Who shall be our next National Ambassador for Young People's Literature?Vote in my sidebar for the names most commonly suggested on Read Roger, the blog of Roger Sutton, editor-in-chief of the Horn Book.
Mr. Sutton was invited to help choose a successor for the current ambassador, Jon Scieszka. In a nutshell, the selection committee wants a person like this:
An author or illustrator of fiction or nonfiction booksI'm traveling again but I'll be checking in to see your votes. For the poll, I gleaned the names most often suggested in response to the blog post at Read Roger and listed them in no particular order. (Not only is this poll unauthorized, it's unscientific, too! But fun, right?)
U.S. citizen, living in the U.S.
Excellent and facile communicator
Dynamic and engaging personality
Known ability to relate to children; communicates well and regularly with them
Someone who has made a substantial contribution to young people’s literature
Stature; someone who is revered by children and who has earned the respect and admiration of his or her peers
There's no guarantee that any of these people would accept the job even if offered it. I left off Shannon Hale and Cynthia Rylant, for example, because commenters mentioned they didn't travel, and Daniel Pinkwater opted himself out. Am I missing anyone else? Let me know and I'll add them.
Vote, steal/copy/modify the poll and put it on your blog, and head to Roger Sutton's blog to add a new name or echo somebody else's choice. I'll be back out on the Fire Escape on 8/13. Enjoy the fleeting days of summer 2009!