2003
Author Award
Winner
Bronx
Masquerade by
Nikki Grimes, YA Grimes, N.
Eighteen
students in a high school English class open up and take the risky challenge of
self-revelation in weekly poetry sessions. Through their poetry and narratives,
they share their most intimate thoughts about themselves and one another, their
lives, and what lies beneath the skin and beyond the masquerade.
Honor Books
The Red 
Rose
Box
Leah and her sister Ruth visit her rich aunt in California and can't believe how
luxurious her aunt's lifestyle is compared to theirs in Sulphur,
Louisiana--where the Jim Crow laws continue to keep the Southern blacks down.
But when a tragedy forces Leah and Ruth to stay with their aunt in California,
Leah begins to long for home.
Talkin'
About Bessie: the Story of Aviator Elizabeth Coleman
Elizabeth
"Bessie" Coleman lived during an era when Jim Crow laws and
segregation were a way of life, but she didn't let that stop her. Although she
was only 11 when the Wright brothers took their historic flight, she vowed to
become the first African-American female pilot. Her sturdy faith and
determination helped her overcome obstacles of poverty, racism, and gender
discrimination. Full-color illustrations.
Illustrator Award Winner
Talkin'
About Bessie: the Story of Aviator Elizabeth 
Coleman
Elizabeth
"Bessie" Coleman lived during an era when Jim Crow laws and
segregation were a way of life, but she didn't let that stop her. Although she
was only 11 when the Wright brothers took their historic flight, she vowed to
become the first African-American female pilot. Her sturdy faith and
determination helped her overcome obstacles of poverty, racism, and gender
discrimination. Full-color illustrations.
Honor Books
Rap
A Tap Tap: Here's Bojangles-Think of That
Leo and 
Diane
Dillion j E DIL
This
simple book for young children tells the life story of a groundbreaking
African-American tap dancer, Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, one of the
most popular entertainers of the 1920s. Illustrations.
Visiting
Langston il. by Bryan
Collier text by Willie Perdomo
j E PER
A wonderful 
picture
book from a hip young poet and an award-winning illustrator introduces young
readers to a legendary American writer. Full color.
2002
Author Award Winner
The
Land by Mildred D. Taylor YA Taylor, M.
The Land is a poignantly crafted story that chronicles the triumphs and struggles of life for Paul-Edward Logan, son of a white slave owner and an enslaved African-Indian woman. Set in Mississippi during the late 1800s, the book introduces readers to the grandfather of Cassie Logan, the impassioned hero of Taylor's 1977 Newbery Award winner "Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry."
"Taylor offers an ingenious prequel to 'Roll of Thunder,'" said Award Committee Chair Fran Ware. "'The Land' unveils the precarious world of Paul-Edward Logan, a black boy who could pass for white and invites readers into his remarkable and painful journey to manhood. Taylor makes an exemplary contribution to chronicling the African-American experience with her finely developed characters and well-rounded storyline." Grades 7-10Honor Books
Money-Hungry
by Sharon G. Flake YA Flake, S.
"If
you got money, people can't take stuff from you--not your house, or your ride,
not your family. They can't do nothing much to you, if you got a bankroll
backing you up." Thirteen-year-old Raspberry Hill knows what it's like not
to have security. After leaving her drug-addicted father, Raspberry and her
mother lived on friends' couches and on the street before they landed in the
projects. Now, while Raspberry's mom works two jobs and goes to school,
Raspberry obsessively does anything she can to grow that bankroll to back her
up; she sells pencils and old candy; cleans houses for the elderly; and washes
cars at stoplights. Her three close friends both support her and mock her.
There's Mia, who fights against her Korean and African American parents, wanting
to identify herself only as black; Ja'nae, who lives with loving grandparents
but yearns for her flaky, estranged mother; and Zora, whose divorced physician
father, Dr. Mitchell, seems to be romancing Raspberry's mother, which upsets
both girls. The razor-sharp dialogue and unerring details evoke characters,
rooms, and neighborhoods with economy and precision, creating a story that's
immediate, vivid, and unsensationalized. Without synthetic drama or stereotypes,
Flake shows poverty and how it touches everyone, whether it's the actual absence
of money or the fear of losing it. A few of the characters are less developed;
Dr. Mitchell in particular is vague and a little too perfect. But Flake creates
scenes of heart-stopping tenderness and tension between Raspberry and her
friends and especially with her mother, as they struggle to leave the projects,
suffering breakdowns and break-ins along the way, finally moving into a house of
their own. Whatever teens' own familial insecurities may be, they will read
something of their own lives in this title from the author of The Skin I'm In
(1998). Grades 7-10
Carver: a Life in Poems by Marilyn Nelson
811 NEL
This collection of poems provide a lyrical account of revered
African-American botanist and inventor George Washington Carver, who was raised
by white slave owners and went on to head the agricultural department at the
Tuskegee Institute and conducted research for innovative uses for crops such as
cowpeas, sweet potatoes, and peanuts.
Grades
6 and up
Illustrator Award Winner
Goin'
Someplace Special, illustrated by Jerry Pinkney; text
by Patricia McKissack j E MCK
Here is McKissack's own story of growing up in Nashville. As 'Tricia Ann makes
her first trip alone to the public library, she confronts the humiliation of a
segregated society. Members of her own community and a kind white woman help her
rely on her own sense of self-worth to complete the journey to her 'someplace
special.'
"With wonderful detail and colors, Pinkney brings us right along with 'Tricia Ann as she travels to the one place she can open the door to freedom," said Award Committee Chair Fran Ware. "His expressive paintings portray the essence of 'Tricia Ann's emotions as she experiences both the reassurance of her community and the indignities of segregation." Ages 4-8
Honor Book
Martin's
Big Words, illustrated by Bryan Collier; text by Doreen
Rappoport j 921 KING, M., Rap
This
picture book biography of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. brings his life and the
profound nature of his message to young readers through his own words, using
quotes from some of his most beloved speeches to tell his life story in a
simple, direct way. Ages 4-8