In the United States, two of the most esteemed awards that can be given to children’s literature are the Caldecott and Newbery awards. Although both of these awards are geared towards highly esteemed children’s literature and are awarded to authors that are US citizens or residents, there are also many differences in the criteria for each of the awards.
In general, the Newbery awards seem to be given to books that are written for older children, whereas the Caldecott awards are given to books that are written for a younger audience. Although there is not a specific age level focus for either of the awards, they both seem to focus on a specific age level because of the nature of the literature.
Caldecott awards take large considerations into the pictorial representations of the plot and characters in the story. In order for a book to win a Caldecott award, the artistic techniques employed throughout the book are considered. The book must portray the story through pictures. Words are optional.
The Newbery award was the first children’s book award in the world. Newbery awards are given to authors who make esteemed contributions to children’s literature. Their writing must be original and thought provoking. The Newbery award is given as an incentive to encourage writers to write engaging, distinguished literature for children.
It is impossible to say whether one award is better than the other. Both awards are highly esteemed honors and celebrate creativity within children’s literature. Since the awards are very different in their nature, they are hard to compare with one another in the sense of value. If one values the pictorial display of a story more than the written form, then one would value the Caldecott awards more. If one values the insight of written work more than the pictorial, then one would value the Newbery more.
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