This year marks the 55th anniversary of the Coretta Scott King Book Awards. Presented annually by the American Library Association (ALA), the awards serve as a guide for parents, librarians, and caregivers for the most outstanding books for youth by African American authors and illustrators that affirm African American culture and universal human values.
The awards were established at the 1969 ALA Annual Conference by two school librarians, Glyndon Flynt Greer and J.J. Mable McKissick, and John Carroll, a book publisher. They envisioned an award that would recognize the talents of African American authors and encourage them to continue writing books for children and young adults. The award commemorates the life and work of Martin Luther King, Jr. and his wife, Coretta Scott King, for her courage and determination to continue the work for peace and world brotherhood. The Coretta Scott King Book Awards Roundtable Jury selects the award winners, which are announced at the beginning of each year at the ALA Youth Media Awards. Recipients are selected in three categories: the Coretta Scott King Author Book Award, the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Book Award, and the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Award. Past recipients include legendary authors and illustrators such as Toni Morrison, Maya Angelou, Walter Dean Myers, Virginia Hamilton, Jerry Pinkney, and Christopher Paul Curtis.
To commemorate this anniversary, we’re looking back at a panel discussion held at the 2019 ALA Annual Conference in Washington D.C., where five past Coretta Scott King Book Award winners and honorees discussed the award, its history, and importance. Participants included authors Jason Reynolds (Ghost), Angie Thomas (The Hate U Give), and Jacqueline Woodson (Brown Girl Dreaming); author and illustrator Christopher Myers (Firebird); and illustrator Ekua Holmes (The Stuff of Stars).
When asked what’s changed since Greer and McKissick first thought of the awards and how the awards have impacted children’s publishing, Woodson said:
“One thing, just now walking through the convention center, we saw all of these books written by people of color with characters of color. I think, about the CSK award, it was started to recognize books that were not being recognized by committees like the Newbery and the Caldecott. It wasn’t just saying, ‘We’re going to give these awards to black people.’ It was saying, ‘These books matter and should be recognized by all the committees, but, because of racism, some committees are not seeing us.’ I think that’s important and something to look at.
“The Coretta Scott King Awards completely changed the narrative and showed that there were people writing. And they were writing well, and they were writing books that needed to be in rooms where kids of color could see themselves. Eventually publishers caught on, and I think that the big change is very recent.”
The discussion can be heard in full on the July 2019 episode of the “Call Number with American Libraries” podcast. It’s a fascinating, must-listen conversation.
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