The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
	Blue Ribbons are chosen annually by the Bulletin staff and represent what we believe to be the best of the previous year's literature for youth. See the Blue Ribbon Archive for other lists from 1990 through the present. Please feel free to copy, download, or link to these lists. We ask only that you cite the source.
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	2005 Blue Ribbons

Once the Blue Ribbons list is complete, it's hard for us to imagine it any other way, despite our passionate participation in the lengthy process of pleading and weeding that gets us to this point. It's a tough confirmation process to endure, but these titles have not only survived but thrived, offering a gallery of enticing and sometimes highly original literary possibilities to a wide variety of audiences, whether toddlers or teens, admirers of pictures or prose, fans of the humorous, the historical, or the heartbreaking. That's what we call a good year.

Deborah Stevenson, Editor

Books greatly enjoyed by individual committee members but not quite managing to convince the entire committee can be found at the Blue Ribbons Dissents page.

PICTURE BOOKS

• Bee, William. Whatever; written and illus. by William Bee. Candlewick. 5-7 yrs (December)
  A boy who responds with an unimpressed "Whatever" to all his father's efforts to please him reaps what he sows in this wickedly humorous picture book.

• Bryant, Sean. A Boy and His Bunny; illus. by Tom Murphy. Arcade. 2-4 yrs (April)
  Cheerful absurdity marks this rhyming story about a boy who wakes up with a bunny on his head.

• Cronin, Doreen. Wiggle; illus. by Scott Menchin. Atheneum. 2-4 yrs (July/August)
  Narrated in tongue-twisting rhyme by an energetic mutt, this bouncy readaloud exuberantly explores a whole catalogue of ways to wiggle.

• Grey, Mini. Traction Man Is Here!; written and illus. by Mini Grey. Knopf. Gr. 2-4 (May)
  A molded chunk of painted plastic comes alive in this superfunny, comics-inspired tale of a boy and his action figure, Traction Man.

• Jenkins, Emily. That New Animal; illus. by Pierre Pratt. Foster/Farrar. 4-7 yrs (March)
  A family's two dogs wittily enact a dethronement drama when a baby--or "new animal"--comes home and usurps everyone's attention.

• Manning, Mick. Yuck! illus. by Brita Granstrom. Lincoln. 2-5 yrs (October)
  A high-spirited, Q&A-formatted text explains that foods we humans may find yucky are delicious meals for babies of other species.

• Ormerod, Jan. Lizzie Nonsense; written and illus. by Jan Ormerod. Clarion. 4-7 yrs (November)
  Simple yet poetic text describes the fancies of a young girl whose pioneer family ekes out a living in the lonely Australian bush.

• Rosoff, Meg. Meet Wild Boars; illus. by Sophie Blackall. Holt. 4-6 yrs (June)
  A quartet of wild boars demonstrate all the hideous behaviors that make them bad house guestsÑand kid-pleasing picture-book stars.

• Willis, Jeanne. Tadpole's Promise; illus. by Tony Ross. Schwartz/Atheneum. 5-8 yrs (July/August)
  A love affair between a tadpole and a caterpillar goes horribly, sidesplittingly wrong in this comedic picture book.

• Woodson, Jacqueline. Coming On Home Soon; illus. by E. B. Lewis. Putnam, 2004. 5-8 yrs (February)
  Spare lyricism and luminous watercolors distinguish this touching story of a young African-American girl who is staying in the country with her grandmother during World War II while her mother finds work in Chicago.

FICTION

• Anderson, M. T. Whales on Stilts; illus. by Kurt Cyrus. Harcourt. Gr. 3-6. (April)
  This way-out, smirkily comic adventure pits ten-year-old Lily and her friends against whales determined to take over the world.

• Edwards, Michelle. Stinky Stern Forever; written and illus. by Michelle Edwards. Harcourt. Gr. 2-4. (December)
  This unusual easy reader thoughtfully addresses the complicated emotions of a grade-school class that loses an often-unpleasant classmate to a car accident.

• Harper, Charise Mericle. Fashion Kitty; written and illus. by Charise Mericle Harper. Hyperion. Gr. 2-4. (December)
  In this exuberant graphic novel, young Kiki Kittie discovers her alter ego, the superhero Fashion Kitty, who flies the world to save its denizens from fashion faux pas.

• Jinks, Catherine. Pagan’s Scribe. Candlewick. Gr. 7-10 (April)
  In this concluding novel of the stellar four-volume Pagan series, the former squire is now an adult priest, trying to avert a bloody crusade and to lead prickly young Isidore as he himself was once led.

• Lubar, David. Sleeping Freshmen Never Lie. Dutton. Gr. 7-10. (October)
  After finding out that his mom is pregnant, earnest yet hapless freshman Scott begins writing his future sibling letters about his misadventures navigating high school.

• McKay, Hilary. Permanent Rose. McElderry. Gr. 5-9 (June)
  Multiple storylines about the Casson family (from Saffy's Angel and Indigo's Star) interweave in this account of the youngest daughter, Rose, and her yearning for distant loved ones.

• Shinn, Sharon. The Truth-Teller's Tale. Viking. Gr. 7-12 (September)
  Identical twins with opposite callings--one a Safe-Keeper, one a Truth-Teller--become entangled in their friend's romantic escapades and, without realizing it, the secret of the prince's future.

• Spillebeen, Geert. Kipling's Choice; tr. by Terese Edelstein. Houghton. Gr. 7-10. (June)
  This harrowing fact-based novel intercuts the last moments of John Kipling, son of writer Rudyard Kipling, in World War I with flashbacks exploring the life that led him to this end.

• Westerfeld, Scott. Peeps. Razorbill. Gr. 7-12. (September)
  "Peeps" are parasite-positives, also known unscientifically as vampires, in this clever contemporary fantasy where vampires are an epidemiological problem that must be controlled by a secret agency of professionals.

• Zusak, Markus. I Am the Messenger. Knofp. Gr. 9-12. (January 2005)
  In an intense and philosophical mystery, a teenaged cabdriver must interpret cryptic instructions to perform interventions in the lives of others, some strangers, some close to him.

NONFICTION

• Ball, Johnny. Go Figure!: A Totally Cool Book about Numbers. DK. Gr. 5-9 (December)
  This cornucopia of mathematical history, information, tidbits, and brain-teasers gives readers a rich and genuinely intriguing look at the field and practice of mathematics.

• Bartoletti, Susan Campell. Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow. Scholastic. Gr. 8-12. (June)
  Bartoletti deftly combines historical research with the voices of those living under the Third Reich to convey the multiplicity of their experiences, viewpoints, and fates.

• Bower, Tamara. How the Amazon Queen Fought the Prince of Egypt; written and illus. by Tamara Bower. Atheneum. Gr. 3-6 (April)
  This adaptation of an ancient Greco-Roman text combines history, mythology, and some seriously cool hieroglyphics to tell the tale of two enemy warriors won over by each other's valor.

• Cowley, Joy. Chameleon, Chameleon; illus. with photographs by Nic Bishop. Scholastic. Gr. 1-3 (April)
  Arresting nature photography joins succinct text to explain the daily challenges of a chameleon's life in the wild.

• Farrell, Jeanette. Invisible Allies: Microbes that Shape Our Lives. Farrar. Gr. 7-12 (April)
  Farrell provides a lively counterpoint to horror stories about microbes in this absorbing examination of their contributions, including bread, yogurt, and chocolate.

• Frank, Mitch. Understanding the Holy Land: Answering Questions about the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict. Viking. Gr. 6-10. (May)
  Using a clear, balanced approach and a simple question-and-answer format, Frank lays out the history, currents, and beliefs that have led to the current situation in Israel.

• Jenkins, Steve. I See a Kookaburra!: Discovering Animal Habitats around the World; written by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page; illus. by Steve Jenkins. Houghton. 4-8 yrs. (May)
  This survey of world habitats allows young viewers to discover animals amid a texture-rich covering of camouflaging vegetation, providing the potential for hours of exploration.

• Jurmain, Suzanne. The Forbidden Schoolhouse: The True and Dramatic Story of Prudence Crandall and Her Students. Houghton. Gr. 4-6. (November)
  Jurmain explores the battle of Prudence Crandall, a nineteenth-century schoolteacher, to run a school for young black women in the face of prejudice and resistance.

• Partridge, Elizabeth. John Lennon: All I Want Is the Truth. Viking. Gr. 9-12. (December)
  Eloquent photography enlivens this thoughtful chronicle of the often-difficult musican's complicated life.

• Sidman, Joyce. Song of the Water Boatman and Other Pond Poems; illus. by Beckie Prange. Houghton. Gr. 4-7. (July/August)
  Elegant illustrations and delicate, musical poetry offer a fresh take on the natural world that makes its home in and around a pond.

• Walker, Sally M. Secrets of a Civil War Submarine: Solving the Mysteries of the H. L. Hunley. Carolrhoda. Gr. 5-8. (June)
  A first-rate tale of scholarly sleuthing, this account of scientists' reconstruction of a submarine's history goes beyond well-told shipwreck narrative to uncover some surprises.

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