Designed to commemorate the life and works of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and to honor Mrs. Coretta Scott King for her courage and determination to continue the work for peace, the Coretta Scott King Books Awards annually recognize outstanding books for young adults and children by African American authors and illustrators that reflect the African American experience. Further, the Award encourages the artistic expression of the black experience via literature and the graphic arts in biographical, social and historical treatments by African American authors and illustrators.

2011 Author Winner

ONE CRAZY SUMMER
Rita Williams-Garcia
Amistad/HarperCollins Children’s Books
ISBN: 9780060760908
Ages 9-12
224 pages
January 2010

Eleven-year-old Delphine has it together. Even though her mother, Cecile, abandoned her and her younger sisters, Vonetta and Fern, seven years ago. Even though her father and Big Ma will send them from Brooklyn to Oakland, California, to stay with Cecile for the summer. And even though Delphine will have to take care of her sisters, as usual, and learn the truth about the missing pieces of the past.

 
When the girls arrive in Oakland in the summer of 1968, Cecile wants nothing to do with them. She makes them eat Chinese takeout dinners, forbids them to enter her kitchen, and never explains the strange visitors with Afros and black berets who knock on her door. Rather than spend time with them, Cecile sends Delphine, Vonetta and Fern to a summer camp sponsored by a revolutionary group, the Black Panthers, where the girls get a radical new education.

2011 Author Honors

LOCKDOWN
Walter Dean Myers
Amistad/HarperCollins Children’s Books
ISBN: 9780061214806
Ages 12-up
256 pages
February 2010

It seems as if the only progress that's going on at Progress juvenile facility is moving from juvy jail to real jail. Reese wants out early, but is he supposed to just sit back and let his friend Toon get jumped? Then Reese gets a second chance when he's picked for the work program at a senior citizens' home. He doesn't mean to keep messing up, but it's not so easy, at Progress or in life. One of the residents, Mr. Hooft, gives him a particularly hard time. If he can convince Mr. Hooft that he's a decent person, not a criminal, maybe he'll be able to convince himself.

NINTH WARD
Jewell Parker Rhodes
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
ISBN: 9780316043076
Ages 10-up
224 pages
August 2010

Twelve-year-old Lanesha lives in a tight-knit community in New Orleans' Ninth Ward. She doesn't have a fancy house like her uptown family or lots of friends like the other kids on her street. But what she does have is Mama Ya-Ya, her fiercely loving caretaker, wise in the ways of the world and able to predict the future. So when Mama Ya-Ya's visions show a powerful hurricane --- Katrina --- fast approaching, it's up to Lanesha to call upon the hope and strength Mama Ya-Ya has given her to help them both survive the storm.

YUMMY: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty
written by G. Neri
illustrated by Randy Duburke
Lee & Low Books
ISBN: 9781584302674
Ages 10-up
96 pages
July 2010

Eleven-year old Roger is trying to make sense of his classmate Robert "Yummy" Sandifer's death, but first he has to make sense of Yummy's life. Yummy could be as tough as a pit bull sometimes. Other times he was as sweet as the sugary treats he loved to eat. Was Yummy some sort of monster, or just another kid? As Roger searches for the truth, he finds more and more questions. How did Yummy end up in so much trouble? Did he really kill someone? And why do all the answers seem to lead back to a gang --- the same gang to which Roger's older brother belongs?

2011 Illustrator Winner

DAVE THE POTTER: ARTIST, POET, SLAVE
written by Laban Carrick Hill 
illustrated by Bryan Collier
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
ISBN: 9780316107310
Ages 3-6
40 pages
September 2010

Dave was an extraordinary artist, poet and potter living in South Carolina in the 1800s. He combined his superb artistry with deeply observant poetry, carved onto his pots, transcending the limitations he faced as a slave. In this inspiring and lyrical portrayal, National Book Award nominee Laban Carrick Hill's elegantly simple text and award-winning artist Bryan Collier's resplendent, earth-toned illustrations tell Dave's story, a story rich in history, hope and long-lasting beauty.

2011 Illustrator Honor

JIMI: SOUNDS LIKE A RAINBOW: A Story of the Young Jimi Hendrix
written by Gary Golio 
illustrated by Javaka Steptoe
Clarion Books
ISBN: 9780618852796
Ages 6-9
32 pages
October 2010

Jimi Hendrix was many things: a superstar, a rebel, a hero, an innovator. But first, he was a boy named Jimmy who loved to draw and paint and listen to records. A boy who played air guitar with a broomstick and longed for a real guitar of his own. A boy who asked himself a question: Could someone paint pictures with sound?

This is a story of a talented child who learns to see, hear, and interpret the world around him in his own unique way. It is also a story of a determined kid with a vision, who worked hard to become a devoted and masterful artist. Jimi Hendrix --- a groundbreaking performer whose music shook the very foundations of rock 'n' roll.

2011 Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Author Award

ZORA AND ME
Victoria Bond and T. R. Simon
Candlewick Press
ISBN: 9780763643003
Ages 10-up
192 pages
October 2010

Whether she’s telling the truth or stretching it, Zora Neale Hurston is a riveting storyteller. Her latest creation is a shape-shifting gator man who lurks in the marshes, waiting to steal human souls. But when boastful Sonny Wrapped loses a wrestling match with an elusive alligator named Ghost --- and a man is found murdered by the railroad tracks soon after --- young Zora’s tales of a mythical evil creature take on an ominous and far more complicated complexion, jeopardizing the peace and security of an entire town and forcing three children to come to terms with the dual-edged power of pretending. Zora’s best friend, Carrie, narrates this coming-of-age story set in the Eden-like town of Eatonville, Florida, where justice isn’t merely an exercise in retribution, but a testimony to the power of community, love and pride.

2011 Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Illustrator Award

SEEDS OF CHANGE
written by Jen Cullerton Johnson
illustrated by Sonia Lynn Sadler
Lee & Low Books
ISBN: 9781600603679
Ages 7-10
40 pages
June 2010

As a young girl in Kenya, Wangari was taught to respect nature. She grew up loving the land, plants and animals that surrounded her --- from the giant mugumo trees her people, the Kikuyu, revered to the tiny tadpoles that swam in the river. Although most Kenyan girls were not educated, Wangari, curious and hardworking, was allowed to go to school. There, her mind sprouted like a seed. She excelled at science and went on to study in the United States. After returning home, Wangari blazed a trail across Kenya, using her knowledge and compassion to promote the rights of her countrywomen and to help save the land, one tree at a time.

SEEDS OF CHANGE brings to life the empowering story of Wangari Maathai, the first African woman, and environmentalist, to win a Nobel Peace Prize.