The Printz, Nerdfighting, and Airports
This blog entry comes to you in four parts:
Part 1: The Ning. Brotherhood 2.0 may be over, but Hank and I are still making videos with some regularity. You can watch those and join the community of nerdfighters at the Ning. I'll still post some of our videos here, like:
Part 2: Airports. Hank and I must have filmed at least a dozen videos in airports over the last year. This one is my favorite, and it also seems to be the favorite of The People, since it is currently the Top Rated video on youtube and the most discussed comedy video of the day.
Part 3: The Printz Awards. I've been a huge children's literature award nerd for many years, so of course I got up bright and early this morning to find out the winners. (In case you are not a huge children's literature award nerd, the winner was The White Darkness by Geraldine McCaughrean. Honors went to Dreamquake by Elizabeth Knox, One Whole and Perfect Day by Judith Clarke, Repossessed by A. M. Jenkins, and Your Own, Sylvia by Stephanie Hemphill.) Congratulations all around.
When it comes to awards, I don't think we should make broad statements about trends. There will be some discussion about how all five awards went to women this year, and about how two went to novels with fantastical elements, and so on. But the Printz really only reflects one trend: Good books getting published for teenagers. And the fact that there was no overlap between the National Book Awards and the Printz Awards shows again that there are a lot of books being published for teenagers that deserve to be taken seriously.
Speaking of which, Part 4: I don't think I've read dystopian fiction as good as Scott Westerfeld's Extras since I was hanging out with Orwell in ninth grade.
posted by John Green @ Monday, January 14, 2008
9 Comments
9 Comments:
How many of the winners have you read John? And what, besides a sticker on the book cover and something (?) for your bookcase or your mom's mantel, does a prize like that mean to an author?
And is there an equivalent to "The People's Choice" award in the publishing world? (beyond books sales figures?)
The answer to Brian's question is kinda sorta the Quills awards from Borders, I think. And maybe a bit of the CYBILS. And no.
Hank is a genius. I know I'm repeating myself, but there it is. And I'm glad if you're posting here, too. I find Ning to be a bit exhausting to deal with.
On the note of Printz awards, I got a copy of Katherines through a bookstore, on order because they'd run out, and I was surprised it didn't have the award sticker on it! I wonder how they take care of those things once the award is given.
Hooray for good books, and lots of them!
Hi, John. I ran across this "Buffalo News" article this morning, about your novel, Looking for Alaska. Heard about this yet?
Parent ambushes Depew school board with complaints over novel for 11th-graders
j - so glad you have re-introduced me to the world of YA fiction and given me so many great suggestions to add to my book mountain :} so thanks!
as a judy blume fan of the 80's i recently devoured 'everything i needed to know about being a girl i learned from judy blume' (edited by Jennifer O'Connell) which i am sure you are aware of. If you haven't notched out time to read this book, i think you should.
Personally, as someone who read 'Starring Sally J Freedman as Herself' and 'Are You There God, it's me, Margaret' in continuous rotation for 3 to 5 years in the mid 80's, it brought me right back to the great days of escaping with judy blume...
I loved reading about how her books affected so many women, in so many different ways. it will totally be up your alley. and research. old nerdfighters too would appreciate this book.
wait - am i behind the 8 ball, and you have mentioned this one somewhere in the bowels of ning?
OH... I am on page 454/535 of Eggers 'What is the What?', and 'Looking For Alaska' is taunting me from the top of the book pile in my office. I almost want to highlight it and send you my favourite parts for your bookshelf & insight... ew
that sounds sorta weird... no weirdness intended!
anyway - great blogging as usual, but i missed question tuesdays this week. sigh.
dftba & rock on nerdfighter!
keeley/pineapplegrassbracelet
OMG... as if i forgot the standard ... "everything i learned about being a girl i learned from judy blume (wait for it) in my pants"
funny for you to say :)
Extras reminds me so much of Snowcrash - such a zeitgeist-connected dystopia.
What about the Giver? You should talk about the Giver. Today!
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