Scott O'Dell Award

Roger Sutton just sent a press release through the Child_Lit listserv announcing that The River Between Us by Richard Peck is this year's winner of the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction. This book was also nominated for a National Book Award for Young People's Literature. (The Canning Season by Polly Horvath won.)

Mr. Peck grew up in Decatur, IL which, in my mind, automatically makes him a "Chicago Boy" and worthy of special recognition just by virtue of the fact that he had the good taste to be born in the Land of Lincoln. (Anyone from the state of Illinois automatically gets that designation in my mind. Unless, of course, it's a woman of whom I speak. In that case, the pronouncement is, "Chicago Girl." Even if you move away, we -- or at least I -- will forever lay claim to you.)

The happy accident of his birth aside, though, I -- and thousands of others -- have long loved his strong, compassionate writing. And, he made one of my favorite statements of all time at the NIU Children's Lit conference a few years ago:

"I wanted to be a hyperactive child, too, but mother wouldn't let me."

I liked that so much, I printed it on a tee shirt.

Congratulations, Richard Peck!