Mark Twain Readers Award

Last updated

The Mark Twain Readers Award, or simply Mark Twain Award, is a children's book award which annually recognizes one book selected by vote of Missouri schoolchildren from a list prepared by librarians and volunteer readers. It is now one of four Missouri Association of School Librarians (MASL) Readers Awards and is associated with school grades 4 to 6; the other MASL Readers Awards were inaugurated from 1995 to 2009 and are associated with grades K–3, 6–8, 9–12 and nonfiction. [1] The 1970 Newbery Medal winning book Sounder , by William H. Armstrong, was the inaugural winner of the Mark Twain Award in 1972. [2]

Contents

Peg Kehret has won the Mark Twain Award four times, once in 1999 for Small Steps: The Year I Got Polio , a memoir of her childhood, and three times in six years from 2007 to 2012 for novels. [3]

Nomination guidelines

Voting process

Though the list of nominated books is designated for grades four through six, any student can vote for the winner so long as they satisfy the following criteria:

Schools design their own ballots. Individual votes for each school (or qualified group) are tallied on a single sheet and submitted to the MASL.

Winners

The award has recognized a single book by a single writer without exception from 1972. [2] [3] [4]

See also

Related Research Articles

The Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award (RCYRBA) is an annual award given to the author of the book voted most outstanding by students in grades four through eight in participating Illinois schools and libraries. It is named in honor of children's author Rebecca Caudill, who lived and worked in Urbana, Illinois, and has been presented annually since 1988. It is administered by a volunteer board of directors and presented in cooperation with the Illinois Association of Teachers of English, the Illinois Reading Council, and the Illinois School Library Media Association.

Funerals and Fly Fishing (2004) is a book by Mary Bartek. It was a 2006 Mark Twain Award nominee and a 2006 Georgia Book Award Nominee.

<i>Maniac Magee</i> Novel written by Jerry Spinelli

Maniac Magee is a novel written by American author Jerry Spinelli and published in 1990 Exploring themes of racism and inequality, it follows the story of an orphan boy looking for a home in the fictional town of Two Mills. Two Mills is harshly segregated between the East and West, blacks and whites. He becomes a local legend for feats of athleticism and helpfulness, and his ignorance of sharp racial boundaries in the town. It is popular in middle school curricula, and has been used in social studies on the premises of reaction to racial identity and reading. A TV movie was released on February 23, 2003.

<i>Cryptid Hunters</i> 2005 novel by Roland Smith

Cryptid Hunters is a 2005 young adult science fiction novel by Roland Smith; it follows the adventures of thirteen-year-old siblings Grace and Marty O'Hara, who are sent to live with their Uncle Wolfe after their parents are lost in an accident. He is an anthropologist on a remote island, searching for cryptids, which are animals thought to be extinct or not to exist. His rival Noah Blackwood, a popular animal collector, tries to acquire an alleged dinosaur egg from Wolfe, and the twins get involved in the conflict which reveals a convoluted family history. The novel was nominated for several library awards and book lists, which include Hawaii's 2008 Nene Recommended Book List, the Texas Library Association's 2007-2008 Lone Star Reading List, and Third Place for the Missouri Association of School Librarians' Mark Twain Readers Award. Smith has written three sequels called Tentacles, Chupacabra, and Mutation.

Peg Kehret is an American author, primarily writing for children between the ages of 10 and 15.

The Mark Twain Readers Award is given annually to a book for children in grades four through six.

<i>Abduction!</i>

Abduction! by Peg Kehret, is a novel about a 13-year-old girl named Bonnie who searches for her brother Matt and their dog Pookie who were both abducted. Her abductor, a mystery at first, ends up being someone much close to home.

Kirby Lane Larson from Kenmore, Washington is an American writer of children's books including Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Award-winner The Magic Kerchief, illustrated by Rosanne Litzinger. Her book, Hattie Big Sky, was a finalist for the 2007 Scandiuzzi Book Award of the Washington State Book Awards, and won a 2007 Newbery Honor. Kirby is retired from the faculty at the Whidbey Writers Workshop MFA program. Two Bobbies: A True Story of Hurricane Katrina, Friendship, and Survival and Nubs: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine & a Miracle both have won a Show-Me Award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rick Riordan</span> American author (born 1964)

Richard Russell Riordan Junior is an American author. He is known for writing the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series, about a teenager named Percy Jackson who discovers he is a son of the Greek god Poseidon. Riordan's books have been translated into forty-two languages and sold more than thirty million copies in the US. 20th Century Fox adapted the first two books of his Percy Jackson series as part of a series of films. His books have spawned related media, such as graphic novels and short story collections.

The Vermont Golden Dome Book Award annually recognizes one new American children's book selected by the vote of Vermont schoolchildren. It was inaugurated in 1957.

The Massachusetts Children's Book Award is an annual literary award recognizing one book selected by vote of Massachusetts schoolchildren from a list prepared by committee. It was established in 1975 by Dr. Helen Constant, associate professor of education at Salem State College, and it continues to be sponsored by the School of Education at Salem State University. The purpose is to help maintain interest in reading among children in the "intermediate grades".

Mary Downing Hahn is an American writer of young adult novels and a former school librarian. She is known for books such as Stepping On The Cracks and Wait Till Helen Comes. She published her first book in 1979 and has since written over 30 novels. Her most recent novel is What We Saw.

Watt Key American author

Albert Watkins Key, Jr., publishing under the name Watt Key and Albert Key, is an American fiction author who is known for writing young-adult survival fiction. A resident of Alabama, his debut novel Alabama Moon was published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux in 2006 and was the 2007 winner of the E.B. White Read-Aloud Award for older readers. It received a 2006 Parents' Choice Award. Alabama Moon has been translated and published in eight languages. In 2015 Alabama Moon was listed by TIME Magazine as one of the top 100 young-adult books of all time.

The California Young Reader Medal is a set of five annual literary awards conferred upon picture books and fiction books selected by vote of California schoolchildren from a ballot prepared by committee. The program was established in 1974 with Intermediate, Primary, and Young Adult Medals that were inaugurated in 1975, 1976, and 1977 and were conferred biennially, and annually beginning in 1983.

Carol Gorman is an American writer of children's fiction. She originally aspired to be an actress, and for a few years taught seventh grade at an Iowan middle school. Inspired by her husband and fellow author, Ed Gorman, she began writing in the mid-1980s. With over 22 books published under several names, Carol Gorman continues to write and teach.

<i>Escape from Mr. Lemoncellos Library</i> Book by Chris Grabenstein

Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library is a children's novel by author Chris Grabenstein. It was on the New York Times bestseller list for Middle Grade novels for 111 weeks between 2013 and 2016, peaking at #8 in hardback and #2 in paperback.

<i>Insignia</i> trilogy Series of three young-adult science fiction novels by S.J. Kincaid

The Insignia trilogy is a series of three young-adult science fiction novels written by S.J. Kincaid and published by Katherine Tegen Books. The novels describe a dystopian future where the world is experiencing World War III. Teenager Tom Raines is recruited to train with other recruits as a crucial member of the Intrasolar Forces and, during the Pentagonal Spire's training academy, becomes friends with Wyatt Enslow, Vik Ashwan, and Yuri Sysevich. The trilogy is preceded by the novella Allies.

<i>A Friendship for Today</i>

A Friendship for Today is a 2007 book by Patricia McKissack about the life of a girl, Rosemary Patterson, attending one of the first integrated Missouri schools during the 1950s.

Stolen Children, by American writer Peg Kehret, is a 2008 novel for young adults. In the book, a 14-year-old girl who's just finished a babysitting course and the baby she was hired to take care of are kidnapped.

The Missouri Association of School Librarians (MASL) is a network of school librarians in the state of Missouri.

References

  1. "The MASL Readers Awards" (homepage). Missouri Association of School Librarians (MASL). Retrieved 2014-05-05.
  2. 1 2 3 "Mark Twain Award Previous Winners" [1972 to 2010]. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
  3. 1 2 3 "Mark Twain Award" Archived 2014-08-11 at the Wayback Machine . Missouri River Regional Library (mrrl.org). Retrieved 2014-08-06. With list of winners 1990 to 2013; lists of nominees with blurbs 2010/11 to 2014/15.
  4. 1 2 "2013–2014 MASL Readers Awards Winners". MASL. Retrieved 2014-05-05. With tabulated results of four elections.