Every year since 1959, Oklahoma children cast their votes on favorite books from a carefully cultivated list of current titles in order to choose the winner of the Sequoyah Book Award. One of the oldest children's choice literary prizes in the United States, the Sequoyah Award currently has three categories: children's, intermediate, and high school books. Take a look at this year's children's list titles!
2019 Children's Sequoyah Masterlist
Appropriate for children in grades 3-5. Children must read at least three titles from this list to be eligible to vote. Voting link can be found here.
1. Wishtree by Katherine Applegate. An old red oak tree tells how he and his crow friend, Bongo, help their human neighbors get along after a threat against an immigrant family is carved into the tree's trunk. A fantasy about wishes, immigrants, and talking animals that will appeal to fans of Applegate's "The One and Only Ivan." Available at TCCL in print, playaway, ebook, and downloadable audiobook.
2. Tiny Hero of Ferny Creek Library by Linda Bailey - A shiny green bug who is passionate about reading ventures out from behind the chalkboard in Mr. Wang's fourth-grade classroom when the disappearance of his aunt prompts a dangerous trek through an elementary school fraught with running sneakers, falling books, and terrifying spiders. A plot-driven, attention-grabbing, talking-animal fantasy that will appeal to adventure fans. Available at TCCL in print.
3. Crooked Sixpence by Jennifer Bell - Ivy Sparrow and her big brother Seb discover a city beneath London where ordinary objects have magical powers. A plot-driven fantasy with plenty of world building adventure that will appeal to fans of "The Chronicles of Narnia." Available at TCCL in print and audio CD.
4. Ivy by Katherine Coville - A young girl helps her grandmother care for magical creatures. A whimsical, feel-good fantasy with dragons that will appeal to fans of Ursula Vernon. Available at TCCL in print and ebook.
5. Dirt by Denise Gosliner Orenstein - When a cruel neighbor decides to sell her curious if out-of-shape Shetland pony for horsemeat, the pony's only friend, a scrawny 11-year-old girl, resorts to desperate measures to save him. Realistic fiction about animal rescue that will appeal to anyone who loves horses. Available at TCCL in print, audio CD, ebook, and downloadable audiobook.
6. Superstar by Mandy Davis - Enrolling in public school after years of homeschooling, Lester, a mildly autistic fifth-grader, struggles to adapt and manage symptoms before becoming eager to win a science fair. Amusing, ability-diverse realistic fiction that will appeal to fans of "Wonder." Available at TCCL in print and ebook.
7. Genevieve's War by Patricia Reilly Giff - In August 1939, Genevieve makes an impulsive decision not to get on the train to take her to a boat back to new York and must spend the duration of World War II with her grandmother in a small village in Alsace, France, where she becomes involved with the French resistance. An attention-grabbing World War II historical fiction that will appeal to fans of "The War that Saved My Life." Available at TCCL in print.
8. The Great Treehouse War by Lisa Graff - Fifth-grader Winner, with notes from her friends, writes of turning her treehouse into an embassy after her newly-divorced parents become unreasonable, where she is joined by nine others with complaints. Humorous, culturally diverse realistic fiction that will appeal to fans of "The View from Saturday." Available at TCCL in print, playaway, ebook, downloadable audiobook, and audio CD.
9. Someday Suitcase by Corey Ann Haydu - Sharing a best friendship forged over respective interests, Clover and Danny find their bond tested when Danny suddenly falls ill from a mysterious malady that requires numerous visits to the doctor, while Clover uses the scientific method to catalog Danny's symptoms and prove her usefulness to his recovery. A realistic, emotionally intense friendship story dealing with illness that will appeal to fans of "The Thing About Jellyfish." Available at TCCL in print, audio CD, and ebook.
10. Snow & Rose by Emily Winfield Martin - Snow and Rose search the forest for their missing father and discover there is a sinister magic at work in the woods. A fairy tale fantasy with lyrical prose that will appeal to fans of "The Girl Who Drank the Moon." Available at TCCL in print, audio CD, and ebook.
11. Sergeant Reckless by Patricia McCormick - A group of US marines fighting in the Korean War train a skinny, bedraggled little mare as a packhorse and discover that the underfed horse has one of the biggest and bravest hearts they've ever known. As cannons thundered and shells flew through the air, she marched into battle - again and again - becoming the only animal ever to officially hold military rank and receive two Purple Hearts. This nonfiction biography will appeal to history buffs and animal lovers. Available at TCCL in print.
12. How to Be an Elephant by Katherine Roy - This nonfiction picture book follows an elephant's growth from a newborn calf to a full-grown adult in one of the most socially and structurally complex family groups on earth. A nonfiction title with lovely illustrations that will appeal to fans of Steve Jenkins. Available at TCCL in print.
13. Lemons by Melissa Savage - Struggling to stay positive after the death of her mother, Lem moves in with the grandfather she has never met and befriends a kid detective who invites her to be his assistant as he tries to capture a photograph of Bigfoot. An amusing, character-driven story that takes place in the 1970s. Available at TCCL in print, audio CD, and ebook.
14. Joplin Wishing by Diane Stanley - Discovering magic in a beautiful Dutch platter that depicts the image of a girl, a middle-grade New Yorker wishes for a new friend before the girl depicted on the platter appears and reveals that she has been cursed for centuries and is being targeted by a sinister enemy. A suspenseful, plot-driven fantasy. Available at TCCL in print and ebook.
15. A Dog Like Daisy by Kristin O'Donnell Tubb - Given 10 weeks to prove her usefulness, a rescued pit bull trains to follow commands and tolerate a leash so that she can become an assistance animal to a military veteran struggling with PTSD. A moving, attention-grabbing story told from an animal's point of view that will appeal to fans of "The Incredible Journey." Available at TCCL in print and ebook.
By Tori Hamilton, Children's Library Associate, Glenpool Library
