On September 30th, I had the honor to present, with my fellow judges Joanna Rudge Long and Besty Bird, the 2016 Boston-Globe Horn Book Awards to children’s book creators. Unlike many other awards, we were not given a set of criteria to base our reading and evaluation on. It was simply, look for excellent books in Picture Books, Fiction and Poetry, and Nonfiction category.
One award title for each category and up to two honored titles. The author and illustrator both receive the award in cases of an illustrated title. This year’s titles were announced in late May. You can see the program description and watch the May announcement on the Horn Book site.
On October 1st, I attended the Horn Book Colloquium at Simmons College focusing on a theme inspired by the titles we chose, with talks and panel discussions based by the winning creators. This year’s theme was Out of the Box — because, boy, did we have a hard time figuring out where to place some of our favorite books of the year!
So, the picture book winner, Jazz Day, is also poetry, and can arguably be Nonfiction, and one of the Nonfiction honored titles, Voice of Freedom, is a picture book of verses, too. There are also other out of the box endeavors by the creators.
As part of the program for the day, I had the honor to interview Ekua Holmes and Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrator and author, of Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer: The Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement.
We discussed many topics about the book and about their craft and when I asked both of them what they would like to see published more for children, these are their answers – and I paraphrase grossly here:
Weatherford: I’d like to see more lesser known people of color movers and shakers profiled for children. We probably don’t need one more book on Martin Luther King Junior or Harriet Tubman; but we definitely need to tell stories of others who paved the roads and blazed the trails for us through extremely difficult times and against all odds.
Holmes: I’d like to see more books about just the daily miracles of any child of color — their lived experiences and they can be quite bright and fulfilling, full of art, music, beauty, and happiness. We need to tell these stories!
I agree with both of them. Let’s have a fuller exploration of the past; don’t make it rosy, and don’t hide the ugly spots. But let’s also fully represent the present. There are definitely struggles and dark moments, but we must also celebrate and acknowledge the love and support that many children experience in their own families and communities.
And let’s make sure that multiple and differed perspectives and voices from the seemingly homogeneous marginalized communities are heard and honored. There is room for the representation from the entire spectrum of experiences and values.
The second break-out session for me was an introduction to the incredible international picture book illustration concours held on the Nami Island of South Korea. I don’t think I’ve ever seen picture book illustrations being taken so seriously, treated with such reverence, and brought to life and made so relevant to the children and adults who encounter these objects of literature and art.
Wound up only going to the Adult Swim event.
My #1 Goal this year — meeting the creative soul behind Zen Pencils: Gavin Aung Than, all the way from Australia! We chatted for a bit and I wished him best of luck of his two new books and on his North America book tour. Look for him and buy his books! His touring schedule can be found 
Fairrosa Cyber Library 
