Award of the Week: Charlotte Huck Award
The National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) Charlotte Huck Award® for Outstanding Fiction for Children was established in 2014 to promote and recognize excellence in the writing of fiction for children. This award recognizes fiction that has the potential to transform children’s lives by inviting compassion, imagination, and wonder.
The award commemorates the work of educator Charlotte Huck, who led children’s-literature studies at The Ohio State University from the mid-1950s to 1986, championing the classroom use of storybooks to teach reading and language arts. She was the author of five editions of the textbook Children’s Literature in the Classroom
2018 Winner | |
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After the Fall (how Humpty Dumpty got back up again) By: Dan Santat After falling off the wall, Humpty Dumpty is very afraid of climbing up again, but is determined not to let fear stop him from being close to the birds. |
2018 Honor Books | |
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Forever or a Long, Long Time By: Caela Carter After a long, troubling string of foster homes, 11-year-old Flora and her brother, Julian, were finally adopted two years ago. They’re starting to feel comfortable with their mom, Emily, but now she is pregnant. The announcement raises distressing questions about real family and belonging, particularly because Flora and Julian know nothing about their biological parents, except that they were probably darker than Emily, who’s white, but lighter than Emily’s husband, who’s black. |
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Refugee By: Alan Gratz The journey of three children, spanning different continents and decades, as they escape dangers in their homelands- Josef, a Jewish boy living in 1930s Nazi Germany, Isabel, a Cuban girl in 1984, and Mahmoud, a Syrian boy in 2015. |
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Little Fox in the Forest By: Stephanie Graegin A wordless picture book in which two friends follow a young fox deep into the woods and discover a wondrous and magical world. |
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The End of the Wild By: Nicole Helget Eleven-year-old Fern helps to take care of her impoverished family by foraging for food in the forest, but when a fracking company rolls into town, she realizes that her peaceful woods and her family’s livelihood could be threatened. |
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The Rooster Who Would Not Be Quiet! By: Carmen Agra Deedy The mayor of the noisy city of La Paz institutes new laws forbidding all singing, but a brave little rooster decides he must sing, despite the progressively severe punishments he receives for continuing to crow. The silenced populace, invigorated by the rooster’s bravery, ousts the tyrannical mayor and returns their city to its free and clamorous state. |
2018 Recommended Books | |
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Amina’s Voice By: Hena Khan A Pakistani-American Muslim girl struggles to stay true to her family’s vibrant culture while simultaneously blending in at school after tragedy strikes her community. |
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Big Cat, Little Cat By: Elisha Cooper A moving tale about friendship, new beginnings, and cats. |
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Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut By: Derrick D. Barnes Celebrates the magnificent feeling that comes from walking out of a barber shop with newly-cut hair. |
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Saving Marty By: Paul Griffin When Lorenzo adopts a runt piglet destined for auction, an unexpected, life-changing friendship forms. A story of friendship and the unknown. |
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Shelter By: Celine Claire Two strangers seek shelter in a storm, but are turned away by everyone in the forest. But when a family in the forest needs help, will the strangers refuse them kindness and generosity as they were? |
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Stef Soto, the Taco Queen By: Jennifer Torres Stef wishes her family would dissolve the family business, a taco truck. But when the business is threatened, she finds herself with a change of heart. |
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Wishtree By: Katherine Applegate An old red oak tree tells how he and his crow friend, Bongo, help their human neighbors get along after a threat against an immigrant family is carved into the tree’s trunk. |