One of my favorite parts of any Midwinter Meeting is the announcement of the Youth Media Awards. There’s an Oscar-like buzz in the room. I love the pride and enthusiasm from juries and selection committees (many of whom dress up for the event). I get chills at the emotional outpouring for beloved authors and titles, and it’s a particular thrill when a dark horse title wins.

But if you can’t be in the room for the announcements, have no fear–YALSABlog and The Hub will be jointly covering the YMAs with a live blog, complete with streaming video! Join the session here or on The Hub to watch the video, answer reader polls and add your own commentary live. We’ll also be pulling selected hashtags (like #yma13, #printz, #alexaward and #morrisaward) to bring you thoughts and reactions from Twitter.

If you miss the live session, you can replay the whole thing (including the video) at any time after the live session ends. Don’t miss out on one of the best parts of Midwinter!

There’s just one week left to submit volunteer forms for the following YALSA committees and taskforces:

Amazing Audiobooks for Young Adults
Best Fiction for Young Adults
Fabulous Films for Young Adults
Great Graphic Novels for Teens
Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults
Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers
Alex Award
Morris Award
Odyssey Award
Outstanding Books for the College Bound
2014 Midwinter Marketing & Local Arrangements Taskforce
2014 Midwinter Paper Presentation Planning Taskforce
Readers’ Choice List Taskforce

Please see my previous post for the nitty gritty (http://bit.ly/SngekL) and feel free to contact me with any questions at shannon.peterson@gmail.com.

Thank you!

 

Join YALSA with LIVE streaming video of all the YMA announcement, presented jointly by the YALSA Blog and The Hub. Along with the video, we’ll also be offering quick polls and pulling Twitter hashtags like #printz and #alexawards. You can log in to the live session with your Twitter, Facebook, MySpace or OpenID username (which will include your avatar), or just jump right in.

YALSA Blog manager mk Eagle (username pandanose) will be offering transcriptions of all the announcements, with live video from The Hub blogger Jessica Pryde. Coverage begins at 7:30 central on Monday, January 23.

This fall, YALSA will be making appointments to the following selection committees and taskforces! Put your passion for young adult literature to work! If you have experience in evaluating and selecting young adult materials, as well as time to volunteer your skills, please consider serving on a YALSA selection committee. The committees and taskforces are:

  • Amazing Audiobooks for Young Adults
  • Best Fiction for Young Adults
  • Fabulous Films for Young Adults
  • Great Graphic Novels for Teens
  • Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults
  • Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers
  • Great Graphic Novels for Teens
  • Alex Award
  • Morris Award
  • Odyssey Award
  • 2013 Midwinter Marketing & Local Arrangements Taskforce
  • 2013 Midwinter Paper Presentation Planning Taskforce
  • Readers’ Choice List Taskforce Read More →

Heading to ALA Annual in DC? Take time to celebrate the best in children’s & YA audiobooks at the Odyssey Award Celebration on Monday, June 28th from 4:00pm – 5:30pm, in the Washington Convention Center room 145B. This event is FREE with no ticket required. You’ll receive a goodie bag that contains a CD with clips of the winner & honor titles. Plus, there are wonderful FREE refreshments provided by the Audio Publishers Association so that you may mingle with the narrators after the presentation. And there’s plenty of time between the Odyssey Presentation and the Printz to grab dinner. So make Monday your day to celebrate with YALSA!’  *Please note that the date of the Odyssey Award Celebration had been incorrectly listed on a past ALA communication*

Here’s the official scoop:

Celebrate the spoken word at the 2010 Odyssey Award Presentation, featuring the 2010 Odyssey winner, Louise, the Adventures of a Chicken, written by Kate DiCamillo, narrated by Barbara Rosenblat, and produced by Live Oak Media.’  Three honor titles will also be recognized for their excellence in audiobook production for children and young adults.’ ‘  A reception sponsored by the Audio Publishers Association with light refreshments will follow the award presentations and program featuring narrators Dion Graham, Katherine Kellgren, and Barbara Rosenblat.

The 2010 Odyssey Award Committee is asking you to submit your favorite audiobooks published between November 1, 2008 and October 31, 2009 for consideration. The Odyssey Award, in its third year, is given to the producer of the best audiobook for children and/or young adults available in English in the United States. Along with the award-winner, honor titles may also be named.
Read More →

Odyssey SealThe Odyssey Award Ceremony at ALA last July honored the marvelous producers of the year’s best audiobooks for children & young adults. Those in attendance were thrilled to hear narrators talk about their experiences recording the top titles of the year. You can listen to the speech narrator Katherine Kellgren’ gave after Listen & Live Audio was awarded their second Odyssey Honor’ for the production of Curse of the Blue’ Tattoo.

Here’s the link to find out more about Katy and the Odyssey.

Listen

Happy Listening!’  Mary Burkey.

Just one week until the Youth Media Awards press conference! I can’t wait to hear all the winning & honor titles, especially the audiobooks that receive the second-annual Odyssey Award for Excellence in Audiobook Production distinction. I’ve been running a Mock Odyssey poll on my blog and here are the eligible titles mentioned so far:

Tied for first place:
The Graveyard Book
The Curse of the Blue Tattoo (Bloody Jack #2)

Possible Honor titles:
Once Upon a Time in the North
Fairest Read More →

Quick update from Nashville and the YALSA Literature Institute while I am in between sessions. Last night at the Happy Hour hosted by Little Brown (and the ever charming Victoria Stapleton), the drinks (I stuck with Diet Coke) and the ARCs flowed. However, I elected not to join in the frenzy for the ARCs since I was fearful of losing a limb! There are going to be newbie librarians going back home having to pay horrendous fees for overweight luggage. Not me. I will wait until NCTE in San Antonio in just a few short days and pack them into the car for my drive home instead. Much cheaper, and more $$$ for margaritas. Read More →

Here’s an update to the’  YALSA podcast of the wonderful celebration of the first Odyssey Award for Excellence in Audiobook Production during ALA Annual in Anaheim. At the end of the Booklist Books for Youth Forum, we all watched a video appearance by Jim Dale, narrator of the Harry Potter audiobooks. Dale shares some thoughts about recording Harry Potter, honors the Potter production team, and gives special thanks to the Odyssey Award committee: Jerene D. Battisti, Francisca Goldsmith, Natalie Hoyle, Sharon B. Grover, Teri S. Lesesne, Merri Lindgren, Connie C. Rockman, Sylvia Vardell, Sue-Ellen Beauregard.

Here’s the link to that video – enjoy your visit to Dale’s living room that looks straight out of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!

Mary Burkey, Chair 2008 Odyssey Award committee