The Tennessee Association of School Librarians

Volunteer State Book Award

From 1978-1988, this award was named the Tennessee Children's Choice Book Award and was made available only to students in grades four through six. The first winner was Thomas Rockwell for How to Eat Fried Worms. In 1988, the award was expanded to include all grade levels and four awards were announced: for grades K-3, 4-6, 7-9, and 10-12. Finally, in 1992, the structure was modified to reflect what it is today: three awards, one for primary grades, one for intermediate grades, and one for young adult (YA) readers.

The 2006-2007 winners of the award are:

• K-3  Big-Enough Anna: the Little Sled Dog that Braved the Arctic by Pam Flowers with Ann Dixson. Illustrated by Bill Farnsworth. Alaska Northwest Books, 2003.
  
• 4-6  The Old Willis Place: A Ghost Story by Mary Downing Hahn. Clarion Books, 2004.
  
• 7-12 One of Those Hideous Books Where the Mother Dies. Simon & Schuster, 2004.
  

More information about the Volunteer State Book Award--including a ballot form--can be downloaded from Kathy Patten's VSBA home page.

ITS UNIQUE FEATURE
The Volunteer State Book Award differs from awards such as the Newbery and Caldecott Medals in that students choose the book which receives the award each year. Tennessee students from Kindergarten through Twelfth Grade read or have read to them at least three of the twenty titles on the annual master list. They then vote for their favorite book.

WHO MAY PARTICIPATE?
Any public or private school in Tennessee is eligible to participate. It is not required that the entire school be involved. Each participating school must have a minimum of twelve of the twenty titles per division available.

HOW BOOKS ARE CHOSEN
Twenty books appealing to students in each grade category are selected by professional librarians and educators who work continuously with students in grades K-12. Four separate lists are compiled each year.

• Books may be fiction or nonfiction.
• Only one title of any one author will be included on that year's list.
• Only titles published in the five years prior to the year of voting will be eligible.
• Only books by authors residing in the United States are eligible.
• Textbooks, anthologies, translations, and books from foreign publishers are not eligible.
• All books on the final list will have been read by a minimum of two members of the committee.

• Any student who has read or had read to him or her a minimum of three of the twenty books will be allowed to vote.
• The library media specialist will conduct the voting.
• Votes are cast in the Spring of each school year, prior to the annual Tennessee Library Association conference.

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  Past Winners of the Volunteer State Book Award

1978-1979
Rockwell, Thomas. HOW TO EAT FRIED WORMS. Watts, 1973.
1979-1980
Cleary, Beverly. RAMONA AND HER FATHER. Morrow, 1977.
1980-1981
Hall, Lynn. SHADOWS. Follett, 1977.
1981-1982
Blume, Judy. SUPERFUDGE. Dutton, 1980.
1982-1983
Byars, Betsy. THE CYBIL WAR. Viking, 1981.
1983-1984
Howe, James. HOWLIDAY INN. Atheneum, 1982.
1984-1985
Carris, Joan. WHEN THE BOYS RAN THE HOUSE. Harper & Row, 1983
1985-1986
Park, Barbara. OPERATION: DUMP THE CHUMP. Knopf, 1982.
1986-1987
Park, Barbara. SKINNYBONES. Knopf, 1982.
1987-1988
Smith, Robert Kimmel. THE WAR WITH GRANDPA. Delacorte, 1984.

• Grades K-3: Schwartz, Alvin. IN A DARK, DARK ROOM. Harper, 1984.
• Grades 4-6: Hahn, Mary Downing. WAIT TILL HELEN COMES, A GHOST STORY. Clarion, 1986.
• Grades 7-9: Paulsen, Gary. DOGSONG. Bradbury, 1985.
• Grades 10-12: Voigt, Cynthia. IZZY, WILLY-NILLY. Atheneum, 1986.

• Grades K-3: Seeger, Pete. ABIYOYO. Macmillan, 1986.
• Grades 4-6: Wright, Betty Ren. CHRISTINA'S GHOST. Holiday House. 1985.
• Grades 7-9: Killien, Christi. PUTTING ON AN ACT. Houghton, 1986.
• Grades 10-12: Duncan, Lois. LOCKED IN TIME. Little, 1985.

• Grades K-3: Cole, Joanna. MAGIC SCHOOLBUS AT THE WATERWORKS. Scholastic, 1986.
• Grades 4-6: Naylor. Phyllis Reynolds. BEETLES, LIGHTLY TOASTED. Atheneum, 1986.
• Grades 7-9: Shusterman, Neal. THE SHADOW CLUB. Little, 1988.
• Grades 10-12: Deaver, Julie. SAY GOODNIGHT, GRACIE. Harper, 1988.


1991-1992

• Grades K-3: Arnold. Tedd. NO JUMPING ON THE BED! Dial, 1987.
• Grades 4-6: Sachar, Louis. THERE'S A BOY IN THE GIRLS' BATHROOM. Knopf, 1987.
• Grades 7-9: Bunting, Eve. A SUDDEN SILENCE. Harcourt, 1988.
• Grades 10-12: Duncan, Lois. DON'T LOOK BEHIND YOU. Delacorte, 1989.

• Grades K-3: Carle, Eric. THE VERY QUIET CRICKET. Philomel, 1990.
• Grades 4-6: Sachar, Louis. WAYSIDE SCHOOL IS FALLING DOWN. Camelot, 1990.
• Young Adult: Hall, Lynn. THE KILLING FREEZE. Morrow, 1988.

1993-1994

• Grades K-3: Wahl, Jan. TAILY PO. Holt, 1991.
• Grades 4-6: Bunting, Eve. OUR SIXTH GRADE SUGAR BABIES. Lippincott, 1990.
• Young Adult: Duncan, Lois. DON'T LOOK BEHIND YOU. Delacorte, l989.

1994-1995

• Grades K-3: Locker, Thomas. LAND OF GRAY WOLF. Dial, 1991.
• Grades 4-6: Blume, Judy. FUDGE-A-MANIA. Dutton, 1990.
• Young Adult: Cooney, Caroline. THE FACE ON THE MILK CARTON. Bantam, 1990.

1995-1996

• Grades K-3: Trivizas, Eugene. THE THREE LITTLE WOLVES AND THE BIG BAD PIG. Macmillan, 1993
• Grades 4-6: Wright, Betty Ren. THE GHOSTS OF MERCY MANOR. Scholastic, 1993.
• Young Adult: Deuker, Carl. HEART OF A CHAMPION. JoyStreet, 1993.

1996-1997

• Grades K-3: Pilkey, Dav. DOGZILLA. HarcourtBrace, 1993.
• Grades 4-6: Robinson, Barbara. THE BEST/WORST SCHOOL YEAR EVER. HarperCollins, 1994
• Young Adult: Haynes, Betsy. DEADLY DECEPTION. Delacorte, 1994.

• Grades K-3: Pilkey, Dav. HALLO-WIENER. Scholastic, 1995.
• Grades 4-6: Strasser, Todd. HELP! I'M TRAPPED IN MY TEACHER'S BODY. Scholastic, 1994
• Young Adult: Cooney, Caroline. DRIVER'S ED. Delacorte, 1994.

1998-1999

• Grades K-3: Meddaugh, Susan. MARTHA CALLING. Houghton Mifflin, 1994.
• Grades 4-6: Naylor, Phyllis Reynolds. SHILOH SEASON. Atheneum, 1996.
• Young Adult: Draper, Sharon. TEARS OF A TIGER. Simon & Schuster, 1994

1999-2000

• Grades K-3: Arnold, Tedd. PARTS. Dial, 1997.
• Grades 4-6: Gutman, Dan. MILLION DOLLAR SHOT. Hyperion, 1997.
• Young Adult: Paulsen, Gary. BRIAN'S WINTER. Delacorte, 1996.

2000-2001

• Grades K-3: MacDonald, Margaret. Pickin' Peas. Illustrated by Pat Cummings. HarperCollins, 1998.
• Grades 4-6:  Sachar, Louis. Holes. Farrar, Straus, Giroux, 1998.
• Young Adult: Duncan, Lois. Gallows Hill. Bantam, 1997.

2001-2002
 

• Grades K-3: Lester, Helen. Hooway for Wodney Wat. Illustrated by Lynn Munsinger. Houghton Mifflin, 1999.
• Grades 4-6: Curtis, Christopher Paul. Bud, Not Buddy.  Delacorte, 1999.
• Young Adult: Anderson, Laurie Halse. Speak. Farrar Straus Giroux, 1999.
Vande Velde, Vivian. Smart Dog. Harcourt Brace, 1998.

2002-2003

• Grades K-3: Howard, Arthur. Cosmo Zooms. Harcourt, 1999
• Grades 4-6: DiCamillo, Kate. Because of Winn-Dixie. Candlewick, 2000.
• Young Adult: Cabot, Kate. The Princess Diaries. HarperCollins, 2000.

2003-2004

• K-3 Baby Bee Bee Bird by Diane Massie
• 4-6 Love That Dog by Sharon Creech
• 7-12 The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares

• K-3 Epssomundus by Colleen Salley, Illustrated by Janet Stevens
  
• 4-6 Ruby Holler by Sharon Creech
  
• 7-12 The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer

• K-3  Bad Boys by Marge Palatini, Illustrated by Henry Cole
  
• 4-6   The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
  
• 7-12 Eragon by Christopher Paolini

• K-3 Big-Enough Anna by Pam Flowers with Ann Dixson. Illustrated by Bill Farnsworth
• 4-6  The Old Willis Place: A Ghost Story by Mary Downing Hahn
• 7-12 One of Those Hideous Books Where the Mother Dies by Sonya Sones.