Newbery vs. Caldecott: Which is supreme?



Newbery Medal



Caldecott Medal



The Great Debate:

Which is More Worthy,
Newbery vs. Caldecott?

Background on Newbery Medal:

The Newbery Medal, named for 18th century bookseller John Newbery, is given each year to the most distinguished American children's book published the previous year by the American Library Association.  According to the ALA website, the purpose of the award is

"to encourage the original creative work in the field of books for children; to emphasize to the public that contributions to the literature for children deserve similar recognition to poetry, plays or novels; to give those librarians, who make it their life work to serve children's reading interests, an opportunity to encourage good writing in this field."

The book must be written in English (not translated), an original work, not previously published, and overall "distinguished."




Background on the Caldecott Medal:


The Caldecott Medal, named for 19th century illustrator Randolph J. Caldecott, is given each year (since 1937) to the artist who created the most distinguished picture book of the year.  Originally, only the Newbery award was given to the most distinguished children's book of the year; however, as people started noticing that the illustrators of books were not being given any recognition for their work, Frederic G. Melcher realized that a second award needed to be given to honor and encourage great illustrators--leading to the birth of the Caldecott Medal.  According to the ALA website, the honor is

"awarded to the artist of the most distinguished American Picture Book for Children published in the United States during the preceding year. The award shall go to the artist, who must be a citizen or resident of the United States, whether or not he be the author of the text. "

An interesting note: if a book is nominated for BOTH the Newbery and Caldecott, the committee decides which category it will be voted upon, so that the same title is not  considered on both ballots.


My Opinion: Which is better?
Personally, I have read some winners of both categories that are simply amazing books; on the other hand, I have read some winning books of both awards that I didn't think were that "distinguished."  If I were a writer or illustrator, I think that the higher honor would be to receive the Newbery.  For starters, I believe that more people have heard of the Newbery award than the Caldecott, so having earned it would feel a bit more superior.  In addition, children's novels take a bit more time and effort to write, especially considering that the winners in this category usually have some historical background and/or basis, meaning that they cannot be solely from the imagination of the writer.  However, looking at it from the other side, being given the Caldecott award would be pretty amazing--knowing that your illustrations, your pictures, your artwork really IS good--distinguished, to be correct.  I realize that I have no idea how much time that illustrators put into their work--perhaps just as much as the writers of Newbery winners.  Therefore, if I were in the business of writing/illustrating, EITHER award would be absolutely fantastic to be given, as well as to know that the committe chose MY work out of everything else published in that year.




Background info:
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/newberymedal/aboutnewbery/aboutnewbery.cfm
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/caldecottmedal/aboutcaldecott/aboutcaldecott.cfm