What is Children's Literature

Best Picture Books

Every year the American Library association chooses the best picture book of the year and awards it the Caldecott Medal. This is a short discription of many of the Medal Winners.

2008 "The Invention of Hugo Cabret" by Brian Selznick--A stunning 533 pages this picture book tells the story of a poor boy on the streets of Paris in 1905. A great blending of picture book and novel for children 9 to 12.
2007 "Floatsam" by David Wiesner--A wordless picture book of a boy as he searches for objects on the beach to find a camera, he develops the film, and then takes some more pictures which he sends back out for another child to find.
2006 "The Hello, Goodbye Window" written by Norton Juster, illustrated by Chris Raschka--An imaginative and fun painted picture book about a girl who visits her grandparents and the fun things they do and imagine.
2004 "The Man Who Waked Between the Towers" by Mordicai Gerstein--The picture book about a tight rope walker who walked between the Twin Towers, a fun story, exelerating in its views of the tight rope walkers percarious situation.
2000 "Joseph Had a Little Overcoat" Simms Taback--A fun little story about a man who continually makes something from some cloth that gets more and more worn.
1999 "Snowflake Bentley" Illustration by Mary Azarian, text by Jacqueline Briggs Martin--A beautifully illustrated picture book, calm, and beautiful, it tells the story of a man who discovered many photographic techniques including that of taking pictures of snowflakes.
1998 "Repunzel" by Paul O. Zelinsky--One of the most beautifully illustrated picture books based on fairy tales this stunning work is done in the style of the Italian Renaissance.
1992 "Tuesday" by David Wiesner--David Wiesner's first Caldecott winner and the perfect illustration of his ability to create wordless picture books, Tuesday is the scene of frogs as they for some reason begin to float and fly around a city.
1986 "The Polar Express" by Chris Van Allsburg--With his signiture ability to creat fantastic hyper-real pictures this picture book tells a Christmas story that is both beautiful and simple.
1985 "Saint George and the Dragon" Illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman, retold by Margaret Hodges--An amazing and poetic battle between a dragon and a knight, the best fantasy picture book.
1997 "Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears" by illustrated by Leo & Diane Dillon--An explination folktale, one sees the events of this story spiral humorasly out of control.
1957 "A Tree is Nice" Illustrated by Marc Simont, written by Janice May Udry--A picture book about how nice trees are.
1956 "Frog Went A-Courtin" Illustrated by Feodor Rojankovsky retold by John Langstaff--The story of a frogs wedding to Miss Mousie, and the animals which attend and the problem which occurs at the wedding.
1955 "Cinderella or The Little Glass Slipper" Marcia Brown--Rather then being serious this picture book has funny illustrations.
1954 "Madeline's Rescue" Ludwig Bemelmans--As the illustrator said of Madeline, he didn't create her because he was good, but because she demanded it. A wonderful picture book.about a bold little orphane girl in Paris.
1953 "The Biggest Bear" Lynd Ward--The story of a boy who sets out to shoot a bear but instead finds a little bear who becomes his pet. The bear grows and begins to cause trouble, forcing the boy to send him off to the zoo.
1952 "Finders Keepers" Nicolas Mordvinoff, Written by Will Lipkin--The greatest plot so the saying goes is two dogs fighting over a bone, and this picture book is the greatest telling of this. As two dogs struggle for a bone, then the threat of another dog causes them to realize the need to share, to avoid loosing everything.
1951 "The Egg Tree" Katherine Milhous--A rare easter picture book about children as they search fo colored eggs hidden by the rabbit, and their making of a tree to hang the eggs on.
1950 "The Song of the Swallows" Leo Politi--The story of two friends a bell ringer and a gardener at the Mission San Juan Capistrano. And of the comming of the swallows on St. Joseph's Day.
1949 "The Big Snow" Berta and Elmer Hader--How the animals of the forest prepare for winter, but despite all these efforts the winter is too harsh, and so two country people must help the animals.
1948 "White Snow Bright Snow" Illustrated by Roger Duvoisin Written by Alvin Tresselt--A wonderful way to illustrate the differences between the way things impact children and adults. For the blizzard brings joy to children but problems for postman, farmers and so forth.
1947 "The Little Island" Illustrated by Leonard Weisgard Written by Golden Macdonald--The story of a kitten who learns about an island from a fish. The picture books illustrations follow closely the seasons on the island.
1946 "The Rooster Crows" Maud and Miska Petersham--American Jingles and Folk Rhymes.
1945 "Prayer for a Child" Illustrated by Elizabeth Orton Jones, written by Rachel Field--The Prayer by Rachel Field beautifully illustrated in a picture book.
1944 "Many Moons" Illustrated by Louis Slobodkin, Written by James Thurber--A picture book about a princess who falls extreamly ill, and asks her father to give her the moon. This throws the court into an uproar, as the king demands that the impossable task be accomplished, which it is in a way, through the inteligence and understanding of the jester.
1943 "The Little House" by Virginia Lee Burton--In the midst of the WWII as the depresion was ending and the cities where expanding this book came out. Done in a style of the folk past it told the story of a little house, as it was overtaken by the suburbs and then the large noisy city.
1942 "Make Way for Ducklings' by Robert McCloskey
1941 "They Where Good and Strong" by Robert Lawson--The Story of Lawson's ancesters, and his pride in their hard work and dilegince. The fact that this is such a personal story makes it a wonderful picture book, the type there should perhaps be more of.
1940 "Abraham Lincoln" by Ingri and Edgar D'Aulaire--The story of Abraham Lincoln Solid illustrations make this picture book a beautiful and unique work.
1939 "Mei Li" by Thomas Handforth--The story of a girl and her brother at the New Years Day Festival in North China. A festival of sword dancers, camels, and other great pictures for children.
1938 "Animals of the Bible" Illustrated by Dorothy P. Lathrop text by Helen Dean Fish--Stories from the Bible which involve animals from one of the most skilled children's book illustrators.