Miami alum and emeriti faculty serves on Batchelder Award committee
Miami alum and emeriti faculty serves on Batchelder Award committee
Brenda Dales, a ºÚÁÏÉçÇø alumna and emeriti faculty member, played a key role in selecting the winner of the 2025 Mildred L. Batchelder Award, an honor recognizing outstanding translated children’s books. As a , Dales helped evaluate international books throughout 2024 and participated in discussions at the American Library Association’s LibLearnX conference in January.
The committee selected John the Skeleton, originally published in Estonia, as the Batchelder Award winner, along with four honor books. The winners were announced at the Youth Media Awards in Phoenix on January 27.
ºÚÁÏÉçÇø celebrates Dales’ contributions to children’s literature and her role in recognizing exceptional global storytelling.
Explore the 2025 Batchelder Award-winning books
For those interested in exploring the outstanding children’s literature recognized by the Batchelder Committee, here are the selected books:
- Batchelder Award Winner: John the Skeleton by Triinu Laan, illustrated by Marja-Liisa Plats, translated by Adam Cullen, and published by Yonder (Restless Books for Young Readers). Originally published in Estonia as Luukere Juhani juhtumised.
- Batchelder Honor Books:
- Home by Isabelle Simler, translated by Vineet Lal (Eerdmans Books for Young Readers).
- Johnny, the Sea, and Me by Melba Escobar, illustrated by Elizabeth Builes, translated by Sara Lissa Paulson (Enchanted Lion Books).
- Mr. Lepron’s Mystery Soup by Giovanna Zoboli, illustrated by Mariachiara Di Giorgio, translated by Denise Muir (Candlewick Studio).
- A Sleepless Night by Micaela Chirif, illustrated by Joaquín Camp, translated by Jordan Landsman (Transit Children’s Editions).
These books showcase powerful storytelling from around the world, made accessible to English-speaking readers through expert translation.
(AI tools Grammarly and ChatGPT 4.0 assisted in writing this article.)