Feb 6

Feb 6 Episode #48: International Awards Makeover

Grace and Alvina discuss the New York Times article by Leonard Marcus about opening up the Caldecott Award for international illustrators. Marcus makes a solid argument worth talking about and you can hear both Grace and Alvina weigh-in on the debate. They’ll also share what’s been going on in their day-to-day world and tell us what they’re grateful for.

For starters, what’s been going on in our lives?

Alvina has just returned from the Little, Brown Books For Young Readers annual directors meeting. They gathered to talk about financing, budget issues, goals for the upcoming year, and areas of growth. Alvina is thankful for the meeting that allows time to talk about these issues. Some of the areas of growth they focused on were graphic novels, non-fiction, and middle grade.

Grace’s family is still recovering from jet lag after their return home from Taiwan. She’s been busy getting the word out about the release of her upcoming Mulan novel and the launch party that will be held on February 9th at Porter’s Square Books!

About that NY Times article…

Grace and Alvina both agree that it would be hard for people to get behind opening up the ALA Caldecott Awards to international artists. After all, there are already so many other awards that include international artists. Grace says that she gets why Leonard Marcus thinks it would be a good idea but she doesn’t necessarily thinks its a practical one. She is reminded of the time that Charles Bridge Publishing brought her first book, The Ugly Vegetables, overseas and it wasn’t well-received. Grace and Alvina both mention how sometimes Asian-American culture just doesn’t translate in other countries that are looking for clear- cut “normal” America.

Grace refers to the Kidlitwomen* podcast where they were trying to include everybody and people complained…”can’t we just have something only for women?” She ran into some similar debates. How can we have something inclusive yet still have something that’s uplifting for women something specific to their needs? In this particular case of the ALA Awards, can we have something American without being non-inclusive?

Another issue is the eligibility rules. Should Canadians be included? (They are part of the ALA) Alvina notes that it might make sense to open up to Canadians but then it becomes a slippery slope. Eligibility requirements are that you’re either an American Citizen or an American residence but there are no guidelines as to how long.

What are we grateful for?

Alvina says that she is truly grateful for the strong leadership team at Little Brown.

Grace is grateful for the opportunity to write a commercial novel (Mulan) that will reach a wider audience but still have the creative freedom to keep her writing style the same. She’s grateful for being able to bridge those two things.

2-Minute Book Review-Alison Morris

“Where Do Pants Go?” by Rebecca Van Slyke and illustrated by Chris Robertson.

Alison Morris is a nationally recognized children's book buyer with an infectious enthusiasm for reading and 20 years' experience matching books to readers. As the Senior Director of Title Selection for nonprofit First Book, she oversees the curation of children’s and young adult books on the First Book Marketplace, hand-selecting a diverse range of titles that speak to and address the needs of kids in underserved communities, with a keen eye to inclusion, authenticity, and kid-appeal. She previously served as Senior Editor at Scholastic Book Clubs, Children's Book Buyer for Wellesley Booksmith and The Dartmouth Bookstore, and was the founding blogger of the ShelfTalker children’s book blog for Publishers Weekly. She'll be joining us from her home near Washington, DC where she spends LOTS of time discussing books with her husband, illustrator and graphic novelist Gareth Hinds.