NEW YORK, NY — May 7, 2012 — The Children’s Book Council (CBC) in association with Every Child a Reader (ECAR), announced the winners of the fifth annual Children’s Choice Book Awards at a charity gala in New York City this evening as part of Children’s Book Week (May 7-13, 2012). Children across the country voted in record numbers for their favorite books, author, and illustrator at bookstores, school libraries, and at www.BookWeekOnline.com, casting a new record amount at more than 900,000 votes.
Video of the awards ceremony will be available for viewing on May 8 at www.cbcbooks.org.
The Children’s Choice Book Award winners are as follows:
- KINDERGARTEN TO SECOND GRADE BOOK OF THE YEAR
- Three Hens and a Peacock by Lester L. Laminack, illustrated by Henry Cole (Peachtree)
- THIRD GRADE TO FOURTH GRADE BOOK OF THE YEAR
- Bad Kitty Meets the Baby by Nick Bruel (Roaring Brook/Macmillan)
- FIFTH GRADE TO SIXTH GRADE BOOK OF THE YEAR
- Okay for Now by Gary D. Schmidt (Clarion Books/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
- TEEN BOOK OF THE YEAR
- Clockwork Prince: The Infernal Devices, Book Two by Cassandra Clare (Margaret K. McElderry Books/Simon & Schuster)
- AUTHOR OF THE YEAR
- Jeff Kinney for Diary of a Wimpy Kid 6: Cabin Fever (Amulet Books/Abrams)
- ILLUSTRATOR OF THE YEAR
- Brian Selznick for Wonderstruck (Scholastic)
The Children’s Choice Book Awards program, launched in 2008 by The Children’s Book Council (CBC) in association with Every Child a Reader, was created to provide young readers with an opportunity to voice their opinions about the books being written for them and to help develop a reading list that will motivate children to read more and cultivate a love of reading.
About the Children’s Book Council
The Children’s Book Council is the national nonprofit trade association for children’s book publishers. The CBC offers children’s publishers the opportunity to work together on issues of importance to the industry at large, including educational programming, literacy advocacy, and collaborations with other national organizations. Our members span the spectrum from large international houses to smaller independent presses. Membership in the CBC is open to U.S. publishers of children’s trade books, as well as in some cases to industry-affiliated companies. The CBC is proud to partner with other national organizations on co-sponsored reading lists, educational programming, and literacy initiatives. Please visit www.cbcbooks.org for more information.
About Every Child a Reader
Every Child a Reader (ECAR) is a 501(c)(3) literacy organization dedicated to instilling a lifelong love of reading in children. To achieve this, ECAR creates and supports positive programs and opportunities that promote the enjoyment of reading among America’s youth. Founded by the Board of Directors of the Children’s Book Council (CBC), it is unique among literacy organizations in its ability to harness the collective power of the children’s book publishing industry to create positive social change in our communities. Its goals echo those of the CBC, which are to make the reading and enjoyment of children’s books an essential part of America’s educational and social aims, and to enhance public perception of the importance of reading.
Every Child a Reader administers Children’s Book Week. In conjunction with The Center for the Book in the Library of Congress and the CBC, ECAR sponsors the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature Program, which raises national awareness of the importance of young people’s literature as it relates to lifelong literacy, education and the development and betterment of the lives of young people.
