The 2016 Golden Kite Award, Sid Fleischman Award and Lee Bennett Hopkins Award Winners!

Here are the winners! Look for interviews with them here in the coming months, leading up to the 2016 SCBWI Summer Conference in Los Angeles, where they will be honored--and we'll get to hear them speak when they accept their awards!

For FICTION, The Golden Kite Award goes to...

Challenger Deep by Neal Shusterman (HarperCollins)

Caden Bosch is on a galleon that's headed for the deepest point on Earth: Challenger Deep, the southern part of the Marianas Trench. Alternatively, Bosch is a brilliant high school student dealing with schizophrenia...and as fantasy and paranoia begin to take over, his parents have only one choice left.


For MIDDLE GRADE/YOUNG READER FICTION...

The Detective's Assistant by Kate Hannigan (Little, Brown)

Based on the extraordinary true story of America's first-ever female detective, this fast-paced adventure recounts feats of daring and danger, including saving the life of Abraham Lincoln! 


For NONFICTION...

Enchanted Air: Two Cultures, Two Wings: A Memoir by Margarita Engle (Atheneum)

In this poetic memoir, acclaimed author Margarita Engle tells the story of growing up as a Cuban-American child, balancing two different cultures during the Cold War.


For PICTURE BOOK ILLUSTRATION...

Marvelous Cornelius by John Parra, written by Phil Bildner (Chronicle Books)

In this inspiring book about a real garbage man, John Parra depicts the story of a humble man and the heroic difference he made in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.


For PICTURE BOOK TEXT...

Boats for Papa by Jessixa Bagley (Macmillan)

In this stunning debut, author/illustrator Jessixa Bagley explores the subtle and deep emotions associated with loss in a heartwarming tale about a boy, his mother, and the boats he carves for an absent father.



The Winner of THE SID FLEISCHMAN HUMOR AWARD is...

Teddy Mars: Almost a World Record Breaker by Molly B. Burnham (HarperCollins)

Told in short sections for young readers, this hilarious new series is about a determined ten-year-old boy from a big family who dreams of making it into The Guinness Book of World Records.



And the inaugural LEE BENNETT HOPKINS POETRY AWARD WINNER is...

Forest Has a Song by Amy Ludwig VanDerwater, illustrated by Robbin Gourley (Clarion)

VanDerwater makes a stunning debut with twenty-six inviting poems leading readers through a vibrant tour of forest-wonders---ferny frondy fiddleheads, a grandfather fossil, a fawn, an owl's first flight. Poetry filled with metaphors, imagery, alliteration and personification show what poetry for children of all ages is about.

Congratulations to all the winners!