The annual cycle for the Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children’s book award begins in the spring, when the nominating committee releases the Master List of 30 titles. The books on the list are aimed at readers in grades four through eight. The committee aims to have something on the list for every reader in that age range – from novels to nonfiction picture books. To be eligible to vote for the winner, students must read at least five books on the list.
The newly released 2014-2015 list includes some titles from big name authors as well as some home-grown talent. There is Flora & Ulysses, the 2014 Newbery Award winner by Kate DiCamillo, the author of such seemingly instant classics as Because of Winn-Dixie and The Tale of Despereaux. Also making the list is Doll Bones, the type of spooky tale you might expect from Holly Black, the author of The Spiderwick Chronicles.
P.S. Be Eleven by Rita Williams-Garcia made the list. It's the sequel to One Crazy Summer, which was awarded the The Coretta Scott King Award, a Newbery Honor, and was named a National Book Award Finalist. Williams-Garcia is a faculty member of the Vermont College of Fine Arts' Writing for Children and Young Adults MFA program.
Vermont Author Linda Urban returns to the DCF List this year with her latest middle grade novel, The Center of Everything. She first landed on the 2008-2009 DCF list with her debut novel A Crooked Kind of Perfect.
And another Vermonter, author Tanya Lee Stone, made the new DCF list with Courage Has No Color. It tells the true story of the Triple Nickles, the United States' first African-American paratroopers.
Voting is now underway for the 2014 DCF Book Award. The voting deadline is April 18, after which the new winner will be announced. We'll let you know the winning title as soon as that information is released.
