The winners of the Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children’s Book Awards have been selected:
| CHILDREN’S PICTURE BOOK AWARD CATEGORY | YOUNG ADULT/MIDDLE READER AWARD CATEGORY |
| The Boy fromtheSun By Duncan Weller (Thunder Bay) Publisher: Simply Read Books | Darkwing By Kenneth Oppel (Toronto) Publisher: HarperCollins |
FACTS
- This is Kenneth Oppel’s fourth Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Childrens’ Book Award win; it is Duncan Weller’s first.
- The announcement took place at Ryerson Community School at 1:30 p.m. on May 6, 2008.
- The winners were selected by two juries of young readers. This year’s jurors are students at Ryerson Community School in Toronto.
- Five grade 3 and 4 students chose the author/illustrator for the children’s picture book award.
- Five grades 7 and 8 students selected the recipient in the young adult/middle reader category.
- These two awards recognize artistic excellence in writing and illustration in Canadian children’s literature.
- The Ruth Schwartz Foundation increased the award amount to $6,000 per award this year.
QUOTES
Student jurors commented on Weller’s picture book The Boy from the Sun :
ìLoved how the colour changes as the children become happier.î
ìGreat how it showed us how the kids were feeling.î
ìIt made me feel happy.î
Student jurors commented on Oppel’s Darkwing :
ìIt’s the kind of book you read under the covers with a flashlight at night.î
ìPlot full of twists and turns with spectacular writing.î
LEARN MORE
- Shortlist for 2008 Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children’s Book Awards
- The Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children’s Book Awards are funded by the Ruth Schwartz Foundation.
- The administration of these awards is shared by the Ontario Arts Foundation, the Ontario Arts Council which manages the jury process, and the Canadian Booksellers Association whose members choose the short list of books.
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MEDIA INQUIRIES
Hamal Docter, Communications Coordinator, Ontario Arts Council
416-969-7434 / 1-800-387-0058, ext. 7434
hdocter@arts.on.ca
The Ontario Arts Foundation(OAF) offers donors effective and creative opportunities for charitable giving – helping to build a foundation for the arts in Ontario. OAF works with donors to build lasting endowments in support of the arts – a gift for this generation and the next.
The Ontario Arts Council (OAC) is the province of Ontario’s primary funding body for professional arts activity. Since 1963, OAC has played a vital role in promoting and assisting the development of the arts and artists for the enjoyment and benefit of Ontarians.