On June 22, 1921 Frederic Melcher, the dean of American publishing, proposed that an award be given to the most outstanding children's book author for the previous year. The Newbery Medal was named after John Newbery, who was a bookseller in the 18th century. This award was given to "encourage original, creative work in the field of books for children" (American).
Pictured above is Frederic Melcher, Dean of American Publishing.
After several years of recognizing authors, Frederic Melcher decided that an award should be given to profound illustrators of children's books as well. The Caldecott Medal is awarded by the Association for Library Service to Children to honor an artist with the "most distinguished American picture book for literature" (American). This award was named after Randolph Caldecott, who was an English illustrator in the 19th century. In addition to medal winners, each year there are at least two honor books listed as well. The Caldecott Medal was first awarded in 1938 (to Dorothy P. Lathrop) and has been given every year since.
Originally, the two awards were chosen by the same committee and until 1977 a book winning in one category could not win in another. There are specific criteria for choosing both Newbery and Caldecott award winners. However, for both, the winner must be a United States citizen. For the Caldecott Award, the book must meet requirements for being a picture book. Such requirements include providing the child with a visual experience and that the book target children under the age of 14. Further criteria can be found at www.ala.org that specifies what could be considered "distinguished".
It is evident that neither award could be deemed "better" than the other because they are awarded for two totally different skills. The Newbery is awarded for brilliance in children's writing, while the Caldecott awards children's illustrators who do phenomenal work. It would be unfair to judge these two categories together since the skills needed to succeed in both are vastly different.
Sources:
American Library Association. "Caldecott Award." Retrieved on May 30, 2008 from http://www.ala.org/ala/alsc/awardsscholarships/literaryawds/caldecottmedal/caldecottmedal.cfm.
No comments:
Post a Comment