This year for the first time, PaperTigers was invited to submit nominations for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award. We have just heard that the jury is now sifting through the nominations and that the complete list will be made public on 25 September at the Gothenburg Book Fair; it will also be on their website so we’ll let you know when it’s available.

In the meantime, here are our “Grounds for Nomination” statements for artist and author, Allen Say, and author and promoter of education in Pakistan and Afghanistan, Greg Mortenson.

Often drawing on his own background, Allen Say captivates his readers through beautifully honed prose and luminous watercolors. He embraces a striving for happiness with a blend of gentle humor and realism, and touches on many aspects of being human, such as race, migration, disability and age. Even young children can empathize with and find echoes in many of his stories. Say opens young hearts and minds both to new cultures and to their own potential; and his portrayal of the human condition provides a forum for children to recognize their own value and to dream.

Allen Say is featured in a Gallery in our current issue of PaperTigers, and offers some fascinating insight into his latest book, Erika-San. You can also read an interview with him, in which he talks about his semi-autobiographical book for young adults, The Ink-Keeper’s Apprentice, as well as some of his other picture-books. Sally recently chose his Music for Alice for a Books at Bedtime post.

Greg Mortenson is a humanitarian whose motto is “Books, not Bombs.” Since 1993 he has been committed to promoting and supporting education and literacy (with an emphasis on girls’ education) in rural, underserved regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan. Through his work as co-founder/Executive Director of the Central Asia Institute, as of May 2009, he has established over 78 schools, supported the training of 600+ teachers and offered scholarships to hundreds of disadvantaged students, thus providing education to over 28,000 children (including 18,000 girls) who would otherwise have no opportunities.

Greg Mortenson is also founder of the Pennies For Peace program and author of the Kiriyama Prize-winning book Three Cups of Tea, which has been translated into 29 languages. It has been adapted into a version for young adults and a beautiful picture-book, Listen to the Wind, illustrated with wonderful collages by Susan L. Roth.

Please do share with us your thoughts and comments about our two nominations – we’d love to hear from you.

The new issue of PaperTigers, focusing on Children’s Book Awards, is now live! The homepage welcomes readers with a quote from Astrid Lindgren, whose Memorial Award is among the most prestigious in the world:

Somewhere inside the secret rooms of the soul a child, alone with a book, creates personal images that surpass everything else. Such images are necessary for human beings. The day
that children’s imaginations no longer have the energy to create them will be the day when the human race becomes poor. All the big things that happened in the world happened first in the imagination of one person, and how the world of tomorrow will look depends largely on the measure of imaginative power in the minds of those who right now are learning how to read. That is why children need books.

Lindgren’s powerful words leave no doubt as to the importance of children’s books… But how do we find the best books, if we can’t read them all? That’s one of the reasons why we need book awards.

Our newly-added features highlight prize-winning books, book creators, and the many awards that honor them and help the shining light of great stories reach near and far… Some of the new features include: interviews with Américas Award Coordinator, Julie Kline; Asian/Pacific American Award Committe Chair, Dora Ho; and Jane Addams Award Committee Chair, Susan C. Griffith. Plus opinion pieces by Malathi Michelle Iyengar and Mitali Perkins, illustrators’ gallery features, and more. Enjoy them, and let us know what you think!

We’ll also be further exploring the theme of children’s book awards, here, on the blog, for the next two months, so check back often for more treats and information!

image credit: © Wen Hsu, winner of the 2009 NOMA Concours Grand Prize

Announced yesterday, this year’s Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, the largest in children’s literature, goes to The Tamer Institute For Community Education. The prize is given annually to a writer, illustrator, storyteller or organisation who best promote reading/literacy.

PaperTigers congratulates The Tamer Institute for the honor and the outstanding work it has been doing, since 1989, to help children in Gaza and the West Bank improve their literacy skills. Tamer dedicated the award to “the children of Palestine who have faced many painful events throughout the past 60 years.”

A statement that included the jury’s reason for awarding the prize said: “In the spirit of Astrid Lindgren, the Tamer Institute acknowledges the power of words and the strength of books, stories and imagination as important keys to self-esteem, tolerance and the courage to face life.”

PaperTigers is very honored to have been selected as one of the nominating bodies for the 2010 ALMA award. We are looking forward to contributing to the process of selecting the next winner.