OLCSS Library News

The Carnegie Medal is awarded by children's librarians for an outstanding book for children and young people. Shadowing involves school students reading the books, assessing them using the same criteria that the judges will use, and writing a review.

Many schools will, like us at OLCSS, set up a shadowing book group, and meet regularly to change books, exchange views and opinions, and write reviews. The reviews will be posted on a special website http://www.carnegiegreenaway.org.uk.

There are also plans for keener readers to meet with students from other local schools, and those who contribute most reviews will also be able to take part in a joint forum to nominate our ‘Abingdon’ winner of the Carnegie Medal.

Timetable for Shadowers:

20 April Shortlists announced. Start reading!

Weekly OLCSS shadowers’ meetings: Monday lunchtimes or Thursdays after school

24 April 3.00 – 4.45 Carnegie ‘Tea’, Larkmead School, for initial reactions and tips on reviewing books (approx. 15 girls)

12 June 11.30 – 3.30 Abingdon Carnegie Forum at John Mason School (max. 20)

22 June Carnegie Medal Winner announced nationally, OLCSS Shadowers’ party

Girls expressing an interest in shadowing can collect details about the shortlist from me as soon as it is announced on 20 April, or check them on the website. I have ordered extra copies of the books for the Library, although I have found that many girls like to buy copies of their own.

You can find out all about the shadowing scheme at the web site http://www.ckg.org.uk/, where you can read about the shortlist , and read student reviews. Click on ‘Shadowing Groups’, at the top, then ‘Reading Groups’ to find OLCSS. It may even inspire you to read some of the titles or past winners.

In 2007 the CILIP Carnegie Medal celebrates its 70th Anniversary and the CILIP Kate Greenaway its 50th. The lists of past Medal winners provide a roll call of the great children's writers and illustrators of 20th and 21st centuries and highlight the UK's strong tradition of quality writing and illustration for young people.

To mark the Anniversaries, a brand new Living Archive, which contains images and information about all of the past winning books has been created. A public vote to find out the nation’s favourite Carnegie and Greenaway winners of all time is in progress. The Top ten all time favourites will be revealed on 20 April 2007 and the winners announced on 21 June.

Join the Celebrations!

Fifteen authors have made it on to the Judges’ List of Contenders for the second Man Booker International Prize. The writers come from 10 countries and four are writers in translation.

The 15 authors on the list are:

Chinua Achebe
Margaret Atwood
John Banville
Peter Carey
Don DeLillo
Carlos Fuentes
Doris Lessing
Ian McEwan
Harry Mulisch
Alice Munro
Michael Ondaatje
Amos Oz
Philip Roth
Salman Rushdie
Michel Tournier

The Man Booker International Prize was announced in June 2004 and recognises one writer for his or her achievement in fiction. Worth £60,000 to the winner, the prize is awarded once every two years to a living author who has published fiction either originally in English or whose work is generally available in translation in the English language. Ismail Kadaré won the inaugural Man Booker International Prize in 2005.

The 2007 Winner will be announced in early June, with the Awards Ceremony on 28th June, at Christ Church, Oxford.

More information about the authors at http://www.manbookerinternational.com