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rcle."
If you've read Charlotte's biography on these pages, you know that her years
at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, 
especially her studies under writing
teacher Helen C. White, had enormous meaning to her, shaping her development as
a writer and an editor. Imagine, then, her joy, amazement and pleasure at
having an award named after her and given by an institution that is part
of her beloved University of Wisconsin and has to do with Helen C. White.
Now imagine that this award is
one which honors the category
of literature she has written and worked for her whole life: the text and
language, the words, in books for young children.
About the CCBC
The Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
About the CCBC
The Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC; on the web at http://www.soemadison.wisc.edu/ccbc/) is a
children's literature library of the School of Education, University of
Wisconsin-Madison. It is the institution which
created and administers both the Charlotte Zolotow Award ( FAQs
on the Award, and on this
year's winners ) and the Charlotte Zolotow Lecture (FAQ's
on the Charlotte Zolotow Lecture). CCBC is an examination,
study and research library (noncirculating), and a study center for adults interested in children's
and young adult literature. It was founded in 1963, and is housed in a
beautiful building named for Helen C. White.
The CCBC collection includes a huge range of current, retrospective and
historical books and materials related to books (like authors' manuscripts and
correspondence) for children and young adults. CCBC provides to librarians,
teachers, students and others, from Wisconsin and elsewhere, informational
and educational services based on the collection, supporting
children's literature-related teaching, learning and research needs. You need
not even visit Madison to take advantage of this great resource: all the books
and materials comprising the collection are listed in the UW-Madison
electronic catalog, MADCAT, at http://madcat.library.wisc.edu/.
About existing children's book awards
Every field has its equivalent of the Oscars or the Grammys. In the
children's book field, for many years, the awards have been the Newbery
and Caldecott, given by the American Library Association. The Newbery was the
first, originating in 1921. It is given to the most distinguished children's
book published in the previous year. The originator, Frederic G. Melcher,
suggested the prize be named for the eighteenth-century English bookseller
John Newbery. Its purpose: "To encourage original creative work in
the field of books for children. To emphasize to the public that contributions
to the literature for children deserve similar recognition to poetry, plays, or
novels. To give those librarians, who make it their life work to serve
children's reading interests, and opportunity to encourage good writing in this
field."
"However," continues the ALA website on the two medals' history,
"As many persons became concerned that the artists creating picture books
for children were as deserving of honor and encouragement as were the authors of
children's books," the Newbery was followed, in 1937, by a second award.
This was the Caldecott, named for the nineteenth-century English illustrator
Randolph Caldecott, and was to "...be awarded to the artist of the most
distinguished American Picture Book for Children published in the United States
during the preceding year."
These are wonderful and much-needed awards, and they have done a huge
amount towards recognition not only of specific titles and authors, but to honor
the field of children's literature itself, and to bring it to the public eye.
But... see CZ Award & Lecture, Page 2
to continue.
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