Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction in Children’s Literature Committee

Function: To select the recipient of the annual Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction for Children and up to five honor books; to propose a session on nonfiction books for children and plan a session featuring the award winning author at NCTE's Annual Convention; and to promote the use of nonfiction children's books in the classroom.

The Orbis Pictus Committee met on Friday, November 19th, 2004, in the Marriott Hotel during the NCTE National Conference in Indianapolis. The committee discussed books nominated for consideration for the 2005 award winning and honor books, elaborated on the planning the committee’s work after the conference, and finalized current programs.

In the first program at the annual conference the committee introduced the 2004 winning and honor books and shared an additional eight books they recommended for their usefulness in classrooms across the country. During the session members featured their own personal favorites.

During the Children’s Literature Luncheon, Jim Murphy received the 2004 Orbis Pictus award for An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793. Also present during the luncheon were honored authors invited to the conference, Elizabeth Mann, Deborah Hopkinson, and Kathryn Lasky, and illustrator Kevin Hawkes. Their books were all acknowledged as 2004 Orbis Pictus Honor Books:

Empire State Building: When New York Reached for the Skies, written by Elizabeth Mann.

In Defense of Liberty: They Story of American’s Bill of Rights, written by Russell Freedman.

Leonardo: Beautiful Dreamer, written by Robert Byrd.

The Man Who Made Time Travel, written by Kathryn Lasky and illustrated by Kevin Hawkes.

Shutting out the Sky: Life in the Tenements of New York, 1880-1924, written by Deborah Hopkinson.

During an Orbis Pictus sponsored session later in the afternoon, the authors at the luncheon and Kevin Hawkes made presentations and participated in a conversation regarding issues in researching, writing, and illustrating nonfiction literature. We look forward to sharing their experiences and ideas with teachers and children who read nonfiction in their classrooms.

Also during the year, the committee selected the 2005 Orbis Pictus books and gave the award to Rhoda Blumberg for York’s Adventures with Lewis and Clark: An African-American’s part in the Great Expedition. Following are the 2005 honor books:

Seurat and La Grande Jatte, written by Robert Burleigh.

The Voice That Challenged America, written by Russell Freedman.

The Sphinx, written by James Cross Giblin and illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline.

The Race To Save The Lord God Bird, written by Phillip Hoose.

Actual Size, written by Steve Jenkins.

For a complete review of these, and eight recommended books, see the October issue of Language Arts. The Orbis Pictus Committee thanks all the publishers who have supported the work of NCTE and who have sent nominated books to all the members. We are grateful to the many people who recommend titles for our consideration. At the NCTE National Conference in Pittsburgh, the Orbis Pictus committee will introduce the winning, honor, and recommended books. Our second program features authors and illustrator discussing challenges and perspectives in writing books for young readers. In this program Rhoda Blumberg, James Giblin, Steve Jenkins, Robert Burleigh, and illustrator, Bagram Ibatoulline, will present their insights and experiences in writing, and illustrating, nonfiction children’s literature.

Sandip Wilson, Chair