Row, Row, Row Your Boat Gently Down the Stream

This Monday post comes to you a bit later than usual -- firstly, because it's ALA award day, and I wanted to be able to link to the 2009 Caldecott, Printz, Newbery, et al winners; and secondly, because I wanted a little time to reflect.

Warm congratulations to all those who won awards and honors. Here's the list. I'm particularly thrilled that Melina Marchetta's Jellicoe Road won the Printz Award, which recognizes excellence in literature written for young adults. Jellicoe Road is a marvelous, complicated, sad, hopeful book. Well chosen, Printz committee! And The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart is a Printz Honor book -- yay! And I'd be raving about the other Printz books, as well, no doubt, except that I just haven't read them yet. :o)

Also, a very special congratulations to Elizabeth C. Bunce, author of A Curse Dark as Gold, the winner of the ALA's new Morris Award, which honors a book for teens written by a first-time author. The other finalists for the award were James Lecesne's Absolute Brightness; Christina Meldrum's Madapple; Jenny Valentine's Me, the Missing, and the Dead; and my Graceling :o) -- which is why I particularly wanted to mention Bunce's achievement. Curse is rich and gentle, with gutsy characters and a gorgeously-realized setting that's easy to drop yourself into; it happens to be a Rumpelstiltskin retelling; and it was one of my favorite reads of the year. Congratulations, Elizabeth! You make me proud to have been a finalist!

Today I have the oddest feeling: I feel that my life is a beautiful dream. No, I didn't win anything, but somehow, not winning anything shows me my blessings, if that makes any sense at all. What a blast to have been nominated for an ALA award. And what a gift I've been given in my life: the time to think, feel, reflect, and write.

Have you seen the minute-long video of dolphins playing with bubble rings? I'm going to share it today, because today it matches my mood. Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily; life is but a dream.



Congratulations, everyone! :o)

Comments

thatgirlwithwings said…
wowwa. i heart dolphins. howd they make the bubble rings?
this is my friend codename:kdb is now commenting:
dolphins are beautiful animals they always amaze me!!! the rings are crazy cool!!!
now im commenting (idotd).
congrats on getting nominated. didja win? if not, we still <3 u!!!!

"and i need something i can keep,"-sleep by meiko
January 26, 2009 at 3:56 PM
Shelli (srjohannes) said…
so glad you feel happy. YOu're book and journey is awesome and fun to watch. Hope I am close behind you :)
January 26, 2009 at 4:02 PM
Anonymous said…
Thanks for the video! Dolphins are pretty amazing. I found it quite interesting that most of the dolphins where attempting to go through the bubbles.. I'm not sure if I can communicate my thoughts on how I am relating their behavior to my life, but I will try. That kind of trying to "get through the hoop" is how I get lost in my life sometimes. I keep trying to jump through the hoops with popping any bubbles, and I then, I realize that sometimes, I was never meant to get through in the first place. I am trying to find a balance between the life that is possible (the hoops I get through) and the life that happens to pop every once in awhile. I only hope that I can stand each pop enough to continue writing my life "the way it's asking to be written" (per you).

I don't know why the dolphins struck me in that way. Hope it wasn't too odd.

Congrats on the nomination! I think you've partially fulfilled one endeavor of gaining some "perspective" in this new year.

Thanks again!
--Candelion
January 26, 2009 at 5:56 PM
Anonymous said…
You are very gracious--much more than me. I was really really hoping GRACELING would win one of the ALA awards. Instead, I am reminding myself that it has won the hearts of readers--too many to count.

a Katsa fan
January 26, 2009 at 6:19 PM
ICQB said…
Thanks for the video. Happy Bubble ring day to you!
January 26, 2009 at 6:26 PM
Emily said…
Hi,
I finished Graceling recently and was amazed. Are you sure this is your first book??? I absolutely adored it. You deserved the award, but I'm glad you're taking it well.

Looking at the list I'm amazed I've only read one other of these books, Nation by Terry Pratchett. (Which was an amazing book)

I better get to reading!
January 26, 2009 at 6:37 PM
mvagbulos said…
HI :)
I just finished reading GRACELING
a few days ago, and I just wanted to say that I ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT. I definitely CAN'T (literally :P) wait for its prequel. PLEASE KEEP ON WRITING :D xoxoxo nellie jelly x)
January 26, 2009 at 6:54 PM
Anonymous said…
I loved both Curse and Graceling, and if I had to choose one it would be Graceling, just because I thought it more easily appealed to a wider range of readers.

But, really, I was thrilled that two of my favorite books of the year were nominated...congrats! It's way more than I could hope to achieve if I ever get my own book published.

Congrats again, and thanks for the fantastic read!

hobbit
January 26, 2009 at 7:08 PM
BeyondTheIcyWalls said…
Hey I was just on fantasybookcritic.blogspot.com and I seen that a post was done about you or was it an interview? Anyways I just thought I would mention that I had notice you pop up on another part of the internet. :P
January 26, 2009 at 8:24 PM
Pam said…
Congratulations to you, for the well deserved nomination. Your book is fantastic and I look forward to reading more from you - October seems SO far away. :)
January 26, 2009 at 9:58 PM
Ronald L. Smith said…
Well.

I just discovered your blog via ...somewhere. I don't remember now.

I have to say Graceling sounds fantastic.

I will be buying it.

And just from snooping around I see Ira Glass. Yo Yo Ma. And lots of good writerly advice.

I think I will return.
January 27, 2009 at 5:58 PM
fena(: said…
hey,
thanks for the video!(:
great book, by the way.
really nice.
curse's great too but i prefer yours.
have a great day! (:
January 28, 2009 at 3:11 AM
cindy said…
congrats on all the recognition graceling had received and will continue to receive. =) it's going to be an exciting year!
January 28, 2009 at 6:57 PM
Anonymous said…
I haven't read any of those books, even though I've been meaning to read A Curse As Dark As Gold since it first came out.
Congrats! on being nominated!
January 28, 2009 at 9:09 PM
Kristin Cashore said…
Aw, thanks, everyone! Candelion -- not odd at all. I think it's great to realize that sometimes it's okay if the bubbles pop! Beyond, thanks for the head's up -- I should probably point that out to people. And to ICQB and everyone else, too -- happy Bubble Ring Day to all of you :o)
January 29, 2009 at 12:22 AM
JasmineRochelle said…
kristen i absolutely adore your book "graceling" it was AMAZING! i love it much more than the twilight series, i'm really looking forward to reading more of your books, i also write books of my own, but it's my dream to become a famous singer. i'm going to write a song for your book, in fact i'll do it tonight and paste it tomorrow if i have time! when your book is made into a movie please consider me! you know whats funny though, katsa reminded me so much of my friend they are exactaly alike, but she has two emerald green eyes.... anyways, i hope that you do read this comment, and remember me, i will be auditioning for americas got talent next month and really would love it if you root for me. i'm going to make a CD and would like your permission to put a song about your book in it!-JasmineRochelle
February 15, 2009 at 10:11 PM
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