From: GRM Sarah M. McCarville <grmsmm>
Date: Sat, 5 Aug 1995 09:51:47 -0400 (EDT)

In response to comments about what it's like on a monthly basis to be on the Newbery Committee -- I was on the 1994 Newbery Committee with Mary Ann Paulin as Chair. We proudly chose THE GIVER that year, after some great, great discussion at our meetings. Mary Ann kept us on track, maneuvering us back to where we were supposed to be if we looked like we might start discussing a particular author's other works, or if we wanted to talk about some other title that was similar, but written during another year.
        And then, when I listened to the Today Show the next morning after our press conference, what should I hear but the person they were interviewing saying that the committee probably decides that some authors have created such a great volume of excellent material, and that they deserve it after awhile..... To make matters worse, the person they were interviewing was someone I went to high school with! Needless to say, I wrote to her at her children's bookstore on the East Coast and told her about my experiences on the Newbery Committee.
        Just yesterday, I was in a meeting with some local children's book enthusiasts and heard a similar comment about "how last year's Newbery Committee must have felt it was time to award the Newbery to a multicultural title, since that's what WALK TWO MOONS is." Well, we had a long talk about that one!
        Perhaps former committee members' most important jobs after getting off the committee is to educate and inform the public about Newbery and how it works.

Sarah McCarville Grand Rapids (MI) Public Library grmsmm at lakeland.lib.mi.us
Received on Sat 05 Aug 1995 08:51:47 AM CDT