Each year, the Minnesota Humanities Commission honors local writers and illustrators in the Minnesota Book awards. The books below were chosen as 2006 finalists in the children’s and young adult categories.
CHILDREN’S AND YOUNG ADULT NONFICTION
Marooned: The Strange But True Adventures of Alexander Selkirk, the Real Robinson Crusoe
By Robert Kraske, Stillwater, Clarion Books, ages 9-12
Daniel Defoe based his famous tale on the story of an English sailor named Alexander Selkirk, who survived on a deserted island.
Minnesota’s Capitol: A Centennial Story
By Leigh Roethke, Minneapolis Afton Historical Society Press
Beautiful illustrations and informative text make this book a fitting testimony to the Capitol building’s rich history.
Muhammad Ali: Genius
By Nick Healy, Mankato, Creative Education, ages 9-12
Nick Healy has written more than two dozen books about famous Americans and the symbols of our nation.
Wanda Gg: Storybook Artist
By Gwenyth Swain, St. Paul, Borealis Books
Gwenyth Swain, an accomplished children’s book author, writes a lovely tribute to Wanda Gg, the Minnesota-born artist and author of beloved books like Millions of Cats.
CHILDREN’S FICTION
A Bear Named Trouble
By Marion Dane Bauer, Eden Prairie, Clarion Books, ages 9-12
An animal-loving 10-year-old boy and a bear named Trouble cross paths in Anchorage, Alaska. Marion Dane Bauer’s book On My Honor is a Newbery Honor book.
Bridge to America: Based on a True Story
By Linda Glaser, Duluth, Houghton Mifflin, ages 9-12
This wonderful novel is rich in description and truthful in content. Based in 1920s Poland, the book will give young readers a chance to visualize a time in history when many people followed their dream to live in America.
The Counterfeit Princess
By Jane Resh Thomas, Minneapolis, Clarion Books, ages 9-12
This coming-of-age novel captures the spirit of 15-year-old Iris, who is forced flee her home after her parents have been killed.
Stinky Stern Forever
By Michelle Edwards, Iowa City, Iowa, Harcourt Children’s Books, ages 6-9
This book tells the poignant story of how a group of second-graders come to terms with the death of a classmate.
CHILDREN’S PICTURE BOOKS
Dear Big, Mean, Ugly Monster
By Ruth Marie Berglin, Mankato, Illustrated by Carl DiRocco, Reading, Mass.,Child & Family Press, ages 4-8
A humorous bond develops between a young boy and his under-the-bed monster after the boy writes a letter, telling the monster exactly how he feels.
Fold Me a Poem
Written by Kristine O’Connell George, Agoura, Calif., Illustrated by Lauren Stringer, Minneapolis, Harcourt Children’s Books, ages 4-8
In this beautifully illustrated book, a young boy experiments with origami to create some of the most unique creatures in the animal kingdom.
If Frogs Made Weather
Written by Marion Dane Bauer, Eden Prairie, Illustrated by Dorothy, Donahue, Colo.,Holiday House, ages 4-8
If frogs got to choose the weather, what would they pick? A young boy muses on that in a beautiful extended poem illustrated with textured paper collages.
Song of the Water Boatman & Other Pond Poems
Written by Joyce Sidman, Wayzata, Illustrated by Beckie Prange, Ely, Houghton Mifflin, Ages 4-8
This Caldecott Honor book explores ponds and wetland life through poetry.
YOUNG ADULT FICTION
All Rivers Flow to the Sea
By Alison McGhee, Minneapolis, Candlewick Press, grade 9 and up
Seventeen-year-old Rose copes almost alone when her sister Ivy is incapacitated in an accident.
Full Service
By Will Weaver, Bemidji, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, grade 8 and up
It’s the summer of 1965, and a rural Minnesota teenager watches the world pass through the Shell station where he pumps gas.
Invisible
By Pete Hautman, Golden Valley, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, grade 7 and up
An awkward, obsessive teenager has to face the awful secret of his past.
Just Like That
By Marsha Qualey, Eau Claire, Wisc.,Dial Books, grade 9 and up
Two teens grapple with a tragedy both witnessed on Minneapolis’ Lake Calhoun.
Resistance
By Janet Graber, Burnsville, Marshall Cavendish, grades 7-9
Marianne’s family works with the French Resistance during World War II and must hide an English soldier in their home.
