From: Miriam Lang Budin <miriammeister_at_gmail.com>
Date: Mon, 01 Feb 2010 08:26:12 -0500

I agree that it is nice for the Newbery and Caldecott to receive this level of recognition in the media and I don't really expect the hosts on the Today Show, themselves, to have read the Newbery winner the morning after it's announced. But do they not have staff members who can read enough of the winning titles to brief the hosts so that they don't sound so condescending when they are talking to the authors and illustrators? WHEN YOU REACH ME is not overly long...

On Sun, Jan 31, 2010 at 11:34 PM, Norma Jean Sawicki wrote:

For people dedicated to children's books, it is good fun and interesting to read widely, host mock N/C discussions, exchange opinions, etc., but the mass media responds to the general public and for the most part, the general public is not especially interested in children's books although Harry Potter gave children's books extraordinary visibility. As someone who has been away from the children's book community for twelve or so years, I have learned that children's books continues to be one of this country's best kept secrets. The reasons are many, and complicated, but that is a whole other discussion. Norma Jean

On Jan 31, 2010, at 3:20 AM, Susie Highley wrote:

Yes, it's nice that the Today Show has become a tradition for the Newbery and Caldecott winners, but this year's winners were so frequently predicted that the show could have been more prepared. For months I had bookmarks displayed in my copies of WYRM, Calpurnia, and Claudette Colvin with "Rumored to be Newbery Contenders": Winners announced January 18, 2010"

Susie Highley Creston Middle School Indianapolis

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Received on Mon 01 Feb 2010 08:26:12 AM CST