In case anyone has time to check out the prospects for the National Book Award, here are the titles in the category of young people’s literature: Boxers & Saints, which are actually two graphic novels about the Boxer Rebellion in China, and are written by Gene Luen Yang. Next is Far, Far Away, about looking at a fairy tale through the lens of contemporary life, with the ghost of Jacob Grimm as narrator, by Tom McNeal. The third title is Picture Me Gone by Meg Rosoff, about the disappearance of the best friend of Mila’s (the protagonist) father. Rosoff previously won a Printz Award for her title How I Live Now. Next is The Thing About Luck, a title again by an award -winning author, Cynthia Kadohata, about a young Japanese girl working on a farm in the Midwest. The remaining title is The True Blue Scouts of Sugarman Swamp, by Kathi Appelt, set in the bayou with two raccoons as the scouts who must warn the Sugarman (a cousin to the yeti and bigfoot) of impending danger to the swamp. Appelt has also won a Newbery Honor for The Underneath. Stay tuned; the winner will be announced next Wednesday…
