2008 Jefferson Cup Award
The Jefferson Cup Award honors a distinguished American biography, historical fiction or history book for young people. The Youth Services Forum of the Virginia Library Association has presented this award annually since the 1982 publishing year. Through the award, the Youth Services Forum seeks to promote reading about America’s past, to encourage the quality writing of United States history, biography and historical fiction for young people, and to recognize authors in these disciplines.
Birmingham
, 1963
Carole Boston Weatherford Wordsong Publishing Grades 6-9
In
stark, understated free verse,a young girl narrates the story of the
turbulent events surrounding the Civil Rights movement of the 1960’s in
one of
America
’s
most segregated cities. Black and
white archival photographs illuminate the words that personalize this
event.
Birmingham
, 1963 is a tribute not only to the young girls who were killed but
also to the bravery and selflessness of the civil rights protesters throughout
the South.
Carole
Boston Weatherford’s haunting account of the violence and hate protesters
faced in
Birmingham
gives
the reader a greater understanding of the intensity of
America
’s
struggle for equality. The sparse
verse shares the pages with images of childhood objects innocently sprinkled
throughout the background. Original
photographs fill the opposite page of each spread with images that overwhelm
one with the gravity and reality of this horrific event.
The
anonymous narrator begins her story with a protest in early May. Many times children were gathered to march because children would
not lose their jobs if they were jailed. Within a few hours, over nine hundred children were arrested and
taken to jail in vans and school buses. The next day over 2,500 children joined the protest to end segregation. Their determination was met with police using K-9 dogs and firefighters
with high pressure hoses to break up the protesters. The nation was shocked
at the violence used on children, but the segregationists become more
determined and bolder in their resolve. As the summer passed, the intensity of the fight grew.
“The
day I turned ten…” begins the verses depicting a family going to church,
and buzzes with the excitement of the young narrator preparing to sing
the Youth Day solo. That day would be marked by an unfathomable
act of violence that would shake the nation. Members of the Ku Klux Klan planted dynamite under the steps of
the
Sixteenth
Street
Baptist
Church
. The explosion destroyed the church and four
young girls were killed.
In
concise words, Ms. Weatherford packs an enormously powerful punch making
this emotional story extremely personal as it is seen through the eyes
of a young child. The author’s note provides additional background
information and gives details of the photos that were used. Spare, stark, evocative. No
one can read this book and remain unmoved.
Birmingham
,
1963 can spark dialogue about race, about our shared American history,
about faith, and about humanity.
Fire From the Rock
By
Sharon
Draper Dutton Publishing Grades 6 – 9
Little Rock Arkansas was a confusing time for a teenager in 1957 Sylvia Patterson is eager about going to high school for all the typical
reasons – new classes, joining clubs, making new friends, and a social
life surrounded by sporting events and dances. But the school board has decided to comply with the federal law
to integrate High School, whether Little Rock is ready or not.
Sylvia is shocked when her teacher, Miss Washington, asks her to
consider being one of the first black students to attend Central. It is
an honor reserved to very few, but it is also a heavy burden that Sylvia
may not be able to carry. She would be separated from lifelong friends
(including a new boyfriend), excluded from social activities at school,
and worse, subjected to threats and, possibly, violence. Sylvia is torn
between wanted to bring about change and wanting to remain safe and happy
in the life she has always known.
Before Sylvia makes her final decision, smoldering racial tension in the town
ignites into flame. When the smoke clears, she sees clearly that nothing
is going to stop the change from coming. It is up to her generation to
make it happen, in as many different ways as there are colors in the world.
Sharon Draper skillfully portrays the attitude and climate of late
1950s Arkansas and of the United States in general.
The mixed reactions
of blacks, some for and some against integration, and the cruelty of the
other citizens, including the governor will surprise many readers. The
author's note summarizes the experiences of the Little Rock Nine and suggests
further reading. Draper fans will not be disappointed by this compelling
novel.
Miss
Spitfire: Reaching Helen Keller
by Sarah Miller Atheneum Books Grades
5-9.
Annie
Sullivan was barely more than a girl when she boarded a train in
Massachusetts
bound for
Alabama
. This
young woman was on her way to meet her first student – Helen Keller. Little
did Annie know the challenge that awaited her in
Alabama
and how her life would be changed. She would have to fight not only the Keller
family, but her own personal demons.
Inter-woven
in her struggle with Helen are Annie’s difficulties of her own past. She
recalls her time in Tewksbury State Almshouse where she and her brother
lived after their mother died. She remembers are own vision problems and
the challenges she faced. Annie drew strength in recalling all she accomplished
to reach and teach Helen.
Miller
does a masterful job of drawing readers into this emotional drama. The
frustration Annie felt when Helen failed to understand, her despair that
maybe Helen would never understand, the determination that this child
would overcome her challenges, and her fear that the family would interfere
– all these complex hardships shaped Annie’s determination that Helen would learn.
Excerpts
from Annie’s letters to her housemother at the Perkins Institute for the
Blind can be found at the beginning of each chapter. Miller used these
letters as the basis for much of this story. Photos, a chronology, and
sources for more information are items found at the end of this book. This first novel gives us a compelling look at a young woman who
overcame a terrible childhood to become a great teacher.
T
he Ultimate Weapon: The Race to Develop the
Atomic Bomb
By Edward Sullivan
Holiday
House
· Grades 10-12
In
1938, Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann discovered that they could split atoms by a process
alled fission. Their discovery
made it possible to build the atomic bomb. Dr. J. Robert Oppenheimer was appointed
to direct the Manhattan Project. Though
many know about the outcomes of the Manhattan Project, most people are
unaware of the depth of planning, the immense numbers of people involved,
or the hazards encountered, or the dangers involved.
Sullivan
provides information about the inception, production and dropping of the
atomic bomb, while he tells about the people who developed the bomb, their
families, the towns that grew up around the three sites,
Los
Alamos
,
New Mexico
,
Oak
Ridge
,
Tennessee
, and
Hanford
,
Washington
, and the secrecy necessary
during World War II. He provides
much information about the project, including information about the aftermath
of the dropping of the tomic bomb on
Japan
. While doing so, he shows the human side of those
involved in all aspects of the planning, making, and dropping of the ultimate
weapon.
The
compelling black and white photographs of the people who worked on the
Manhattan Project going about their everyday tasks portray the conditions
through which men and women and their children lived and worked. The three government cities, located in remote areas of their respective
states, were complete with the amenities expected in a small city of the
early to mid 1940s.
The
Ultimate Weapon contains a wealth of information that is easy to read,
follow, and understand despite the number of people involved and the complexity
of the topic, while photographs add impact to the telling of the story. The appendix, chronology, notes, bibliography, suggestions for
further reading, including websites, and a glossary extend the information
found in Sullivan’s exceptional work of nonfiction.
Series Worthy of Note
Up
Close
Published by Viking: A Division of Penguin Young Readers Group Grade 9-12
This
series offers an Up Close look
at twentieth-century life that speaks to people of all generations. Allowing the reader to take a closer look, these
books portray heroes from all backgrounds. From media queen Oprah Winfrey to environmentalist
Rachel Carson, these stories will invite you inside the world of fame
and struggle.
The
books unique size and inviting photographs will cause them to jump off
the bookshelves and into the backpacks of eager and reluctant readers
alike. Each author uses story-like
rhythm that is easy to read and understand. Interesting facts are scattered throughout the series that capture
the essence of each person being profiled. For example, UpClose: Elvis Presley mentions that during his
tenth grade year at Humes High School Elvis
served as a library assistant. Within
these books stories are included to help close generations gap between
readers. UpClose: Johnny Cash gives details on how Cash celebrated selling over to million copies of
“I Walk the Line” by making snow cream from snow that had just fallen.
This
series features role models that will spark an interest in any young reader,
motivating them to work through their own struggles and inspire to be
a person of greatness. Each book
includes a personal forward from the author, detailed chapters, an insightful
epilogue as well as thorough resources. Other biographies of this series include Robert
F. Kennedy and Frank Lloyd Wright. |
Virginia Library Association