PEN American Center Establishes Steven Kroll Award
RSSBy SLJ Staff
PEN American Center has created the annual Steven Kroll Award to honor the author of an illustrated children's book. The award was established in memory of Kroll, who died March 8 at New York's Lenox Hill Hospital of complications from surgery. He was 69. The winner will be chosen by a panel of three judges, who will be selected by PEN's awards committee in consultation with PEN's Children's/Young Adult Book Authors Committee, as well as the award's donor, Kroll's widow Kathleen Beckett. "Steven Kroll represented the spirit and calling of children's literature and PEN: as an author of stories that reached so many children and adults, as a mentor to many other writers, and as an indefatigable champion of children's literature," says Steven Isenberg, PEN's executive director. "This award recognizes the important role that writers of illustrated children's books play in winning children's allegiance and enjoyment. It will pay homage to Kroll's generosity of spirit in serving PEN ably and devotedly for so many years, and to the children's literature community he cherished, and of which he was such a proud and noted member." Susanna Reich, author and current chair of PEN's Children's/Young Adult Book Authors Committee, says Kroll was a passionate and outspoken advocate for the importance of children's literature. "He knew from long experience that writing for children is both a challenge and a delight, and was extraordinarily generous in sharing the fruits of that experience with other writers," Reich adds. "His books brought joy to millions of children, and though his voice will be missed, it's very fitting that his memory will live on not only in those books, but in an award dedicated to the art of the picture book text." PEN will begin accepting nominations for the award from members of the literary community in October 2011. Eligible books must be published in the U.S. in 2011. In October 2012, the winner will be announced and recognized at PEN's Literary Awards ceremony in New York City.
Kroll (left) was a member of PEN for more than 25 years, serving as chair of the Children's and Young Adult Book Authors Committee and on PEN's board of trustees. He was also a prolific author of books for children. His 100th and final book will be published in March 2012.
The award, which will acknowledge the literary contributions of an American or U.S-based writer for an "exceptional story illustrated in a picture book," will be presented for the first time in 2012 and come with a $5,000 prize.
