A group of six school librarians in the Westchester cluster of Los Angeles Unified campuses has crafted a list of book recommendations for young adult readers.
2009 was the first year that the Westchester Fiction Award Committee read, evaluated, and awarded five titles in three age group categories: elementary, middle school, and high school.
Elementary:
- Before John Was A Jazz Giant by Carole Boston Weatherford published by Henry Holt & Company
- Buster Goes to Cowboy Camp by Denise Fleming published by Henry Holt & Company
- Lemon the Duck by Laura Backman published by Lobster Press
- My Cousin, The Alien by Pamela Service published by Lerner Publishing Group
- Wild Boars Cook by Meg Rosoff published by Henry Holt & Company
Middle School
- The Brain Finds a Leg by Martin Chatterton published by Peachtree
- Lunch With Lenin by Deborah Ellis published by Fitzhenry & Whiteside
- Masterpiece by Elise Broach published by Henry Holt & Company
- Ramp Rats by Liam O'Donnell published by Orca Book Publishers
- Who's Buried in the Garden by Ray Villareal published by Pinata Books
High School
- The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson published by Henry Holt & Company
- Lost by Jacqueline Davies published by Marshall Cavendish
- Pieces of Me by Charlotte Gingras published by Kids Can Press
- Shut Up by Marilyn Reynolds published by Morning Glory Press
- Watching July by Christine Hart published by Orca Book Publishers
In 2010, the group will focus exclusively on high school-age readers -- and it will include staff from across LAUSD's eight local districts. Five of the seven members are now high school teacher librarians, one is a middle school teacher librarian, and one is a secondary literacy coach, the organization reported in a press release.
Also, the final awards this year will include student evaluations.
Contact chairwoman and founder Suzanne Osman at sosman@lausd.net if you have any questions regarding this award or if you would like to submit a nomination.
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