State Librarian of Kansas Joanne M. Budler welcomes the audience to the 58th William Allen White Children’s Book Awards Saturday at White Auditorium. Erica Cassella/ The Bulletin

For Dylan Brown, a fifth grader from Emporia Lowther South Intermediate School, who is writing his own book about Viet Nam, joining the celebration of the 58

^th William Allen White Children’s Book Awards to meet the authors of the book he voted was a great experience.

“I think ‘How to Steal a Dog’ is really funny and ‘Cracker!’ is really realistic,” Brown said.

About 500 children, teachers and parents from 15 schools from all over Kansas came to Emporia toparticipate in two days of celebration activities, including reading-ins and sleepovers last Friday, and autographs, children’s activities and an awards ceremony last Saturday at Emporia State. There were two schools from 384 miles away and it took them eight hours to get to Emporia.

About 40,000 children voted this year. One of the award books is “How to Steal a Dog” by Barbara O’Connor for third to fifth grade children. O’Connor said her book was inspired by a sign for a little dog that was lost.

Cynthia Kadohata, the author of “Cracker! The Best Dog in Viet Nam” (theother award book for sixth through eighth grade) began to write for children in 2002 after a suggestion from a friend who was a book editor.

“I love it (writing for children). I love it. It felt so natural to me to be writing from the children’s perspectives,”Kadohata said.

The William Allen White Children’s Book Awards are the oldest statewide children’s choice book awards in the U.S. The awards were established by Ruth Gagliardo in 1952 and directed by Emporia State to honor William Allen White by encouraging Kansas children to read good books.

Joyce N. Davis, the executive director of the White Awards Program and the chair of the event planning committee, said this was the opportunity for children to meet their favorite authors.

“Many of the children grow up in rural communities here and very small towns. Some of these kids live on farms. So they will never ever perhaps in their lifetime to have the opportunity to meet their favorite author,” Davis said.

Davis is going to retire at the end of this year. In order to thank Davis for her outstanding contribution to the William Allen White Children’s Book Awards and to ESU, Tes Mehring, ESU provost, encouraged all the children to say “Thank you Mrs. Davis,” which was the most moving moment in the Awards Ceremony.

A selection committee composed of 22 adults nominates the annual master list of books. Books had to be published at least two years ago and are submitted by publishers.After reading at least two books from the master list, Kansas children in third through fifth grade and sixth through eighth grade vote for their favorite books, respectively.

The master list for next year is already open to teachers and students. Next year’s celebration is scheduled for Sept. 24, 2011.

Han Yan

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