin librarians, teachers, and others in the state. Thank you to the current Friends board of directors and Friends members in Wisconsin and beyond. (For more information about the Friends of the CCBC, and a Friends membership form, see Appendix IV.) An experienced freelance copyeditor, as well as a current CCBC Cataloging Coordinator and Reference Assistant, Erin Augspurger provided her copyediting expertise to this edition of CCBC Choices . We appreciate her meticulous attention to detail and willingness to pursue clarity and consistency, not to mention her gentle humor. Several people served as content specialists, providing us with feedback on questions we had about specific books. Thanks to Amy Alt, Ruttanatip (Dang) Chonwerawong, Glen Gordon, Sarah Waddell, and Kristine Wildner. We value the comments and insights from participants in CCBC monthly book discussions, and on CCBC-Net, our online book discussion community. Thanks to the staff in the Creative Services Office of University Communications who work on Choices: Nancy Brower, Barry Roal Carlsen, and Kent Hamele. We also thank our student staff during 2012 and early 2013: Erin Anthony, Erin Augspurger, Katie Behrens, Maria Dietrich (2012), Kristine Klopp (2012), Mary Parsons, Angela Terrab, Emily Townsend (2012), and Carrie Wolfson. Finally, thanks to those people in our homes who must attempt to maintain the conversations of daily life with someone who, it must seem, is always reading. Kathleen T . Horning, Merri V . Lindgren, and Megan Schliesman CCBC Choices 2013 5 Introduction CCBC Choices is created by librarians at the Cooperative Children’s Book Center (CCBC), a library of the School of Education at the University of Wisconsin– Madison (see Appendix II for more about the CCBC). The CCBC receives review copies of about 3,600 new books for children and young adults annually, which includes most of the trade books published in English by corporate publishers in the United States. By creating CCBC Choices we hope to draw attention to some of the outstanding books published for children and young adults from among the thousands we receive. While we know that no book is for every reader, we believe that among the 249 titles we have chosen, there is something for every child and teen. Reading everything that comes into the library would be impossible for our staff of three, especially as most of the reading we do is after the work day ends. But every book is examined by a librarian, and many of them are read by one or more of us. Throughout the year we maintain a log where we note the titles we think are worthy of consideration for our next best-of-the-year list. While we sometimes find ourselves in mutual agreement about a book, at other times we disagree—sometimes a little, sometimes a lot. Discussion of our observations, both those things we admire and those that concern us, inevitably leads to a better understanding of the work in question. Ultimately, the books we agree on are the books that make it into CCBC Choices . While we don’t have a formal rubric of criteria required for including a book in Choices, there are a number of factors we consider. Literary and artistic quality top our list, but we also pay close attention to accuracy, authenticity, and credibility. If we have questions we’re unable to answer, we look for informed opinions from expert content reviewers, especially with regard to the depiction of race, culture, and other dimensions of experience. Sometimes we’re challenged by books that are undeniably excellent on one or two of these dimensions, and then fall short on another. That’s when we look to further discussion and experience to determine how those strengths and short- comings balance, and to which side the scale will tip. We may also consider a book because it offers unique or unusual content, especially when we know there is a need and interest in books on that topic based on our discussions with teachers, librarians, and others who work directly with children and teens. We also factor in what we know about children and teens as readers. Finally, we know that the best, most effective recommendations we make are always for the books that excite us the most. And year after year, talented and creative authors and illustrators, and their committed editors and publishers, provide children and teens—and us—with books that engage, entertain, enlighten —and, indeed, excite. 6 CCBC Choices 2013 Organization of CCBC Choices 2013 The organization of the books in CCBC Choices into thematic and format categories has been developed over the years to help teachers, school and public librarians, and others who work with children and teens quickly find books that meet their needs. We often make refinements from year to year in the organization, in part due to our ever-growing understanding of what our colleagues who work directly with youth want and need, and in part to reflect the books we have chosen in a particular year. Books in this edition of CCBC Choices have been placed into one of the following thematic categories when appropriate: • Science, Technology, and the Natural World • Seasons and Celebrations • Historical People, Places, and Events • Contemporary People, Places, and Events • Understanding Oneself and Others • The Arts The remaining books have been placed into one of the following genre or format categories: • Folklore, Mythology, and Traditional Literature • Biography and Autobiography • Poetry • Concept Books • Picture Books for Babies, Toddlers, and Preschoolers • Picture Books for School-Age Children • Books for Beginning Readers • Books for Newly Independent Readers • Fiction for Children • Fiction for Young Adults Picture books about people who actually lived have usually been placed in the Historical People, Places, and Events section or the Biography and Autobiography section, unless the narrative comes down on the side of fancy more than fact. Novels set in the past have been placed in one of the Fiction categories. Graphic novels are assessed individually based on content and placed in the category that best suits each individual title. The subject index can be used to find books about specific topics and in specific genres and formats (“Graphic Novels,” “Historical Fiction,” “Fantasy,” etc.). CCBC Choices 2013 Organization of CCBC Choices 2013 7 Age Recommendations We provide suggested age ranges for each title. These are meant to be general guidelines based on appeal and age-appropriateness of the content. We know that some children and teens are ready for and will enjoy books recommended for older readers. Our suggested age recommendations cannot substitute for professional judgment and personal knowledge of individual readers, classrooms, and communities. There is considerable overlap of ages in the two picture book categories as well as in the fiction categories.