Tuesday, November 6, 2007

The Sydney Taylor Book Award Blog

Welcome to the newest blog in the kidlitosphere! This blog will keep you up to date on news related to the Sydney Taylor Book Award, the only literary prize that focuses solely on Jewish children's literature.

I'm Heidi Estrin, and you may know me as the host of The Book of Life podcast. I really love doing the podcast, but if you've heard it you know that it's a mix of kidlit, adult lit, music, and other Jewish content. It's not pure kidlit... and I've been angsting over the fact that I am not a true part of the kidlitosphere, since that is where my heart belongs! My solution? Create a blog focusing on another passion of mine, the Sydney Taylor Book Award!

I chaired the Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee for the Association of Jewish Libraries several years ago, and I still have a strong interest in it. In fact, I've never really managed to leave the committee! Although I am no longer a voting member, I still do a lot of administrative stuff for them. So I've got an inside track to bring you news about the prize, and to hook you up with tidbits about past winners!

FYI, you can regard this blog as reliable... but not official. I'm doing it out of my own interest, not as an official AJL task.

So, welcome! Please let me know if you have questions about the Sydney Taylor Book Award, or any particular topics you'd like me to cover. And be sure to visit the official award web site at www.SydneyTaylorBookAward.org.