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Frequently referred to as the "Little Nobel Prize," the Hans Christian Andersen Medal is awarded biennially to the living author and illustrator whose complete works have made a lasting contribution to children's literature.
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Nominations for the Hans Christian Andersen Award are made by the National Sections of the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY). The recipients are selected by a distinguished international jury of children's literature specialists.
2022 HCa Nominees from usbby
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Linda Sue Park and Kadir Nelson have been selected as the 2022 United States Board on Books for Young People (USBBY) nominees for the prestigious Hans Christian Andersen Award.
Nominated in the author category, Linda Sue Park’s diverse body of work spans a career of more than two decades. Her books differ in format and genre: picture books that present pure humor or inviting intrigue; poetry that introduces new forms; stories with unusual concepts for young children; and mysteries, fantasies, and of course, carefully researched historical fiction. Park herself made history when she became the first Korean American to be awarded the 2002 Newbery Medal for A Single Shard. Other bestselling, highly lauded titles include When My Name Was Keoko, The Firekeeper’s Son, A Long Walk to Water, and Prairie Lotus. In her 2015 TEDx talk, Park contends that reading books is “practice for life”; that reading develops empathy which leads to engagement. She astutely asks, “Can a children’s book save the world?” Her answer honors agency: “No, but young readers can.”
Nominated in the illustrator category, Kadir Nelson is a masterful artist producing paintings of astonishing impact, beauty, and meaning. His profound skill and influence on children’s literature has been recognized with the highest U.S. honors for children’s literature creators, including the 2020 Caldecott Medal and the 2020 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award, for his artwork in The Undefeated, written by Kwame Alexander. Nelson’s range of subjects is remarkable, from the achievements of legendary athletes and activists to small, meaningful moments in everyday family life. Additional celebrated titles include Heart and Soul, Mama Miti, Moses, and Nelson Mandela. Throughout his career, Nelson has focused in particular on the lives of Africans and African Americans, providing urgently needed opportunities for children of color to find themselves in books and for all children to recognize and celebrate the diversity of the world in which they live.
Nominated in the author category, Linda Sue Park’s diverse body of work spans a career of more than two decades. Her books differ in format and genre: picture books that present pure humor or inviting intrigue; poetry that introduces new forms; stories with unusual concepts for young children; and mysteries, fantasies, and of course, carefully researched historical fiction. Park herself made history when she became the first Korean American to be awarded the 2002 Newbery Medal for A Single Shard. Other bestselling, highly lauded titles include When My Name Was Keoko, The Firekeeper’s Son, A Long Walk to Water, and Prairie Lotus. In her 2015 TEDx talk, Park contends that reading books is “practice for life”; that reading develops empathy which leads to engagement. She astutely asks, “Can a children’s book save the world?” Her answer honors agency: “No, but young readers can.”
Nominated in the illustrator category, Kadir Nelson is a masterful artist producing paintings of astonishing impact, beauty, and meaning. His profound skill and influence on children’s literature has been recognized with the highest U.S. honors for children’s literature creators, including the 2020 Caldecott Medal and the 2020 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award, for his artwork in The Undefeated, written by Kwame Alexander. Nelson’s range of subjects is remarkable, from the achievements of legendary athletes and activists to small, meaningful moments in everyday family life. Additional celebrated titles include Heart and Soul, Mama Miti, Moses, and Nelson Mandela. Throughout his career, Nelson has focused in particular on the lives of Africans and African Americans, providing urgently needed opportunities for children of color to find themselves in books and for all children to recognize and celebrate the diversity of the world in which they live.
past u.s. winners of the hans christian andersen medal
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1962 - Meindert DeJong (Author Medal)
1970 - Maurice Sendak (Illustrator Medal) 1972 - Scott O'Dell (Author Medal) 1978 - Paula Fox (Author Medal) 1992 - Virginia Hamilton (Author Medal) 1998 - Katherine Paterson (Author Medal) 2020 - Jacqueline Woodson (Author Medal) |