
Nebraska Golden Sower Award Nominee Titles 2015-2016
Sponsored by Nebraska Library Association’s School, Children’s, and Young People’s Section The GSA nominee list is developed by selection committees of volunteer readers representing classroom teachers, media specialists, and librarians in Nebraska. Each list is created from nominated titles sent in by participating libraries and schools from across the state. Local library or school officials are responsible for selecting books from these lists they feel are appropriate for the needs and interests of their patrons or students. Voting eligibility requires readers to have read or heard a minimum of four of the current nominees from the category in which they will be voting, Primary, Intermediate, or Young Adult.
2015-2016 Primary Nominees
1. Arant, Bruce. Simpson’s Sheep Won’t Go to Sleep. Illustrated by the author. Peter Pauper Press, 2013. ISBN 9781441313591 When Farmer Simpson tries to put his sheep to bed, they think of every excuse to stay awake. He finally thinks of a warm and cozy solution that will help lull the sheep to sleep.
2. Daywalt, Drew. The Day the Crayons Quit. Illustrated by Oliver Jeffers. Philomel Books, 2013. ISBN 9780399255373 When Duncan arrives at school one morning, he finds a stack of letters, one from each of his crayons, complaining about how he uses them.
3. Greene, Rhonda Gowler. No Pirates Allowed! Said Library Lou. Illustrated by Brian Ajhar. Sleeping Bear Press, 2013. ISBN 9781585367962 Big Pirate Pete’s treasure map has led him to Seabreezy Library, where Library Lou must convince him that the true treasure is the books.
4. Griswell, Kim T. Rufus Goes to School. Illustrated by Valeri Gorbachev. Sterling Children’s Books, 2013. ISBN 9781454904168 Rufus Leroy Williams III wants to go to school to learn to read, but the principal at first refuses because Rufus is a pig.
5. Isaacs, Anne. Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch. Illustrated by Kevin Hawkes. Schwartz & Wade Books, 2014. ISBN 9780375867453 In 1870, Tulip Jones, a wealthy, self-reliant widow from England, acquires the By-Golly Gully Ranch in Texas and soon finds herself saddled with 1,000 suitors.
6. Kulka, Joe. My Crocodile Does Not Bite. Illustrated by the author. Carolrhoda Books, 2013. ISBN 9780761389378 Ernest enters his talented crocodile in the school pet show.
7. Ludwig, Trudy. The Invisible Boy. Illustrated by Patrice Barton. Knopf Books for Young Readers, 2013. ISBN 9781582464503 Brian has always felt invisible at school, but when a new student, Justin, arrives, everything changes.
8. Miller, Pat Zietlow. Sophie’s Squash. Illustrated by Anne Wilsdorf. Schwartz & Wade Books, 2013. ISBN 9780307978967 A young girl befriends a squash.
9. Rocco, John. Super Hair-O and the Barber of Doom. Illustrated by the author. Disney Hyperion Books, 2013. ISBN 9781423121893 A boy fears that he has lost his super powers after a villain captures him and cuts the hair that he believes is the source of his strength.
10. Willems, Mo. That Is Not a Good Idea! Illustrated by the author. Balzer + Bray, 2013. ISBN 9780062203090 A surprising lesson about the importance of listening to one’s inner gosling ensues when a very hungry fox issues a dinner invitation to a very plump goose.
2015-2016 Intermediate Nominees
1. Balliett, Blue. Hold Fast. Scholastic Press, 2013. ISBN 9780545299886 [paperback: Scholastic Paperbacks, January 2015. ISBN 9780545299893] On a cold winter day in Chicago, Early’s father disappeared, and now she, her mother and her brother have been forced to flee their apartment and join the ranks of the homeless. It’s up to Early to hold her family together and solve the mystery surrounding her father.
2. Eddleman, Peggy. Sky Jumpers. Random House, 2013. ISBN 9780307981271 [paperback: Yearling Books, September 2014. ISBN 9780307981301] Twelve-year-old Hope lives in a post World War III town called White Rock where everyone must participate in Inventions Day, though Hope’s inventions always fail. Her unique skills come in handy when a group of bandits invades the town.
3. Grabenstein, Chris. Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library. Random House, 2013. ISBN 9780375870897 [paperback: Yearling Books, 2014. ISBN 9780307931474] Twelve-year-old Kyle gets to stay overnight in the new town library (designed by his hero, the famous gamemaker Luigi Lemoncello) with other students. When morning arrives they must work to solve puzzles in order to escape.
4. Harley, Bill. Charlie Bumpers vs. the Teacher of the Year. Illustrated by Adam Gustavson. Peachtree Publishers, 2013. ISBN 9781561457328 [paperback: Peachtree Publishers, September 2014. ISBN 9781561458240] Charlie Bumpers is sure that he does not stand a chance of getting along with his fourth grade teacher. Despite his best efforts to be neat and well-behaved, he always seems to be in trouble until he discovers her secret.
5. Hart, Alison. Darling: Mercy Dog of World War I. Illustrated by Michael G. Montgomery. Peachtree Publishers, 2013. ISBN 9781561457052 In Cosham, England, in 1917, Darling, a mischievous collie, must leave the children who love her when she is chosen for training as a mercy dog, seeking out injured soldiers on the battlefield and leading medics to them.
6. Lloyd, Natalie. A Snicker of Magic. Scholastic Press, 2014. ISBN 9780545552707 The Pickles are new to Midnight Gulch, Tennessee, a town which legend says was once magic. Felicity is convinced the magic is still there, and with the help of her new friend Jonah the Beedle she hopes to bring the magic back.
7. Lord, Cynthia. Half a Chance. Scholastic Press, 2014. ISBN 9780545035330 Lucy, with her mother and photographer father, has just moved to a small rural community in New Hampshire. With her new friend Nate she plans to spend the summer taking photos for a contest, but pictures sometimes reveal more than people are willing to see.
8. Shurtliff, Liesl. Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin. Knopf, 2013. ISBN 9780307977939 [paperback: Yearling Books, 2014. ISBN 9780307977960] This is the story of Rumpelstiltskin’s childhood, explaining why his name is so important, how he is able to spin straw into gold, and why a first-born child is his reward for helping the miller’s daughter-turned-queen.
9. Thompson, J.E.. The Girl from Felony Bay. Walden Pond Press, 2013. ISBN 9780062104465 [paperback: Walden Pond Press, September 2014. ISBN 9780062104472] When Abbey’s father falls into a coma and is accused of a crime he didn’t commit, Abbey sets out to prove his innocence and also repay a century-old debt.
10. Woods, Brenda. The Blossoming Universe of Violet Diamond. Nancy Paulsen Books, 2014. ISBN 9780399257148 [paperback: Puffin, January 2015. ISBN 9780147514301] A biracial girl finally gets the chance to meet the African American side of her family.
2015-2016 Young Adult Nominees
1. Bullard, Lisa. Turn Left at the Cow. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013. ISBN 9780544029002 [paperback: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, May 2015. ISBN 9780544439184] Thirteen-year-old Trav feels like a fish out of water in rural Minnesota in this mystery about a boy who discovers his dad may have been a bank robber.
2. Charbonneau, Joelle. The Testing. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013. ISBN 9780547959108 [paperback: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, January 2015. ISBN 9780544336230] Sixteen-year-old Malencia Vale is chosen to participate in The Testing to attend the University. However, she is fearful when she figures out her friends who do not pass The Testing are disappearing.
3.Engle, Margarita. The Lightning Dreamer. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013. ISBN 9780547807430] The story of Gertrudis Gomez de Avellaneda, a book-loving writer, feminist, and abolitionist who fought injustice in nineteenth-century Cuba.
4. Henry, April. The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die. Henry Holt, 2013. ISBN 9780805095418 [paperback: Square Fish, 2014. ISBN 9781250044372] She doesn’t know who she is, or where she is or why. All she knows when she comes to in a ransacked cabin is that there are two men arguing over whether or not to kill her—and that she must run
5. Lupica, Mike. QB 1. Philomel Books, 2013. ISBN 9780399252280 [paperback: Puffin, September 2014. ISBN 9780147511522] Fourteen-year-old Jake Cullen lives in the shadows of his father and older brother until he becomes the starting quarterback for the high school football team and finally has his chance to shine.
6. McNeal, Tom. Far Far Away. Knopf, 2013. ISBN 9780375849725 [paperback: Ember, 2014. ISBN 9780375843297] When Jeremy Johnson Johnson’s strange ability to speak to the ghost of Jacob Grimm draws the interest of his classmate Ginger Boltinghouse, the two find themselves at the center of a series of disappearances in their hometown.
7. Pileggi, Leah. Prisoner 88. Charlesbridge, 2013. ISBN 9781580895606 In 1885, ten-year-old Jake is sent to prison for killing a man who threatened his father, and struggles to survive the harsh realities of prison life in the Idaho Territory.
8. Sloan, Holly Goldberg. Counting By 7s. Dial Books for Young Readers, 2013. ISBN 9780803738553 [paperback: Puffin, September 2014. ISBN 9780142422861] Twelve-year-old genius and outsider Willow Chance must figure out how to connect with other people and find a surrogate family for herself after her parents are killed in a car accident.
9. Sullivan, Tara. Golden Boy. G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 2013. ISBN 9780399161124 [paperback: Puffin, 2014. ISBN 9780142424506] A Tanzanian albino boy finds himself the ultimate outsider, hunted because of the color of his skin.
10. Wiggins, Bethany. Stung. Walker & Co., 2013. ISBN 9780802734181 [paperback: Walker & Co., 2014. ISBN 9780802735898] When a vaccine to save endangered bees causes their sting to turn children into ferocious killer beasts, the uninfected build a wall to keep the beasts out, but Fiona wakes up on the wrong side of the wall.
Nebraska Golden Sower Award Nominee Titles 2015-2016 Sponsored by Nebraska Library Association’s School, Children’s, and Young People’s Section www.goldensower.org
