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Last month, I mentioned taking a Children’s Lit class in college. In that class, I had to read 75 award-winning children’s books. Twenty-five of them had to be Newbery Medal winning books. I shared 14 of my favorites. I also had to read 25 Caldecott Medal winning books. Many books on the Caldecott list have become favorites over the years. I loved reading them at night to my kiddos – during college and for many years after.
The Caldecott Medal, named in honor of Randolph J. Caldecott, was designed by Rene Paul Chambellan in 1937. It is awarded to the artist/illustrator who created the most distinguished picture book of the year.
Here’s a list of 18 of my favorite Caldecott-winning books. As with the Newbery books, I did not list any honor books. However, I have read and loved many of the honor books, as well. Please note, I’ve listed the author of each book to make finding the books easier for you. However, I noted the illustrator in parenthesis {if there is a separate illustrator} since the honor is theirs.
1999: Snowflake Bentley by Jacqueline Briggs Martin {Mary Azarian}
From the time he was a small boy in Vermont, Wilson Bentley saw snowflakes as small miracles. And he determined that one day his camera would capture for others the wonder of the tiny crystal. Bentley’s enthusiasm for photographing snowflakes was often misunderstood in his time, but his patience and determination revealed two important truths: no two snowflakes are alike; and each one is startlingly beautiful.
1998: Rapunzel by Paul O. Zelinsky
Trapped in a tower with no door, Rapunzel is allowed to see no one but the sorceress who has imprisoned her-until the day a young prince hears her singing to the forest birds. . . .
1994: Grandfather’s Journey by Allen Say
Lyrical, breathtaking, splendid—words used to describe Allen Say’s Grandfather’s Journey when it was first published. At once deeply personal yet expressing universally held emotions, this tale of one man’s love for two countries and his constant desire to be in both places captured readers’ attention and hearts.
1993: Mirette on the High Wire by Emily Arnold McCully
Mirette was always fascinated by the strange and interesting people who stayed in her mother’s boarding house. But no one excited her as much as Bellini, who walks the clothesline with the grace and ease of a bird. When Mirette discovers that fear has kept him from performing for years, she sets out to show him that sometimes a student can be the greatest teacher of all.
1990: Lon Po Po: A Red-Riding Hood Story from China by Ed Young
In this Chinese version of the classic fairy tale, a mother leaves her three children home alone while she goes to visit their grandmother. When the children are visited by a wolf, pretending to be their Po Po, or granny, they let him in the house, but ultimately are not fooled by his deep voice and hairy face.
1989: Song and Dance Man by Karen Ackerman {Stephen Gammell}
Once a song and dance man, Grandpa reclaims his youth and profession before the delighted eyes of his three grandchildren one afternoon. He simply cannot resist the urge to dress up in clothes left over from his vaudeville days–complete with top hat and gold-headed cane–and to perform tricks, play banjo and tell jokes. He taps, twirls and laughs himself to tears on a thrown-together stage in his attic.
1988: Owl Moon by Jane Yolen {John Schoenherr}
“It was late one winter night, long past my bedtime, when Pa and I went owling.” The two walked through the woods with nothing but hope and each other in a journey that will fascinate many a child.
1986: The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg
Late one Christmas Eve, a boy boards a mysterious train: The Polar Express bound for the North Pole. Once there, Santa offers the boy any gift he desires. The boy asks for one bell from the harness of a reindeer. The bell is lost. On Christmas morning, the boy finds the bell under the tree. The boy’s mother admires the bell, but laments that it is broken — for you see, only believers can hear the sound of the bell.
1984: The Glorious Flight by Alice & Martin Provensen
This stunningly illustrated book depicts Louis Bleriot’s historic first cross-Channel flight.
1982: Jumanji by Chris Van Allsburg
When Judy and Peter find a board game in the park, they take it home, hoping to alleviate their boredom. One live lion, an erupting volcano, and a dozen destructive monkeys later, the children are no longer bored. Their jungle adventure game has come to life!
1980: Ox-Cart Man by Donald Hall {Barbara Cooney}
A lyrical journey through the seasons and passing years of one New Englander’s family evokes the feeling of historical America.
1964: Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
One night Max puts on his wolf suit and makes mischief of one kind and another, so his mother calls him ‘Wild Thing’ and sends him to bed without his supper. That night a forest begins to grow in Max’s room and an ocean rushes by with a boat to take Max to the place where the wild things are. Max tames the wild things and crowns himself as their king, and then the wild rumpus begins. But when Max has sent the monsters to bed, and everything is quiet, he starts to feel lonely and realises it is time to sail home to the place where someone loves him best of all.
1963: The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats
No book has captured the magic and sense of possibility of the first snowfall better than The Snowy Day. Universal in its appeal, the story has become a favorite of millions, as it reveals a child’s wonder at a new world, and the hope of capturing and keeping that wonder forever.
1958: Time of Wonder by Robert McCloskey
The spell of rain, gulls, a foggy morning, the excitement of sailing, the quiet of the night, the sudden terror of a hurricane, and the peace of a Maine island as a family packs up to leave are shown in poetic language and vibrant, evocative pictures.
1954: Madeline’s Rescue by Ludwig Bemelmans
The lively adventures of the twelve famous little girls and Genevieve, the dog, take us once more to Bemelmans’ unique and delightful Paris.
1949: The Big Snow by Berta & Elmer Hader
The woodland animals were all getting ready for the winter. Geese flew south, rabbits and deer grew thick warm coats, and the raccoons and chipmunks lay down for a long winter nap. Come Christmastime, the wise owls were the first to see the rainbow around the moon. It was a sure sign that the big snow was on its way.
1943: The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton
A poignant story of a cute country cottage that becomes engulfed by the city that grows up around it. The house has an expressive face of windows and doors, and even the feelings of a person, so she’s sad when she’s surrounded by the dirty, noisy city’s hustle and bustle: “She missed the field of daisies / and the apple trees dancing in the moonlight.” Fortunately, there’s a happy ending, as the house is taken back to the country where she belongs. A classic!
1942: Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey
Mrs. Mallard was sure that the pond in the Boston Public Gardens would be a perfect place for her and her eight ducklings to live. The problem was how to get them there through the busy streets of Boston. But with a little help from the Boston police, Mrs. Mallard and Jack, Kack, Lack, Nack, Ouack, Pack, and Quack arive safely at their new home.
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