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Volume
36, Number 3 “Many grown-ups think that you mustn’t tell anything to children. Anything that really matters, specifically if it is rather serious or sad.…Those grown-ups think that children don’t see, don’t hear, don’t know anything of what is happening in our country. But children want to be told about the world in which they are living. They want to know what it’s all about.”—Graciela Montes in an interview with Cristina Pizarro, Childhood and Language in the Frontispiece. Dear
Bookbird Reader, The members of the Andersen Jury must be commended for their months of reading and deliberating to select the winners. They had to ponder judging criteria and calculate how much of their own cultural and literary preparation influences judging—and whether it should. As the jury reports indicate, they considered various philosophical questions: Should the award go to someone with potential, to someone who was great in the past, or to someone young, representing new trends? Because it is an international award, should the jury recognize an artist or writer who presents his/her national culture or one who transcends cultural and linguistic borders by representing the human experience? The author nominees cross cultural and national barriers because of their ability to present themes simultaneously at the local and universal levels. On the one hand, their novels re-create a sense of time and place: whether it is a small town nestled in the Himalayas, a rough multiethnic neighborhood in Ottawa’s Lowertown in the 1940s, or a typical middle-class neighborhood in Lisbon, they evoke the “national spirit” by incorporating legends, mythology, history, and details of daily life. On the other hand, they write with depth and feeling about the universal experience of love, family relationships, fear, and the pain of growing up. Among the finalists, the protagonist of Brian Doyle’s Angel Square overcomes racial and religious bigotry to forge loving and loyal relationships. Surrounded by the uplifting influence of the Himalayas, Ruskin Bond’s child characters develop self-esteem, insight into fundamental human values, and a transcendental acceptance of the benign and destructive aspects of nature. Alice Vieira, noted for her poetic style and sensitive and critical insight into the relationship between children and adults, presents a realistic treatment of emotional discord, death, and awakening sexuality. Similarly, Anne Fine writes about the anxieties facing contemporary children in Great Britain with a warm and understanding humor, derived from high emotion, which “comes out of tension-filled situations between people who matter to one another.”1 Among the author nominees are great stylists like Imme Dros, who endeavors to make each book “a thing of beauty” by paying close attention to the structures and sounds of language; and thinkers like Graciela Montes, who recognizes the power of words —as vehicles for ideas, as instruments of “colonization” and manipulation. They are not writing primarily for the market, developmental psychologists, or literature specialists; they want to explore the humancondition, to make the world a better place to live. They champion the right of children to know, hence bridging the gap between adult and children’s literature. They display a profound respect for the intelligence of children by including them in the debate on controversial topics such as antiwar movements, existential and philosophical concepts, homosexuality, and domestic violence. They treat these complex topics with honesty, warmth, and humor. They provide hope, they empower, they open up new worlds, so that readers—like the protagonists—can emerge with inner strength and confidence. Similarly, the illustrator nominees are not limited by conventional ideas of how children see, what they can appreciate, or how much they can understand. Whether illustrating fantasies, fairy tales, realistic stories, or lyric poetry, they bring to children’s books a constant experimentation with technique and materials. They make young readers reflect on human society and the value of artistic self-expression. In selecting the illustrator finalists, the jury recognized artistic versatility, innovative techniques, and significant contributions to children’s illustrations. Dick Bruna, Stasys EidrigeviŠcius, and Binette Schroeder are internationally renowned artists who bring to children’s books their diverse experiences of working in various media. In examining their books, one instantly recognizes that they offer children nothing short of works of art: through artistic interpretation of text, creation of atmosphere, and sophisticated techniques. A common motif uniting all the illustrators nominated for the 1998 award is the evocation of a mysterious, haunting atmosphere by combining magical and realistic elements. For instance, Gilles Tibo in his Simon series introduces magic and enchantment through commonplace activities like a walk through the woods, counting snowflakes, or the impossible dreams of the protagonist. Marija Lucija Stupica interweaves memories and dreams of her own childhood in her surreal and evocative renditions of fairy tales. In contrast, Lilian Brøgger conveys her social realism through distorted compositions, color, characters, and objects. She does not want to shelter children from the truth of pain or melancholy, because she believes they have the insight to see the truth, to soar to existential heights. While the individual writers and artists project their personal aesthetic vision, rooted in their specific culture, their works have a universal appeal that transcends boundaries. Most of the authors and illustrators nominated for the 1998 Andersen Awards have already gained international acclaim. Their works have been translated into many languages in numerous countries, or their art is exhibited throughout the world, some of it in the permanent collections of well-known museums. This special issue of Bookbird celebrates the work of all the nominees and their determination to offer the children of the world the very best. The Andersen issue, which is always a pleasure and a challenge to create, is also a tribute to the support and hard work of many individuals. I thank Nissan Motor Company for sponsoring this issue; the national sections of IBBY for preparing detailed and comprehensive dossiers of their candidates, enabling us to glean information for the author/illustrator biographies; the associate editors for promptly responding to queries; and Leena Maissen and Elizabeth Page at the IBBY Secretariat for their generous help. Thanks are also due to Karen Smith and Michael Joseph for their insightful critical analyses of the two winners; to Karen Coats [KC], Desiree DeFlorimonte [DDF], Jeffrey Garrett [JG], Karl Henzy [KH], and Jason Owens [JO] for compiling the literary biographies of some of the nominees.2 And, finally, I thank the regular Bookbird staff—Dennis Butler, Susan Clawson, Carol Garrett, Naomi Greengrass, Lesli Lai, and Ruchi Mital —for their continued dedication, professionalism, and team work. The success of this issue is due in large part to their cooperation. 1.
Quoted in Valerie Bierman, “Authorgraph No. 69: Anne Fine,”
Books for Keeps (July 1991). The
1998 Hans Christian Andersen Awards Katherine
Paterson: Literary Pilgrimage to the Gates of Excellence Winner
of the illustrator Award Author Finalists Illustrator Finalists The Nominees Jury Reports Jury
President’s Report Reports of the Individual Jurors Calendar |
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