After we picked the winner at our house Mock Caldecott last year, I wondered whether or not to try again this year. I'm so glad we did--it's my favorite social event. This is our fourth Mock Caldecott, and by now we have a core group of kids and adults (15 this year, just like the real Caldecott committee) who are familiar with the Caldecott terms and criteria and the discussion process (we use the CCBC book discussion guidelines).

The hardest part of my job as organizer is to select the books we'll consider (and make sure that I have copies on hand the day we meet). I aim for a diverse dozen or so, a mix of critical and personal favorites, a variety of media. Most of all, I hope the winner of the real Caldecott is somewhere on my list--so far it has been.

This year, our winner is Du Iz Tak? by Carson Ellis (Candlewick). 

We named three honor books:

• The Airport Book by Lisa Brown (Neal Porter/Roaring Brook Press)
• Leave Me Alone! by Vera Brosgol (Roaring Brook Press)
• The Tree in the Courtyard: Looking Through Anne Frank's Window by Jeff Gottesfeld; illustrated by Peter McCarty (Knopf)

Special mention goes to The Sound of Silence by Katrina Goldsaito; illustrated by Julia Kuo (Little, Brown), because I really liked it, too,

Will one of our choices win the Caldecott this year? There's not long now to wait and see....