2012 The Coretta Scott King (CSK) Book Award Winners

Established in 1969 in association with the American Library Association (ALA), The Coretta Scott King (CSK) Book Award was developed to honor African American authors and illustrators. At that time,  no African American authors or illustrators that point in time had ever received ALA’s prestigious Newbery and Caldecott Medals.

The CSK Book Award is given to African American authors and illustrators annually and its purpose is to recognize outstanding children’s books that “portray some aspect of the African American experience.”

The 2012 winners of the CSK Book Award are:
Author Award

CSK Author Award Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans. Written (and
illustrated) by Kadir Nelson. Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins. (Grades 4-6)

CSK Author Honor:  The Great Migration: Journey to the North. Written by Eloise Greenfield (and
illustrated by Jan Spivey Gilchrist). Amistad/ HarperCollins. (Grades 2-6)



CSK Author Honor:  Never Forgotten. Written by Patricia C. McKissack (and illustrated by Leo
and Diane Dillon). Schwartz & Wade/Random House. (Grades 3-6). Available as a kindle text.





Illustrator Award



CSK Illustrator Award:  Underground: Finding the Light to Freedom. Illustrated (and written)
by Shane W. Evans. Neal Porter/Roaring Brook Press. (Grades K-3)




CSK Illustrator Honor:  Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans. Illustrated
by Kadir Nelson. Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins. (Grades 4-6)


CSK Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement:  Ashley Bryan is the third recipient
of this newly established award. It is given as tribute to Virginia Hamilton, a beloved children’s book author. Ashley Bryan is the author and illustrator of many notable children’s books including Sing to the Sun, Let It Shine: Three Favorite Spirituals, and Beautiful Blackbird.

There is an exhibit of Bryan's art at the North Carolina Museum of Art happening now through August: Rhythms of the Heart.