Reading by Award List

Reader friends, I have a question for you today. Have you ever finished a really great book, realized it was the recipient of an award, and then felt the sudden desire to go read ALL THE BOOKS that have ever won that award? Most recently this happened when I read and loved A Northern Light which was my pick for our August book club meeting and it has won: a Printz Honor, a Carnegie Medal, and a Young Adult Literature Los Angeles Times Book Prize as well as several other lesser known awards. I must admit, it took a good bit of willpower to not promptly dump a truckload of new titles onto my TBR from the archives of those prizes.

So now I have a second question for you. Has anyone ever actually read (or attempted to read) through a prize list?! I am currently making my way through the Caldecott Medal and Honor books, and let me tell you, it is taking a LOT longer than I thought it would considering these are *just* picture books (with the odd graphic novel and longer illustrated work thrown in). The Caldecott stretches back to 1938, so we are talking a rather large quantity of books, even if the page count for each is relatively low.

First, I started with all the featured titles in Reading the Art in Caldecott Award Books. Then, I made a point of finding winning titles based on season and holidays throughout the year, as well as reading some of the newer winners once they were announced. For many months now, I've been browsing through the library stacks and tucking any books with a shiny Caldecott medal into my checkout pile whenever I spot them. And while it feels like I've read a TON of Caldecott books, there are still so many more remaining to be read! It is getting harder to locate those remaining ones, so I'm making a point to consult the master list and seek out (or place on hold) books that will fill in the gaps. As tempted as I am to try reading from other lists, I can hardly imagine doing this with novels -- especially with a well-established award. Still, one can dream, right?

Some other lists I have considered reading through:

CHILDREN

Newbery Medal/Honors

Most distinguished contribution to American literature for children (ALSC)

E.B. White Read Aloud Award

Picture books and books for older readers excellent for reading aloud (The Association of Booksellers for Children)

Charlotte Zolotow Award

Outstanding writing in a picture book published in the United States (Cooperative Children's Book Center)

Massachusetts Children's Book Award (MCBA)

4th, 5th, & 6th graders vote for their favorite books (found this one thanks to Top Shelf Text!)

Jane Addams Children's Book Award

Children's books of literary and aesthetic excellence that effectively engage children in thinking about peace, social justice, global community, and equity for all people.

Lee Bennett Hopkins Award for Poetry for Children

Honors an American poet or anthologist for the most outstanding new book of children's poetry (Pennsylvania Center for the Book)

NCTE Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children

Honors a living poet + curates lists of notable poetry books and verse novels

YOUNG ADULT

Alex Award

Books written for adults that have special appeal to young adults (YALSA)

Odyssey Award

Best audiobooks for children/young adults (YALSA)

Printz Award

Literary excellence in young adult literature (YALSA)

ADULT

Bailey's Women's Prize for Fiction

Celebrates excellence, originality and accessibility in writing in fiction written by women. Previously  named the Orange Prize for Fiction

There is certainly no dearth of award-winning books if you go looking for them! I am well aware a more rational approach is to use these lists as inspiration rather than a checklist, but don't we always want to read ALL THE BOOKS? Yes, yes we do.

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Are there any other book awards you like to keep tabs on? Have you ever read from an award list yourself? Do you have a favorite award-winning title? Or a title you don't think deserved an award? I'd love to hear about it!

Building a Library or Losing My Mind?

So. I went to another community garage sale at a local church the weekend before last. And I also took a nice long walk through a neighborhood yard sale. The deals were great -- $0.50-$1 per book (and one that was even free!) The church sale had an even better deal -- fill a bag for $5. Did I fill a bag? Of course, I filled a bag. I was there towards the end and even though the books were likely pretty well picked over, I still found some great stuff. And since my bag wasn't quite full, I even threw in a few extras we already had because I know a local literacy organization those titles would be perfect to donate to. I can't say for sure that any leftovers from the sale would end up in a dumpster or recycling bin (hopefully not!) but I didn't want to leave those few behind knowing I could pass them on somewhere they will be used and appreciated.

As fun as it was to go treasure hunting and find great titles to add to our home library, I do sometimes wonder if I've gone overboard with the whole thing. My philosophy has always been that a book never has to be wasted. If I change my mind or decide I don't want to keep something, there are so many places to pass books onto. A large percentage of my books are bought used, as overstock, and/or inexpensively. My biggest book splurges are when I buy at my local indie bookstore, but I very much like supporting a local business I want to stick around for years to come, so I call it money well spent. And I love lending out books to friends and family -- so I always like to think they are not just for me, even if they are mostly for me (and my son). I'd like to think that someday I'll be that mom who'll recommend/lend books to my kid's friends. If my kid won't take my suggestions by then, I hope there will be another trusted mom (or dad!) he will take recommendations from. Because, you know, it's cooler when it's not your mom (or so Anne Bogel tells me!)

But I'm out of shelf space. Again.

I did a pretty big culling a while back and it felt great to have space on my shelves again. But I only went on to fill that space with books that are a better fit for my family right now and in the foreseeable future -- namely, picture books, children's novels, and middle grade. And they're awesome! But I enjoy and connect with so many book/reading/literacy blogs, sites, and podcasts -- that I get all jazzed up about new-to-me titles on a regular basis. The excitement of the teachers, educators, and parents who run these things is truly infectious. This is absolutely a good thing, but I do sometimes wonder if I've gone overboard. I know that when I'm tired and can't concentrate very well, a browse at a bookstore or on Book Outlet's website is such a fun thing to do. It certainly takes less brain power than, you know, actually reading. I stock up on all those great books I've been hearing about, but then realize I've potentially squandered some of the time I could have spent reading them.

So what's a bookworm to do? Reading and literacy are so very important, so I know the answer is not to quit listening to inspiring podcasts or to cut back on reading time (the horror!). But for now, I'm trying to use my limited options approach to help guide me -- if it's not a book I want to add to that small stack, I'm trying to pass on the purchase. The community garage sales ($5 a bag!) throw a bit of a monkey wrench in that plan, but I'm not sure I can bring myself to feel guilty about used books -- whether they are fill-a-bag-cheap, or even more typically priced at a used bookstore. But I do know that I need to spend less time overall browsing, researching, and shopping -- both online and offline. In fact, this was one of my 2017 Bookish Goals and I think now is a good time to recommit to that. In fact, with almost five months left in the year, I think I should re-evaluate and check-in on all those goals (post soon!).

So, to make a long story short: Read more, browse/shop less. It's not really that hard, right?