Blundell Nabs National Book Award
By Rocco Staino -- School Library Journal, 11/19/2008 9:01:00 PM
Judy Blundell, author of What I Saw and How I Lied (Scholastic), is the 2008 National Book Award winner in the category of children’s literature.
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Judy Blundell is this year's National Book Award winner in the category of children's literature. |
“I have always been hapless and underconfident, and I am still am,” says the author, also thanking her editor David Levithan, who begged her to write something of her own. “I thank him for giving me my voice.”
The novel, about a teen named Evie who finds herself in a complicated web of lies when she falls for the handsome young ex-GI who served in her stepfather's company, was selected from 274 titles that were submitted for consideration.
Upon learning about her nomination last month, Blundell said, “I discovered that it's possible to not breathe and yet say 'oh my god' 14 times in a row.”
A panel of judges comprised of other authors in the field, included chair Daniel Handler, best know for his work under the pen name Lemony Snicket, Holly Black, Angela Johnson, Carolyn Mackler, and Cynthia Voigt.
The four other finalists were: Laurie Halse Anderson for Chains (S & S); Kathi Appelt for The Underneath (Atheneum); E. Lockhart for The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks (Hyperion); and Tim Tharp for The Spectacular Now (Knopf).
Considered the Oscars for American literature, some of the country’s top literati were in attendance at the black tie event at Cipriani’s in New York City. The National Book Award, which come with a $10,000 check, was also given in the categories of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.
