I love the Monday in January when the ALA announces the winners of the Youth Media Awards. From about 11 a.m. on yesterday, our phone rang off the hook with collectors searching for first editions of the winners. I was at work and sadly, unable to keep up with the announcements as I got boxed out of the ALA’s live web stream. I resorted to Twitter and then finally, Elizabeth texted me the winners.
As fast as I could write the winning books down, people started calling me demanding answers: Do you have a first of 
The Freak Observer, winner of the Morris Award for debut young adult fiction? And I happily said, “Why yes, in fact we do.” I love it when we score a coup — not only did we have it, we’d featured it in our newsletter. (As an aside, the Association of Booksellers for Children picked this as one of our favorite debut novels of the year.) Two callers asked for the book, only if it was a first, and ours were, and then wanted to know what it was about.
When the Caldecott awards were announced the phone continued to ring. It’s funny to me that a lot of folks just couldn’t wait until all the awards were announced. They wanted to secure their firsts as soon as possible. While we 
only had one first of the winner, A Sick Day for Amos McGee, we hit a home run with Dave the Potter. The author, Laban Carrick Hill, is a friend of ours and he lives two towns away, so we had a case of firsts. This made me happy all day as I continued to fill orders. Not only did the book get a Caldecott Honor, it won a Coretta Scott King Award.
The Newbery award was a challenge, not just for us, but for all booksellers, if my collectors were any indication. I had three people calling 
in despair about Moon Over Manifest. One woman said she’d called bookstores in New York City, Connecticut and Los Angeles and not one store had it in stock. Judging by the conversations I’d had all day, this win was a bit of an upset. We scored again with One Crazy Summer for one collector, and I was heartened that we had Heart of a Samurai in, but only the second edition, which says to me we’ve been selling the book well; to collectors it means we’ve disappointed them. Dark Emperor was another one that came out of nowhere. I would have thought that one would have gotten a Caldecott. We only had one and that was thrilling for one customer, but had other collectors bummed.
I’ve sent off four packages today to our various collectors and have more going out tomorrow. It was really funny because one woman was so happy that we had four first editions that she was looking for and at the end of our transaction she said, “I have a question. What bookstore is this?” I told her she had called the Flying Pig and tried not to laugh. She sheepishly told me that she’d been calling through a list and had forgotten who she had dialed in her frenzy to get her firsts.
Collectors fascinate me. I’ve never understood collecting for collecting’s sake. I like to have books that have meaning to me. Plus, let’s face it, I’m never going to sell a book from my personal collection, and until I get a house with a massive library there’s just no way I can collect every award winner, but I’m sure glad other people can.
Josie, I think it’s funny that you think our library isn’t massive. This gives me hope that we can build a dedicated library in the backyard. One with wooden ladders to the high shelves and lots of window seats, and always ice-cold pitchers of lemonade or hot cocoa, and it smells like old libraries do, of lightly toasted sweet paper.
Just to say I’m thrilled about MOON OVER MANIFEST. I’m not a collector, but I DO have a first editon of my friend Clare’s book. Oh, and I was surprised to read that Josie thought the selection was something of an upset, as everything I’d been hearing placed it on the short list, and I was convinced from the moment I read the first draft that it was a Newbery. In fact, I’ve been going to libraries and bookstores warning them to stock more copies. WOW!
Hi, Lois! It’s not very often that a debut novelist takes home the big kahuna. That’s the only surprise, not that it’s a deserving book! It is a widely loved book. : )
Josie, I picked Dave the Potter for the CSK and Caldecott Honor almost from the minute I saw it! I think that Bryan out did himself in making magnificent paintings that totally extended the message of the words (Isn’t that the def. of the Caldecott?. As you know from our New Voices group, I loved Move Over Manifest, but was really surprised, although pleasantly, when it won!
I was totally disappointed that THE DREAMER did not get an Honor….
I also love this time of year. And I was convinced Moon Over Manifest would win an honor. I’ve been touting that book on my blog since last September. I’m thrilled for Clare Vanderpool that it won the gold medal itself. We sold out only recently but couldn’t get in more copies even last week when I tried.
Fortunately, we had plenty of copies of A Sick Day for Amos McGee in stock.
Here in PA, we’re thrilled for Amy King getting a Printz honor for Please Ignore Vera Dietz (which I’ve also pushed on my blog — and I wanted it to win the top award) and since she was here recently, we have plenty of signed copies in stock!
Elizabeth, your dream library sounds wonderful. Window seats, sigh.
I’m just impressed that you ship!
So are they looking for books that don’t have the stickers yet? I’m torn, I love those stickers. Hm.
🙂
e
We out here in the Midwest are always delighted when a hometown author(well, six hours away is reasonably close out here!) makes a name for themselves. We should, however, have taken Clare up on her offer to visit last fall as I’m sure now she will be much too busy for a while to drop by Omaha!! Congrats to all the winners and to the booksellers who had them in stock!!