Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award

The Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award, presented by The Assembly on Literature for Adolescents of the National Council of Teachers of English (ALAN), is an annual award in the United States for a book that exemplifies literary excellence, widespread appeal, and a positive approach to life in young adult literature. It is named after Amelia Elizabeth Walden who died in Westport, Connecticut in 2002 and was a pioneer in the field of Young Adult Literature. The national award is presented annually to the author of a title selected by ALAN's Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award Committee.[1]

Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award
Awarded for"literary excellence, widespread appeal, and positive approach to life in young-adult literature"
CountryUnited States
Presented byThe Assembly on Literature for Adolescents (ALAN)
First awarded2009
Websitehttps://www.alan-ya.org/awards/walden-award/ Edit this on Wikidata

History

The Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award was established in 2008 to honor the wishes of Amelia Elizabeth Walden. It allows for the sum of $5,000 to be awarded annually to the winning title, and was first awarded on Monday, November 23, 2009.[2] The award highlights works written for a young adult audience that demonstrate a positive approach to life, widespread teen appeal, and literary merit.[1]

Amelia Elizabeth Walden was born in New York City on January 15, 1909. She graduated from Columbia University in 1934 and attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. From 1935 to 1945, she taught English and Dramatics at Norwalk High School (Connecticut). She married John William Harmon in 1946. Her first novel, Gateway, was published in 1946. Walden told her editor that she intended the novel for young people who lived at the gateway, on that middle ground between adolescence and adulthood. Walden claimed, “I respond to young people because I remember my own adolescence so vividly – and fondly. It was a period of total involvement, of enjoying life to the hilt.” Walden wrote over 40 young adult novels. She died in 2002 in Westport, Connecticut. A collection of some of her literary manuscripts and correspondence with McGraw-Hill between 1954 and 1977 relating to book production is available for review in the Special Collections and University Archives of the University of Oregon Libraries.[1]

Criteria

The selection committee composed of ten The Assembly on Literature for Adolescents (ALAN) members (3 teachers, 3 university professors, 3 librarians, and 1 chair) appointed by the previous year's chair and current ALAN President for a one-year term with the possibility of re-election for a second term.[1] They award one winning title and honor up to four additional titles on their shortlist.

  • Per Walden’s request

The selected title 'MUST:[1]

  1. be a work of fiction, ideally a novel (stand-alone or part of a series);
  2. be published within one year prior to the call for titles;
  3. be published in the United States but may have been published elsewhere prior; and
  4. possess a positive approach to life, widespread teen appeal, and literary merit (please see below for additional guidance).
  • A Positive Approach to Life [1]

Submitted titles should:

    • treat teen readers as capable and thoughtful young people
    • offer hope and optimism, even when describing difficult circumstances
    • have a credible and appropriate resolution
    • portray characters involved in shaping their lives in a positive way, even as they struggle with the harsh realities of life
  • Widespread Teen Appeal [1]

Submitted titles should:

    • be intended expressly for readers aged 12–18
    • have universal themes that transcend time and place
    • have themes that resonate with a wide variety of readers, regardless of race, class, gender, and sexual orientation
    • provide readers with a window to the world and/or reflect their own experiences
  • Literary Merit [1]

Submitted titles should:

    • contain well-developed characters
    • employ well-constructed forms suitable to function
    • include language and literary devices that enhance the narrative
    • suggest cogent and richly-realized themes
    • present an authentic voice

See also

  • Printz Award – American Library Association medal recognizing the year's best book for teens
  • Newbery Medal – American literature for children (children or young adults prior to 2000)
  • Carnegie Medal – British literature for children or young adults
  • Guardian Prize – fiction for children or young adults by British and Commonwealth writers

References

Walden Award Winner and Finalists[3]
Year Author Book Result Ref.
2009 Steve Kluger My Most Excellent Year: A Novel of Love, Mary Poppins & Fenway Park Winner [2]
Jacqueline Woodson After Tupac and D Foster Finalist
Kristin Cashore Graceling Finalist
Neil Gaiman The Graveyard Book Finalist
Jenny Valentine Me, the Missing, and the Dead
(originally Finding Violet Park, UK, 2007)
Finalist
2010 Kristin Cashore Fire Winner [4][5]
Francisco X. Stork Marcelo in the Real World Finalist
Rick Yancey The Monstrumologist Finalist
Justina Chen Headley North of Beautiful Finalist
Jill S. Alexander The Sweetheart of Prosper County Finalist
2011 Francisco X. Stork The Last Summer of the Death Warriors Winner [6][7]
Jordan Sonnenblick After Ever After Finalist
Matt de la Peña I Will Save You Finalist
Matthew Quick Sorta Like a Rockstar Finalist
Kristen Chandler Wolves, Boys, & Other Things That Might Kill Me Finalist
2012 Lauren Myracle Shine Winner
Robert Sharenow Berlin Boxing Club Finalist
Moira Young Blood Red Road Finalist
Ruta Sepetys Between Shades of Gray Finalist
Guadalupe Garcia McCall Under the Mesquite Finalist
2013 John Green The Fault in Our Stars Winner
Benjamin Alire Sáenz Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe Finalist [8]
A. S. King Ask the Passengers Finalist
Eliot Schrefer Endangered Finalist
2014 Rainbow Rowell Eleanor & Park Winner [9]
Patrick Flores-Scott Jumped In Finalist
Sylvia Whitman The Milk of Birds Finalist
Bill Konigsberg Openly Straight Finalist
Andrew Smith Winger Finalist
2015 A.S. King Glory O'Brien's History of the Future Winner
Michael Williams Diamond Boy Finalist [10]
Isabel Quintero Gabi, A Girl in Pieces Finalist [10]
Laurie Halse Anderson The Impossible Knife of Memory Finalist [10]
Deborah Wiles Revolution (The Sixties Trilogy) Finalist [10]
2016 Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely All American Boys Winner
Jennifer Niven All the Bright Places Finalist
Neal Shusterman Challenger Deep Finalist
Ashley Hope Pérez Out of Darkness Finalist
Ryan Graudin Wolf by Wolf Finalist
2017 Jeff Zentner The Serpent King Winner
Kathleen Glasgow Girl in Pieces Finalist
Bonnie-Sue Hitchcock The Smell of Other People's Houses Finalist
Ruta Sepetys Salt to the Sea Finalist
Nicola Yoon The Sun Is Also a Star Finalist
2018 Angie Thomas The Hate U Give Winner [11]
Nic Stone Dear Martin Finalist [11]
Jason Reynolds Long Way Down Finalist [11]
Amy Reed The Nowhere Girls Finalist [11]
Melanie Crowder An Uninterrupted View of the Sky Finalist [11]
2019 Elizabeth Acevedo The Poet X Winner
Shaun David Hutchinson The Apocalypse of Elena Mendoza Finalist
Adib Khorram Darius the Great Is Not Okay Finalist
Joy McCullough Blood, Water, Paint Finalist
Emily X.R. Pan The Astonishing Color of After Finalist
2020 Julie Berry The Lovely War Winner [12]
Elizabeth Acevedo With the Fire on High Finalist
Abdi Nazemian Like a Love Story Finalist
Randy Ribay Patron Saints of Nothing Finalist
Kip Wilson White Rose Finalist
2021 Elizabeth Acevedo Clap When You Land Winner
Brittney Morris Slay Finalist
Christina Hammonds Reed The Black Kids Finalist
Deborah Wiles Kent State Finalist
2022 Jeff Zentner In the Wild Light Winner
Saied Méndez Furia Finalist [13]
Raquel Vásquez Gilliland How Moon Fuentez Fell in Love with the Universe Finalist [13]
Trung Le Nguyen The Magic Fish Finalist [13]
Traci Chee We Are Not Free Finalist [13]
2023 Sabaa Tahir All My Rage Winner
Maya MacGregor The Many Half-Lived Lives of Sam Sylvester Finalist
Jessie Burton Medusa Finalist
Kyrie McCauley We Can Be Heroes Finalist
  1. "Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award". ALAN. Archived 2011-08-20. Retrieved 2015-04-12.
  2. "Amelia Elizabeth Walden Book Award Winner Announced". ALAN. 2011-09-30. Archived from the original on 2011-09-30. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  3. "The Walden Award". ALAN. 2021-07-30. Retrieved 2022-01-28.
  4. "2010 Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award Winner & Finalists Announced". ALAN. 2010-08-18. Archived from the original on 2010-08-18. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  5. "Kristin Cashore: Graceling's 10th Anniversary". Shelf Awareness. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  6. "2011 Amelia Elizabeth Walden Book Award Finalists". ALAN Online. 2011-06-20. Archived from the original on 2011-08-27. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  7. "Francisco X. Stork: On Creating Courage, Empathy and Hope". Shelf Awareness. June 14, 2021. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  8. "Reading with... Benjamin Alire Sáenz". Shelf Awareness. December 17, 2021. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  9. "Special Announcement: 2014 Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award Winner – Unleashing Readers". Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  10. "Awards: Amelia Elizabeth Walden YA Book Finalists". Shelf Awareness. July 28, 2015. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  11. "2018 Amelia Elizabeth Walden Book Award Winner & Finalists Announced". Teachers Who Read. 2018-08-01. Retrieved 2022-01-28.
  12. "Author's Note in Medina. N.Y., Hosting Grand Opening Celebration". Shelf Awareness. September 14, 2021. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  13. "2022 Amelia Elizabeth Walden Book Award Finalists Announced". Assembly on Literature for Adolescents of NCTE. 2022-05-04. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
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