Caldecott and Newbery Medal

The Newbery Medal is awarded every year by the American Library Association for the most distinguished American children's books published the previous year. Many people became concerned that the artists creating picture books for children were as deserving of honor and encouragement as were the authors of children's books. A second annual medal was suggested. The medal is to be given to the artist who created the most distinguished picture book of the year and named in honor of the nineteenth-century English illustrator Randolph J. Caldecott. The Caldecott Medal will be awarded to the artist of the most distinguished American Picture Book for Children published in the United States during the preceding year. The award will go to the artist that is a citizen or resident of the United States whether or not he is the author of the text. The Newbery Medal Committee will serve as judges. In 1977, the Board of Directors of the Association for Library Service to Children approved that any book published in the preceding year shall be eligible to be considered for either awards or both awards.
The Newbery Medal is awarded annually by the American Library Association for the most distinguished American children's book published the previous year. Frederic G. Melcher proposed the award to the American Library Association, and he suggested that it be named for the eighteenth-century English bookseller John Newbery. The purpose of the Newbery Medal is to encourage original creative work in the field of books for children. The medal emphasizes to the public that contributions to the literature for children deserve similar recognition to poetry, plays, or novels. The Newbery Award is the first children's book award in the world.