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Two Books for Youth Win Awards

By Alicia Waters | March 28, 2017

The American Library Association (ALA) announced the winners of the 2017 Schneider Family Book Awards, which honor an author or illustrator for the artistic expression of the disability experience for child and adolescent audiences. The awards were announced in January 2017 at the ALA Mid-Winter meeting. Two of the winning books, “Six Dots” and “as brave as you” feature vision impaired characters of different ages.

DB86519 “Six Dots” written by Jen Bryant and illustrated by Boris Kulikov won the award for books for young children. (in process, check for availability)

Summary of “Six Dots”: “Becoming blind at a young age, Louis Braille didn’t allow his disability to prevent him from learning about the world around him.  Unsatisfied with the options available, Louis tinkered with French military code to invent an alphabet system that revolutionized communication for people with visual impairments.”

“Bryant & Kulikov combine text and art to transport readers back in time to marvel at young Braille’s genius and tenacity at inventing an alphabet system that has continued through the centuries,” said Award Chair Joanna Tamplin.

DB84720 “as brave as you,” written by Jason Reynolds, won the award for best middle school title. It is available and downloadable on BARD.

Summary of “as brave as you”: Uprooted from Brooklyn, brothers Genie and Ernie spend the summer with their grandparents in rural Virginia. While getting to know each other, Genie discovers the true meaning of bravery as he observes his grandfather navigating the world without sight. Life lessons sprinkled with humor demonstrate the power of family bonds.

“Like any good archaeologist, Jason Reynolds studied the bones of his own family history to create unique characters you will swear you have met, including Grandpop, who is blind but never limited,” (referenced from a presentation by the author at a conference.) said Tamplin.

“as brave as you” is available as an audio book from Ocean State Libraries eZone. You need a public library card to borrow from eZone.

Quoted material is from the ALA Press Release.

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