LEE BENNETT HOPKINS POETRY AWARD
The Pennsylvania Center for the Book, the University Libraries, and the Pennsylvania School Librarians' Association are pleased to announce the winner of the 2009 Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award, as well as honor award winners.
2009 Winner:
2009 Honorees:
Stitchin' and Pullin' a Gee's Bend Quilt
The Surrender Tree: Poems of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom
Lee Bennett Hopkins Award Criteria
2009 Press Release (html)
2009 Press Release (PDF)
This year's winner is Helen Frost for Diamond Willow (Frances Foster Books, an imprint of Farrar, Straus and Giroux Books for Young Readers)
The award and a $1000 prize will be presented on May 1 at the Pennsylvania School Librarians' Association Conference in State College, Pennsylvania.. We thank the PSLA for their sponsorship again this year.
Judges' Comments:
“A coming of age story beautifully crafted in diamond-shaped narrative verse,” is what one of our judges called this book.
Another described it as, “a beautifully crafted story of a young girl's search for acceptance, forgiveness, and hopefulness.”Another gave it this high praise: “Frost's use of diamond shapes and bold-faced print to reveal Willow's thoughts on several levels is pure genius. This work of art has universal appeal and will be read for generations.”
Additionally, judges gave honor awards to:
Patricia C. McKissack for Stitchin' and Pullin' a Gee's Bend Quilt (Random House Children's Books)
Judges' Comments:
"Patricia C. McKissack has written a culturally rich story about traditions shared from generation to generation. The women of Gee's Bend chronicle historical events and family memories from the fabric they are sewing into a beautiful quilt. The story is inspirational as well as educational."
Loved the "patchwork" of personal triumphs and struggles through the context of history. Beautifully written and lovingly researched.
Quilts represent the memories and history of life. McKissack's powerful free verse poems and author's note reveal beauty of quilts done by Gee's Band women. The voice of the young girl draws the reader into the emotions embedded within a quilt."
Margarita Engle for The Surrender Tree: Poems of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom (Henry Holt and Company)
Judges' Comments:
"Truly a masterpiece in every sense of the word. The perfect marriage of prose and poetry to tell a powerful story that is both fictional and autobiographical. The historical note and chronology at the end make it a great choice for the classroom.
This is a wonderful example of "economy of style." Saying so much with a sparse text. Making every word count with some truly amazing writing. Effortlessly pulling the reader into the time, the emotion and the environment of Rosa's world.Margarita Engle gives us a phenomenal treatment of a moment in history, done in such a way that makes it a great read and a fantastic historical resource. A true account of Cuban and American history from a perspective that many children and adults are not familiar with.