Carmen Tafolla Wins 2010 Charlotte Zolotow Award

Madison, WI  -- What Can You Do with a Paleta? by Carmen Tafolla is the thirteenth annual winner of the Charlotte Zolotow Award for outstanding writing in a picture book. The award is given by the Cooperative Children's Book Center, a library of the School of Education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

A delectable story of a young Mexican-American child’s delight with an ice pop on a hot summer day is at once culturally specific and universal. Author Carmen Tafolla playfully appeals to all of our senses with rich imagery and crisp language.  She invites us to think of all the creative things that can be done with a paleta, from painting your tongue purple or giving yourself a blue mustache to making a new friend or learning to make tough decisions.  A sprinkling of Spanish words and Magaly Morales’ sun-warmed acrylic illustrations add details of life in a vibrant barrio where the daily arrival of the paleta wagon is met with anticipation and celebration.   What Can You Do with a Paleta? was edited by Abigail Samoun and published in the United States in 2009 by Tricycle Press.
 
The 2010 Zolotow Award committee named three Honor Books: Birds, written by Kevin Henkes, illustrated by Laura Dronzek, edited by Virginia Duncan, and published by Greenwillow Books/HarperCollins; Pouch! written and illustrated by David Ezra Stein, edited by Nancy Paulsen and  published by G. P. Putnam’s Sons / Penguin Group;  and Princess Hyacinth: (The Surprising Tale of a Girl Who Floated), written by Florence Parry Heide, illustrated by Lane Smith,  edited Anne Schwartz, and published by Schwartz & Wade Books / Random House Children’s Books.

The 2010 Zolotow Award committee also cited four titles as Highly Commended:  Hello Baby! written by Mem Fox and illustrated by Steve Jenkins (Beach Lane / Simon & Schuster); Ready for Anything! written and illustrated by Keiko Kasza (G.P. Putnam’s Sons / Penguin Group);  Under the Snow, written by Melissa Stewart and illustrated by Constance R. Bergum (Peachtree); and Who Will I Be, Lord? written by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson and illustrated by Sean Qualls (Random House Children’s Books).

Established in 1998, the Charlotte Zolotow Award honors the work of Charlotte Zolotow, a distinguished children's book editor for 38 years with Harper Junior Books, and author of more than 70 picture books, including such classic works as Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present (Harper, 1962) and William's Doll (Harper, 1972).  Ms. Zolotow attended the University of Wisconsin in Madison on a writing scholarship from 1933 to 1936, where she studied with Professor Helen C. White.  The award is given annually for outstanding writing in a picture book for children in the birth through seven age range published in the United States in the preceding year.

Members of the 2010 Zolotow Award committee were: Kathleen T. Horning, chair (Director, Cooperative Children’s Book Center, Madison, Wisconsin);  Carling Febry (Librarian, Cooperative Children's Book Center, Madison, Wisconsin);  Svetha Hetzler (Head of Youth Services, Middleton Public Library, Middleton, Wisconsin), Tracy Moore (Children’s Librarian, Madison Public Library, Madison, Wisconsin); and Jolen Neumann (School Librarian, Madison, Wisconsin).

The Cooperative Children's Book Center is a noncirculating library for adults with a professional, career or academic interest in children's and young adult literature.  The Friends of the CCBC, Inc., is a nonprofit organization offering lectures, speaker receptions, book sales and
other benefits for members, as well as assistance to the CCBC. 

For further information contact:
Kathleen T. Horning
Cooperative Children's Book Center
600 North Park Street, Room 4290
Madison, WI 53706
608 263 3721
horning@education.wisc.edu
http://www.education/ccbc/books/zolotow.asp

####