The eyes of the publishing world will turn to Dallas, TX at 7:45 a.m. CT on Monday, Jan.23, 2012, when the American Library Association (ALA) announces the top awards in children’s and young adult literature as part of the ALA Midwinter Meeting, January 20 – 24.

The ALA Youth Media Awards honor children’s and young adult authors and illustrators, as well as producers of children’s audio and video materials. Known worldwide for the high quality they represent, the ALA Youth Media Awards are selected under a cloak of secrecy by national judging committees composed of librarians and other children’s literature experts.

The ALA will announce 18 awards, including the renowned Caldecott and Newbery Medals, the Coretta Scott King Book Awards and Printz award.  The books honored serve as a guide for parents, educators, librarians and those interested in providing children and teens with the very best reading and viewing materials.

The ALA will host a live Webcast from the Dallas Convention Center begining at 7:30 a.m. CT, Jan. 23.  Virtual seating will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis. Information will also be posted to the ALA Twitter account @alayma and Facebook account.

The 2011 announcements will consist of 19 awards, including the Coretta Scott King Book Awards, John Newbery Medal, the Randolph Caldecott Medal and the YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults.

The number of available connections for the webcast is limited, and the broadcast is available on a first-come, first-served basis. Online visitors can view the live webcast the morning of the announcements by clicking here .

Live results also will be available via Twitter at http://twitter.com/ALAyma (hashtag #alayma) and on the ALA Youth Media Awards Facebook page.

The press release announcing all ALA Youth Media Award recipients will be posted in the Youth Media Awards Press Kit prior to 10 a.m. PST.

Recognized worldwide for the high quality they represent, the ALA Youth Media Awards guide parents, educators, librarians and others in selecting the best materials for children and young adults. Selected by committees composed of librarians and other literature and media experts, the awards encourage original and creative work in the field of children’s and young adult literature and media.

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National Poetry Month~ Canada and USA

Growing Up Asian in America Art and Essay Contest Winners Announced~ San Francisco, CA, USA

The Mathieu Da Costa Challenge Winners Announced~ Canada

38th National Book Fair & 8th Bangkok International Book Fair~ ongoing until Apr 6, Bangkok, Thailand

Exhibit of Sally Rippin’s Illustrations for Peeking Ducks~ ongoing until Apr 11, Melbourne, Australia

Heart and Soul: Art from Coretta Scott King Award Books, 2006–2009~ ongoing until Apr 18, Chicago, IL, USA

New York Public Library Exhibit: 2010 Caldecott Winner Jerry Pinkney’s African-American Journey to Freedom~ ongoing until Apr 18, New York City, NY, USA

Once Upon a Time . . . Children’s Book Illustrators, Then and Now~ ongoing until May 27, Oakland, CA, USA

International Children’s Book Day~ Apr 2

SCBWI Presents Details, Details: The Snap, Crackle, and Pop of Good Writing with author Jane Kurtz~ Apr 2, Tokyo, Japan

SCBWI Presents Bologna and Beyond~ Apr 3, The Hague, Netherlands

43rd Annual Fay B. Kaigler Children’s Book Festival~ Apr 7 – 9, Hattiesburg, MS, USA

The Foundation for Children’s Literature Presents What’s New in Children’s Books~ Apr 8, Boston, MA, USA

26th Annual Virginia Hamilton Conference on Multicultural Literature for Youth~ Apr 8 – 9, Kent, OH, USA

Salisbury University’s Children’s and Young Adult Literature Festival: Read Green~ Apr 8 – 12, Salisbury, MD, USA

Border Book Festival~ Apr 8 – 11, Mesilla, NM, USA

Monsters and Miracles: A Journey through Jewish Picture Books~ Apr 8 – Aug 1, Los Angeles, CA, USA

The Green Earth Book Award Presentation Ceremony~ Apr 9, McLean, VA, USA

Cambridge WordFest~ Apr 9 – 11, Cambridge, United Kingdom

The Federation of Children’s Book Groups 2010 Conference~ Apr 9 – 11, Berkshire, United Kingdom

SCBWI Presents Children’s Books and our Phil-Hispanic Heritage~ Apr 10, Philippines

National Library Week: Communities Thrive @ Your Library~ Apr 11  – 17, USA

BC Book Prizes On Tour~ Apr 11 – 23, Province of British Columbia, Canada

Young Poets Week~ Apr 12 – 16, Canada

Chicago Latino Book & Family Festival~ Apr 17 – 18, Cicero, IL, USA

London Book Fair~ Apr 19 – 21, London, United Kingdom

MASC Young Authors and Illustrators Conference~ Apr 21 – 23, Ottawa, ON, Canada

Blue Metropolis Montreal International Literary Festival and Children’s Festival: Reading the World~ Apr 21 – 25, Montreal, QC, Canada

41st Annual Saskatchewan Reading Council Convention: Guiding the Way with Literacy~ Apr 22 – 24, Regina, SA, Canada

Marba International Children’s Literature Festival~ Apr 22 – 25, Valleta, Malta

Camara Chilena del Libro Book Fair~ Apr 22 – 30, Santiago, Chile

Buenos Aires Book Fair~ Apr 22 – May 10, Buenos Aires, Argentina

World Book and Copyright Day~ Apr 23

Connecting Cultures & Celebrating Cuentos: National Latino Children’s Literature Conference~ Apr 23 – 24, Tuscaloosa, AL, USA

Building Cultural Bridges: Integrating Languages, Linguistics, Literature and Translation into Education~ Apr 23 – 24, Almaty, Kazakhstan

Spring Festival of Children’s Literature~ Apr 23 – 24, Frostburg, MD, USA

Goolwa Poetry Festival~ Apr 23 – 26, Goolwa, Australia

La Fiera del Bambino / Children’s Book Fair~ Apr 24 – 25, Naples, Italy

Los Angeles Times Festival of Books~ Apr 24 – 25, Los Angeles, CA, USA

International Reading Association’s Annual Convention: Reading in Many Languages~ Apr 25 – 28, Chicago, IL, USA

One Hen: From Children’s Book To Educator Movement For Social Change~ Apr 26, Chicago, IL, USA

PEN World Voices Festival of International Literature~ Apr 26 – May 7, New York, NY, USA

Ezra Jack Keats Awards for Excellence in Children’s Literature Ceremony~ Apr 28, New York, NY, USA

Awâsis 2010 Aboriginal Education Conference~ Apr 28 – 30, Saskatoon, SA, Canada

El Día de los Niños/El Día de los Libros~ Apr 30, USA

In commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the Coretta Scott King Book Awards (established in honor of Coretta Scott King’s legacy to increase the presence and appreciation of African-American writers and illustrators in the book community), last year TeachingBooks.net launched the Coretta Scott King Book Award Curriculum Resource Center, “a free, multimedia, online database for educators and families, featuring more than 250 original recordings with the award-winning authors and illustrators, and hundreds of lesson plans” (including material on Jerry Pinkney’s work—he’s the only artist to date to win the award five times).

We encourage you to explore these resources and seek out the fantastic books they highlight. Doing so would make for a wonderful way of honoring Black History Month. And since we are talking about going deeper, beyond the “festivals & heroes” surface of the occasion, here’s a little piece of trivia for you: Did you know that Coretta Scott King initially didn’t like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.? She thought he was too short. But, luckily, she knew better than to let first impressions get in the way of better judgement. Amen to that!

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African American History Month~ USA

National African American Read-in~  USA

Black History Month~ Canada

February Literacy Workshops for Parents, Teachers and Writers with Daphne Lee~ Petaling Jaya, Malaysia

National Storytelling Week~ ongoing until Feb 6, United Kingdom

Kolkata Book Fair~ ongoing until Feb 7, Kolkata, India

“Tea with Chachaji” A Musical Production based on Chachaji’s Cup by Uma Krishnaswami~ ongoing until Feb 11, New York, NY, USA

Stories from Childhood: Lin Hai-yin’s Children’s Literature Book Exhibition and Activity Series~ ongoing until Mar 1, Tainan City, Taiwan

2009 Bologna Illustrators Exhibition of Children’s Books~ ongoing until Mar 1, Seoul, Korea

Osborne Collection of Early Children’s Books Presents: Journey to Adventure~ ongoing until Mar 6, Toronto, ON, Canada

Entries Accepted for the Growing Up Asian in America Contest~ ongoing until Mar 10, San Francisco, CA, USA

The Making of the Word Witch: The Poetic & Illustrative Magic of Margaret Mahy & David Elliot~ ongoing until  Mar 14, Ashburton, New Zealand

21st Annual Children’s Book Illustrators Exhibit~ ongoing until Apr 3, Hayward, CA, USA

Mother Goose in an Air-Ship: McLoughlin Bros. 19th Century Children’s Books from the Liman Collection~ ongoing until Apr 18,  Amherst, MA, USA

Heart and Soul: Art from Coretta Scott King Award Books, 2006–2009~ ongoing until Apr 18, Chicago, IL, USA

From The Tiger Who Came to Tea to Mog and Pink Rabbit; A Judith Kerr Retrospective~ ongoing until May, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom

Leo Lee Arts Centre Presents Renowned Canadian Author Deb Ellis~ Feb 1 – 2, Hong Kong

Association of Jewish Libraries Presents the 2010 Sydney Taylor Book Award Blog Tour~ Feb 1 – 5

Book Signing Event with Paula Young Shelton author of Child of the Civil Rights Movement~ Feb 2, Washington, D.C., USA

Vancouver Children’s Literature Roundtable Presents Authorfest 2010~ Feb 2, Vancouver, BC, Canada

International Conference on Children’s Libraries – Building a Book Culture~ Feb 4 – 6, New Delhi, India

New York Public Library Exhibit: 2010 Caldecott Winner Jerry Pinkney’s African-American Journey to Freedom~ Feb 5 – Apr 18, New York City, NY, USA

SCBWI Workshop: Picture Books – The Perils, Pitfall and Promise~ Feb 6, Ventura, CA, USA

8th Annual Orion School Author and Illustrator Festival~ Feb 6, Redwood City, CA, USA

Imagine 2010: Children’s Literature Festival~ Feb 6 – Mar 2, London, United Kingdom

Seven Stories Presents Taffy Thomas, First Laureate for Storytelling~ Feb 6, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom

Words on Wheels~ Feb 12 – 17, New Zealand

Kids ♥ Authors Day~ Feb 14

First Nations Public Library Week~ Feb 15 – 20, Province of Ontario, Canada

SCBWI’s Annual Golden Gate Conference At Asilomar~ Feb 19 – 21, Pacific Grove, CA, USA

Freedom to Read Week~ Feb 21 – 27, Canada

Northern Ireland Booktrust Conference: The Gift of Books – Inspiring a Lifelong Love of Reading~ Feb 22, Antrim, Ireland

Exhibition of Joy Mallari’s Artwork From the Book Doll Eyes~ Feb 25, Makati City, Philippines

International Conference on Children’s Literature in Language Education~ Feb 25 – 27, Hildesheim, Germany

Latvian Book Fair~ Feb 25 – 28, Riga, Latvia

Hubbs Children’s Literature Conference~ Feb 27, Saint Paul, MN, USA

Joy Cowley Writing Workshop: Writing from the Heart~ Feb 27 – 28, Auckland, New Zealand

Bath Literature Festival~ Feb 27 – Mar 7, Bath, United Kingdom

A complete list of all the 2010 literary award winners can be  seen here. Highlights include:

Winner of the John Newbery Medal (for most outstanding contribution to children’s literature):
When You Reach Me written by Rebecca Stead

Winner of the Caldecott Medal (for most distinguished American picture book for children):
The Lion & the Mouse illustrated and written by Jerry Pinkney

Winner of the Coretta Scott King (Author) Book Award (recognizing an African American author and illustrator of outstanding books for children and young adults):
Bad News for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves, Deputy U.S. Marshal written by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson and illustrated by R. Gregory Christie

Winner of the Coretta Scott King (Illustrator) Book Award:
My People illustrated by Charles R. Smith Jr. and written by Langston Hughes

Winner of the Pura Belpré (Illustrator) Award (honoring a Latino writer and illustrator whose children’s books best portray, affirm and celebrate the Latino cultural experience):
Book Fiesta!: Celebrate Children’s Day/Book Day; Celebremos El día de los niños/El día de los libros illustrated by Rafael López and written by Pat Mora

Winner of the Pura Belpré (Author) Award:
Return to Sender written by Julia Alvarez

In honor of the award’s anniversary, TeachingBooks.net is making available more than 250 audio interviews and book readings by authors and artists, as part of the Coretta Scott King Book Award Curriculum Resource Center. The free, online resource aimed at educators and families also includes lesson plans and other supplemental materials. Searches can be executed by author, illustrator, title, grade level, and curriculum area, as well as by the year or specific Coretta Scott King Book Award citation. “Students can now learn the personal story behind each book directly from the creator, including how and why it was made,” said TeachingBooks.net founder Nick Glass, as quoted in the press release.

To learn “Fun Facts” about the award, check here.

The Three Lucys explores the realities of war from the perspective of Luli, a young Lebanese boy whose most beloved possessions are his three cats, all named Lucy. Returning home with his parents after a visit with his aunt and uncle, Luli discovers that conflicts between people can change some things forever. But in the end, Luli also learns to hope for a future in which change is possible as differences are put aside. Mr. Charara’s writing is honest and lyrical and captures a strong sense of place. The Three Lucys is based on the experiences of the author’s younger brother during the month-long war in Lebanon in the summer of 2006.

A first-generation Arab American born in Michigan, Mr. Charara is a poet, editor, and teacher. While this is his first foray into writing for children, Mr. Charara’s work for adults has appeared in numerous literary journals and anthologies.

Lee & Low Books established the New Voices Award in 2000 to encourage writers of color to submit their work to a publisher that takes pride in nurturing new talent. The award reflects the company’s mission of meeting the need for stories that children of color can identify with and that all children can enjoy. “When we started the company, there was a lot of interest in books focused on diversity,” says co-founder Tom Low, “but most of the titles were folktales about exotic people from distant lands. We felt strongly that it was important to have books with a contemporary setting that reflect how we live today.”

Lee & Low has published over 200 books since 1991. A number of their titles have won major awards and honors, including the Coretta Scott King Award, the Pura Belpré Honor Award, and The Jane Addams Peace Award.

Awards include:

• Alex Awards honoring the best adult books that appeal to teens
• Coretta Scott King Book Awards honoring African American authors and illustrators of outstanding books for children and young adults that demonstrate sensitivity to “the African American experience via literature and illustration.”
• John Newbery Medal honoring the author of the year’s most distinguished contribution to American literature for children.
• Laura Ingalls Wilder Award honoring an author or illustrator whose books have made a substantial and lasting contribution to literature for children.
• Margaret A. Edwards Award honoring an author’s lifetime contribution in writing for young adults as well as a specific body of his or her work.
• Michael L. Printz Award honoring excellence in literature written for young adults.
• Pura Belpré Award honoring Latino/Latina writers and illustrators whose work best portrays, affirms and celebrates the Latino cultural experience in an outstanding work of literature for children and youth.
• Randolph Caldecott Medal honoring the illustrator of the year’s most distinguished American picture book for children.
• Robert F. Sibert Medal honoring an author, illustrator and/or photographer of the most distinguished informational book published for children.
• Schneider Family Book Award honoring books that embody an artistic expression of the disability experience.
• Theodor Seuss Geisel Award honoring the author(s) and illustrator(s) of the most distinguished book for beginning readers published in English in the United States.
• William C. Morris Award inaugurated in 2009, honoring a book published by a first-time author writing for teens.