2002 Blue Ribbons

Ah, the Blue Ribbons process: always familiar, yet always filled with surprises. This year's proceedings can probably best be summed up in one word: diversity. Not just in the books, though there's a fair amount there as well, but in the opinions. Through a combination of finesse and argument, we've boiled down those diverse opinions to this list of books; they've withstood the rigors of the process and still retained enough magic, humor, general excellence, or all of the above to remind us hard-bitten souls of the power of this literature. We hope you and your patrons find these powerful, too.

Deborah Stevenson, Editor

(Other books we enjoyed and remain unreconciled to the exclusion thereof are discussed at the Blue Ribbon dissents here.

PICTURE BOOKS

• Ahlberg, Allan. A Bit More Bert; illus. by Raymond Briggs. Farrar. 2-4 yrs (November)
  Ahlberg's child-man Bert returns, including the audience in more of his cozy home life and slightly surreal adventures.

• Deacon, Alexis. Slow Loris; written and illus. by Alexis Deacon. Kane/Miller. 4-7 yrs (May)
  Slow Loris is indeed a slow loris during the day, but he has a secret and adventurous night life.

• Kalman, Maira. Fireboat: The Heroic Adventures of the John J. Harvey; written and illus. by Maira Kalman. Putnam. 5-8 yrs (October)
  One of the few effective picture books to treat the September 11 tragedy, this lively yet touching book tells the factual story of a retired fireboat returned to service.

• Karas, G. Brian. Atlantic; written and illus. by G. Brian Karas. Putnam. 6-9 yrs (April)
  Karas' oversized oceanic illustrations lend watery depth to this evocative introduction to the Atlantic Ocean.

• Lindgren, Barbro. Benny and the Binky; tr. by Elisabeth Kallick Dyssegaard; illus. by Olof Landström. Farrar. 4-7 yrs (May)
  Small piglet Benny is tired and jealous of his new baby brother and he covets the infant's pacifier, so one day he grabs the binky and takes off for a satisfying ramble.

• McMullan, Kate. I Stink!; illus. by Jim McMullan. Cotler/HarperCollins. 3-7 yrs (June)
  A garbage truck fragrantly describes the raw, rubbish-crunching details of its early-morning duties; illustrations pack the protagonist with personality as well as refuse.

• Paye, Won-Ldy, ad. Head, Body, Legs: A Story from Liberia; ad. by Won-Ldy Paye and Margaret H. Lippert; illus. by Julie Paschkis. Holt. 4-8 yrs (May)
  Various body parts meet up and decide to form the union we now know as the human body; the jocular writing style and illustrations featuring expressive part-of-body language add to the humor of this lighthearted creation story.

• Raschka, Chris. John Coltrane's Giant Steps; written and illus. by Chris Raschka. Jackson/Atheneum. 6-10 yrs (September)
  Synesthesia comes to picture books as Raschka turns Coltrane's music into visual display.

• Vyner, Tim. World Team; written and illus. by Tim Vyner. Roaring Brook. 5-8 yrs (May)
  Vyner's pithy text and color-splashed watercolors explore a passion common to youngsters on six continents: soccer.

FICTION

• Anderson, M. T. Feed. Candlewick. Gr. 7-12 (November)
  In this darkly funny futuristic satire, most people get their information, education, and conversation from a computer feed in their brains--but what happens when something goes wrong?

• Bang-Campbell, Monika. Little Rat Sets Sail; illus. by Molly Bang. Harcourt. Gr. 2-3 (May)
  Little Rat is a landlubber at heart, but her summer of sailing lessons isn't quite the torture she'd feared in this spirited easy reader.

• Cohn, Rachel. Gingerbread. Simon. Gr. 9-12 (April)
  Sixteen-year-old Cyd Charisse, a "recovering hellion," makes new discoveries about herself and her family on an unprecedented visit to her birth father in this quirky and authentic YA novel.

• Couloumbis, Audrey. Say Yes. Putnam. Gr. 5-8 (July/August)
  When Casey's stepmother, her only caretaker, disappears, the twelve-year-old girl struggles to keep her abandonment secret and her life going.

• Gaiman, Neil. Coraline; illus. by Dave McKean. HarperCollins. Gr. 4-7 (November)
  The well-known graphic novelist turns to straight text in this spooky thriller about young Coraline, who discovers in her new house a door to a frightening parallel world.

• Gantos, Jack. What Would Joey Do? Farrar. Gr. 5-7 (November)
  Gantos' obstreperous, funny, and sympathetic Joey returns here having largely mastered his ADHD, but he's still faced with his real obstacle: his dysfunctional family.

• Koertge, Ron. Stoner and Spaz. Candlewick. Gr. 9-12 (March)
  Stuck with a mild case of cerebral palsy and the concerted attentions of his overprotective grandmother, Ben is surprised to find liberation in his friendship with the rebellious Colleen.

• McKay, Hilary. Saffy's Angel. McElderry. Gr. 5-8 (May)
  Troubled by her adopted status in her madcap family, Saffron determines to connect with her late grandfather by tracking down his bequest to her, a stone angel.

• Meyer, L. A. Bloody Jack: Being an Account of Curious Adventures of Mary "Jacky" Faber, Ship's Boy. Harcourt. Gr. 7-10 (December)
  When a desperate young eighteenth-century orphan passes for male and joins the Royal Navy, the result is high adventure, drama, and even romance.

• Mills, Claudia. 7 x 9 = Trouble!; illus. by G. Brian Karas. Farrar. Gr. 2-4 (April)
  Third-grader Wilson Williams vs. the times tables, odds against Wilson. Mills makes this classic grade-school dilemma into a sympathetic and enjoyable story.

• Myers, Walter Dean. Patrol: An American Soldier in Vietnam; illus. by Ann Grifalconi. HarperCollins. Gr. 3-8 (May)
  Tense and intimate free verse counterpointed by lush collage art follows a young soldier through Vietnam.

• Watts, Julia. Finding H. F. Alyson, 2001. Gr. 7-12 (January)
  After years of struggling with being the only gay kids in their rural Kentucky town, Heavenly Faith--H.F.--and her friend Bo get a new view on the world during their road trip to visit H.F.'s estranged mother.

• Wells, Rosemary. Timothy's Tales from Hilltop School; written and illus. by Rosemary Wells. Viking. 5-8 yrs (October)
  Wells' inimitable style in both art and text makes this story of everyday life in the primary grades a comic and touching gem.

NONFICTION

• Burg, Brad. Outside the Lines: Poetry at Play; illus. by Rebecca Gibbon. Putnam. Gr. 2-5 (April)
  Clever text, imaginative visuals, and creative layout combine to make a sparkling and playful collection of poetry in action on the page.

• Fleischman, John. Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story about Brain Science. Houghton. Gr. 4-9 (May)
  Fleischman never loses sight of the person at the heart of the science and scientific history in this account of nineteenth-century railroader Phineas Gage, who became a scientific wonder by surviving having a three-foot iron rod blasted through his head.

• Gantos, Jack. Hole in My Life. Farrar. Gr. 9 up (May)
  The noted author turns to bracingly honest autobiography, describing his eighteen months in prison, which solidified his desire to become a writer, for ferrying drugs.

• Greenberg, Jan. Action Jackson; written by Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan; illus. by Robert Andrew Parker. Roaring Brook. Gr. 3-6 (November)
  This ever-reliable pairing teams up with fluid watercolorist Parker for a focused and accessible introduction to the painting of Jackson Pollock.

• Harris, Robie H. Hello Benny!: What It's Like to Be a Baby; illus. by Michael Emberley. McElderry. 4-7 yrs (November)
  Audience-friendly developmental information will give former babies new understanding about that demanding state.

• Jacobsen, Ruth. Rescued Images; written and illus. by Ruth Jacobsen. Mikaya, 2001. Gr. 6 up (February)
  Jacobsen's dramatic mixed-media collages give this Holocaust memoir special impact.

• Kerley, Barbara. A Cool Drink of Water. National Geographic. 4-10 yrs (September)
  This handsome photoessay explores the many way people around the world obtain this fundamental element, demonstrating how this precious element is variously treasured or taken for granted.

• Old, Wendie. To Fly: The Story of the Wright Brothers; illus. by Robert Andrew Parker. Clarion. Gr. 3-5 (November)
  This concise yet insightful overview of the Wright brothers' development of their famous flying machine is further enhanced by the breezy elegance of Parker's watercolors.

• Partridge, Elizabeth. This Land Was Made for You and Me: The Life & Songs of Woody Guthrie. Viking. Gr. 7 up (July/August)
  This thorough and honest biography of the legendary folk troubadour gains energy from original research and a multitude of period photographs.

• Philbrick, Nathaniel. Revenge of the Whale: The True Story of the Whaleship Essex. Putnam. Gr. 8-12 (November)
  This juvenile version of Philbrick's adult work loses no tension or excitement in its factual chronicle of the terrible disaster of the nineteenth-century whaling ship, the Essex.

• Walker, Sally M. Fossil Fish Found Alive: Discovering the Coelacanth; illus. by Laura Westlund and with photographs. Carolrhoda. Gr. 4-9 (April)
  Walker turns modern science's rediscovery of the coelacanth into an absorbing (and lavishly illustrated) true-life story of politics, rivalries, and technological advances as well as marine biology.

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