The 2012 Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee introduced its award winning authors. Susan Goldman Rubin, gold medalist in the Older Readers Category, started off the session with a discussion of Music Was It: Young Leonard Bernstein. She was followed by Rob Sharenow, gold medalist in the Teen Readers Category, discussing The Berlin Boxing Club.

Presented at the 2012 AJL Conference in Pasadena, CA.

1 hr 1 min 58 sec

With intermarriage hovering at 50% and diminishing rates of Jewish affiliation, Jewish community leadership has been concerned about how to reach and engage young families while they are in the critical stage of exploring how they want to raise their children. Ms. Eisen shows how the JP Library, founded in 2005, helps address these issues  by offering the gift of free, high-quality Jewish books and music each month, sent directly to families' homes, making resources accessible for making Jewish choices and establishing Jewish connections.

Presented by Rosalie Eisen at the 2012 AJL Conference in Pasadena, CA.

36 min 14 sec

Aimee Lurie, Chair of the Sydney Taylor Book Award committee, announces the 2013 winners during the AJL Midwinter Council meeting, January 2013 in Manhattan, NY.

10 min 15 sec

Which children's books with significant Jewish content are among the winners of the two most important US awards for translated books? Goldsmith describes the Mildred L. Batchelder Award and the Outstanding International Books (OIB) List, analyzes editors' decision-making processes and discusses the modest number of winners with Jewish content. Findings from her dissertation research outlines editors' motivations for and barriers to publishing translations, as well as editors' awareness of helpful resources that are available to them.

Presented by Annette Goldsmith at the 2012 AJL Conference in Pasadena, CA.

42 min 13 sec

The Sydney Taylor Book Award is presented annually to outstanding books for children and teens that authentically portray the Jewish experience. The award memorializes Sydney Taylor, author of the classic All-of-a-Kind Family series.

Michael J. Rosen and Robert Sabuda, author and artist of Chanukah Lights, Susan Goldman Rubin, author of Music Was It: Young Leonard Bernstein, and Robert Sharenow, author of The Berlin Boxing Club, are the 2012 winners of the prestigious Sydney Taylor Book Award. The awards were announced at the mid-winter meeting of the Association of Jewish Libraries.

The winners were revealed at the 2012 council meeting of the Association of Jewish Libraries in January, 2012 in Manhattan, NY. Awards chair Barbara Bietz made the official announcement, and shared her thoughts on this year’s winners in this interview, originally recorded for The Book of Life at bookoflifepodcast.com and cross-posted here by permission.

Click here for the 2012 press release and full list of award, honor and notable books.

13 min 11 sec

At the annual awards banquet, authors, illustrators and publishers are recognized for their excellent work. This presentation includes acceptance speeches by the 2011 winners of the RAS Bibliography and Reference Awards, the Sydney Taylor Book Awards, and the Sydney Taylor Manuscript Award.

Presented at the 2011 AJL Convention in Montreal, Quebec.

56 min 38 sec

The Sydney Taylor Book Award committee shares insights of the many books received in 2010, from picture boooks to young adult novels, as they worked to select the 2011 winners. Categories of books discussed include: "Chickens and Roosters and Hens, Oy Vey!" "Learning About Our Neighbors and Ourselves," "Woulda Coulda Shoulda," "Sneak Peaks," "Teen Picks," "Holocaust books/series for Libraries," "WWII Perspectives," and "Hot/Not Books."

Presented by members of the Sydney Taylor Book Award committee at the 2011 AJL Convention in Montreal, Quebec.

1 hr 39 min 50 sec

Author Howard Schwartz discusses his book Gathering Sparks, illustrated by Kristina Swarner, the 2011 gold medal winner of the Sydney Taylor Book Award in the Younger Readers category.

Presented by Howard Schwartz at the 2011 AJL Convention in Montreal, Quebec.

28 min 07 sec

Author Dana Reinhardt discusses her book, The Things a Brother Knows, the 2011 gold medal winner of the Sydney Taylor Book Award in the Teen Readers Category.

Presented by Dana Reinhardt at the 2011 AJL Convention in Montreal, Quebec.

24 min 35 sec

The ways that women have been portrayed in comics during the past 75 years has led to criticism by fans, scholars, and creators in the industry. At one extreme, there are unrealistic superwomen who are shown being able to juggle both their career and their household, while still finding time to use their superpowers to save the world time and again. At the other extreme are women characters who are victimized, brutalized, and/or sexualized to a greater extent than their male counterparts. Although Jewish women characters are a minority in the comix genre, dozens of examples of such characters may be found. This session highlights several examples of such characters from various comix genres (e.g. Bibllical, superhero, biographical, war, graphic fiction, travelogues) and illustrate what types of values these characters embody.

NOTE: At the end of this recording, speaker Steven Bergson mentions the following speaker, Barry Deutsch, author of Hereville, whose presentation may be found here.

For the visuals from this presentation, please visit http://jewishwomenincomix.blogspot.com.

Presented by Steven Bergson at the 2011 AJL Convention in Montreal, Quebec.

27 min 51 sec

Monique Polak discusses her novel What World Is Left, a work of historical fiction based on her mother's experience as a teenager in Theresienstadt. Polak will discuss the sad secret that lies at the heart of her novel: that the father of her young protagonist, Anneke, has been forced by the Nazis to produce propaganda drawings. Anneke will grapple with this revelation and it is this moral dilemma that helps to make Polak's novel resonate with contemporary tweens and teens. Polak will also explain the personal journey she undertook to produce this novel, as well as the delicate task of melding fact and fiction, especially when exploring a subject as painful and important as the Holocaust.

Presented by Monique Polak at the 2011 AJL Convention in Montreal, Quebec.

24 min 08 sec

Authors Margie Gelbwasser and Sarar Darer Littman have both written novels which feature characters struggling with their Jewish identity within the constructs of the everyday life of today's teens. This panel explores the portrayal of Judaism in middle grade and YA fiction, using both past and contemporary examples.

Presented by Margie Gelbwasser and Sarah Darer Littman at the 2011 AJL Convention in Montreal, Quebec.

27 min 03 sec

It is not unheard of for a webcomic to be published in a print edition (e.g. the Eisner award-winning Cancer Mom). It is not unprecedented for a graphic novel to be published which features a young Jewish girl (e.g. Token). However, it is rare to find a graphic novel that stars an 11-year-old Orthodox Jewish girl who aspires to fight dragons. Author-illustrator Barry Deutsch discusses his literary influences, the experience of self-publishing a serialized webcomic, the process of creating Hereville, and future plans for Hereville - a book described by School Library Journal blogger Elizabeth Bird as "the best graphic novel of 2010 for kids. Bar none."

Presented by Barry Deutsch at the 2011 AJL Convention in Montreal, Quebec.

30 min

Joni Sussman of Kar-Ben Books led this panel of authors for ounger readers who represent a wide range of contemporary Jewish experience. The authors shared their own understanding of how "Jewish" informs their writing and introduced us to their latest titles.

Presented by Joni Sussman, Anna Levine, Alan Silberberg and Sara Mlynowski at the 2011 AJL Convention in Montreal, Quebec.

1 hr 19 min 19 sec

At each year’s AJL convention, members of the Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee participate in a panel presentation to discuss the best and worst of recent Jewish literature for children and teens. In this podcast, you can hear members Susan Berson, Barbara Bietz, Kathy Bloomfield, Debbie Colodny, and Kathe Pinchuck sharing their delight and dismay over juvenile Judaica published during 2009, reviewed while seeking the winners of the 2010 Sydney Taylor Book Award.

This panel was presented at the 2010 Association of Jewish Libraries convention in Seattle, WA

1 hr 38 min 53 sec

A panel of experienced book reviewers share their views on the craft of constructing a useful review, on differences between reviewing for children and or adults, on unique issues in reviewing Judaica, and more.

Presented by Ellen Cole, Heidi Estrin, Kathe Pinchuck, and Lisa Silverman at the 2010 AJL Convention in Seattle, WA.

1 hr 29 min 53 sec

Author Margarita Engle won the 2010 Sydney Taylor Book Award in the Teen Readers category for Tropical Secrets. She had the opportunity to present her book to an appreciative audience at the 2010 Association of Jewish Libraries annual convention in Seattle, WA.

29 min 47 sec

Author April Halprin Wayland won the 2010 Sydney Taylor Book Award in the Younger Readers category for New Year at the Pier. She had the opportunity to present her book to an appreciative audience at the 2010 Association of Jewish Libraries annual convention in Seattle, WA.

35 min 01 sec

Author Robin Friedman won the 2010 Sydney Taylor Book Award in the Older Readers category for The Importance of Wings. She had the opportunity to present her book to an appreciative audience at the 2010 Association of Jewish Libraries annual convention in Seattle, WA.

11 min 05 sec

What are teens reading these days? Are there any good YA books with Jewish content? How do I build my teen collection? How do I attract teens to my library? What do I do with them once they come? Explore the answers to these questions and more as we discuss current trends in secular and Jewish young adult literature, outreach strategies and opportunities, and ideas for cool teen programs.

Related material at http://www.jeninelillian.com/ and http://www.jewishlibraries.org/ajlweb/resources/bib_bank/contemporary_fiction_for_teens.pdf

Presented by Jenine Lillian and Rachel Kamin at the 2010 AJL Convention in Seattle, WA.

1 hr 00 min 02 sec