In celebration of the life and achievements of civil rights leader, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the American Library Association (ALA) annually honors African-American authors and illustrators of outstanding books for children and young adults that demonstrate sensitivity to “the true worth and value of all beings” with the Coretta Scott King (CSK)Award. The first presentation was in 1970 to Lillie Patterson, author of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: Man of Peace.
One way parents and family members can celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day this Jan. 16 is by sharing award-winning books from the past five years:
2005: CSK Author Award, Remember: The Journey to School Integration, by Toni Morrison (Houghton Mifflin Company)
CSK Illustrator Award, Ellington Was Not a Street, illustration by Kadir A. Nelson; text by Ntozake Shange (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)
2004: CSK Author Award, The First Part Last, by Angela Johnson (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)
CSK Illustrator Award, Beautiful Blackbird, by Ashley Bryan (Atheneum Books for Young Readers)
2003: CSK Author Award, Bronx Masquerade, by Nikki Grimes (Dial Books for Young Readers)
CSK Illustrator Award, Talkin’ About Bessie: The Story of Aviator Elizabeth Coleman, illustration by E. B. Lewis (Orchard Books/Scholastic)
2002: CSK Author Award, The Land, by Mildred Taylor (Phyllis Fogelman Books/Penguin Putnam)
CSK Illustrator Award, Goin’ Someplace Special, illustration by Jerry Pinkney; text by Patricia McKissack (Anne Schwartz Book/Atheneum)
2001: CSK Author Award, Miracle’s Boys, by Jacqueline Woodson (G.P. Putnam’s Sons)
CSK Illustrator Award, Uptown, by Bryan Collier (Henry Holt)
Parents and youth can learn who the 2006 Coretta Scott King Award winners are by logging on to the American Library Association website, www.ala.org, Jan. 23 at 10 a.m. Central Time.
