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The California Young Reader Medal is a set of five annual literary awards conferred upon picture books and fiction books selected by vote of California schoolchildren from a ballot prepared by committee.[1] The program was established in 1974 with Intermediate, Primary, and Young Adult Medals that were inaugurated in 1975, 1976, and 1977 and were conferred biennially, and annually beginning in 1983.[2][a]
The program is intended to encourage recreational reading and is sponsored by four organizations that promote reading and literacy: the California Association of Teachers of English, the California Library Association, the California Reading Association, and the California School Library Association.[1]
There are five medals, last modified for 2002: Primary (grades K-3), Intermediate (grades 3–6), Middle School/Junior High (grades 6–9), Young Adult (grades 9–12), and Picture Books for Older Readers (grades 4 and up)—that is, roughly age 10 and up.[b] Both writer and illustrator receive the Primary and Picture Book Medals, where applicable.[1]
The ballot for each medal comprises 3–5 books published during the preceding four years—two to five years ago when the process concludes. For example, 17 books published from 2010 to 2013 were nominated for 2014–2015.[3]
Rules and process
Young readers, their parents, educators, librarians, and "anyone who works with young people" may recommend books. Candidates must be original works of fiction by living authors, available in English, published during the four preceding years and still in print.[4]
Nominations are made by award category and the books should be "often read or requested" and have "strong appeal for the age group".[4] A committee of the sponsoring organizations selects "a well-balanced list of nominees" (finalists), considering merit and appeal.[1]
Children may vote in all categories where they know all of the candidates by reading or hearing read aloud. They cast a combined paper ballot at once, in a classroom or library monitored by an adult.[5][c]
Winners
The medals in four categories inaugurated in 1975, 1976, 1977, and 1980 were biennial until 1983, and thereafter annual.[2] For each category (now five) CYRM maintains a "Booklist" of finalists (3–5 annually) that provides basic bibliographic data for all, and cover images beginning in 2005 or so.[6]
1970s
Year | Category | Author | Title |
---|---|---|---|
1975 | Intermediate | Thomas Rockwell | How to Eat Fried Worms |
1976 | Primary | Bill Peet | How Droofus the Dragon Lost His Head |
1977 | Intermediate | Mary Rodgers | Freaky Friday |
Young Adult | Richard Adams | Watership Down | |
1978 | Primary | Lucy Bate, illus. by Diane de Groat | Little Rabbit's Loose Tooth |
1979 | Intermediate | Roald Dahl | Danny, the Champion of the World |
Young Adult | Sandra Scoppettone | The Late Great Me |
1980s
Year | Category | Author | Title |
---|---|---|---|
1980 | Middle School/Junior High | Betsy Byars | The Pinballs |
Primary | Bill Peet | Big Bad Bruce | |
1981 | Intermediate | Wilson Rawls | Summer of the Monkeys |
Young Adult | Lois Lowry | A Summer to Die | |
1982 | Primary | Harry Allard, illus. by James Marshall | Miss Nelson is Missing |
Middle School/Junior High | Ellen Conford | Hail, Hail Camp Timberwood | |
1983 | Primary | Mercer Mayer | Liza Lou and the Yeller Belly Swamp |
Intermediate | Judy Blume | Superfudge | |
Middle School/Junior High | Judy Blume | Tiger Eyes | |
Young Adult | Lois Duncan | Summer of Fear | |
1984 | Primary | Phyllis Green, illus. by Joel Schick | Bagdad Ate It |
Intermediate | Theodore Taylor | The Trouble with Tuck | |
Middle School/Junior High | Paula Danziger | There's a Bat in Bunk Five | |
Young Adult | Lois Duncan | Stranger with My Face | |
1985 | Primary | Carol Chapman, illus. by Kelly Oechsli | Herbie's Troubles |
Intermediate | Lynne Reid Banks | The Indian in the Cupboard | |
Middle School/Junior High | Norma Fox Mazer | Taking Terri Mueller | |
Young Adult | Frances Miller | The Truth Trap | |
1986 | Primary | Edward Marshall, illus. by James Marshall | Space Case |
Intermediate | Barthe DeClements | Nothing's Fair in Fifth Grade | |
Middle School/Junior High | Willo Davis Roberts | Girl with the Silver Eyes | |
Young Adult | Meredith Pierce | The Darkangel | |
1987[d] | Primary | Audrey Wood, illus. by Don Wood | The Napping House |
Intermediate | Betty Ren Wright | The Dollhouse Murders | |
Middle School/Junior High | Patricia Hermes | You Shouldn't Have to Say Goodbye | |
Young Adult | Michael French | Pursuit | |
1988 | Primary | Laura Joffe Numeroff, illus. by Felicia Bond | If You Give a Mouse a Cookie |
Intermediate | Stephen Manes | Be a Perfect Person in Just Three Days | |
Middle School/Junior High | Janet Lunn | The Root Cellar | |
Young Adult | William Sleator | Interstellar Pig | |
1989 | Primary | Carol Carrick, illus. by Donald Carrick | What Happened to Patrick's Dinosaurs? |
Intermediate | Elizabeth Winthrop | The Castle in the Attic | |
Middle School/Junior High | Joan Lowery Nixon | The Stalker | |
Young Adult | Eve Bunting | The Face at the Edge of the World |
1990s
Year | Category | Author | Title |
---|---|---|---|
1990 | Primary | Margaret Leaf, illus. by Ed Young | Eyes of the Dragon |
Intermediate | Robert Kimmel Smith | The War with Grandpa | |
Middle School/Junior High | Joan Lowery Nixon | The Other Side of Dark | |
Young Adult | Cynthia Voigt | Izzy, Willy Nilly | |
1991 | Primary | Helen Lester, illus. by Lynn M. Munsinger | Tacky the Penguin |
Intermediate | Dick King-Smith | Harry's Mad | |
Middle School/Junior High | Mary Downing Hahn | December Stillness | |
Young Adult | M.E. Kerr | Night Kites | |
1992 | Primary | Denys Cazet | Never Spit on Your Shoes |
Intermediate | Lois Lowry | All About Sam | |
Middle School/Junior High | Theodore Taylor | Sniper | |
Young Adult | Eve Bunting | A Sudden Silence | |
1993 | Primary | Kevin Henkes | Julius, the Baby of the World |
Intermediate | Judy Blume | Fudge-a-Mania | |
Middle School/Junior High | Avi | Something Upstairs | |
Young Adult | Annette Curtis Klause | The Silver Kiss | |
1994 | Primary | Mary Calhoun, illus. by Erick Ingraham | High-Wire Henry |
Intermediate | Willo Davis Roberts | Scared Stiff | |
Middle School/Junior High | Jerry Spinelli | There's a Girl in My Hammerlock | |
Young Adult | Robert Cormier | We All Fall Down | |
1995 | Primary | Susan Meddaugh | Martha Speaks |
Intermediate | Pam Conrad | Stonewords | |
Middle School/Junior High | Ben Mikaelsen | Rescue Josh McGuire | |
Young Adult | Will Hobbs | Downriver | |
1996 | Primary | Janell Cannon | Stellaluna |
Intermediate | Mary Downing Hahn | Time for Andrew | |
Middle School/Junior High | Rodman Philbrick | Freak the Mighty | |
Young Adult | Sherry Garland | Shadow of the Dragon | |
1997 | Primary | Erica Silverman, illus. by S. D. Schindler | Don't Fidget a Feather! |
Intermediate | Bruce Coville | Jennifer Murdley's Toad | |
Middle School/Junior High | Ben Mikaelsen | Sparrow Hawk Red | |
Young Adult | Chris Crutcher | Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes | |
1998 | Primary | Dav Pilkey | Dog Breath |
Intermediate | Erika Tamar | The Junkyard Dog | |
Middle School/Junior High | Christopher Paul Curtis | The Watsons Go to Birmingham – 1963 | |
Young Adult | Chris Crutcher | Ironman | |
1999 | Primary | Pamela Duncan Edwards, illus. by Henry Cole | Livingstone Mouse |
Intermediate | Sid Fleischman, illus. by Peter Sis | The 13th Floor | |
Middle School/Junior High | Graham Salisbury | Under the Blood Red Sun | |
Young Adult | Kristen Randle | The Only Alien on the Planet |