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The Mark Twain Award

The Mark Twain Readers Award, also known simply as the Mark Twain Award, is an award given annually to a book for children in grades four through six by the Missouri Association of School Librarians (MASL). Students in grades four through six in Missouri schools can vote for their favorite book from an annual list of nominees.  To be eligible to vote, a student must read at least four of the twelve nominees.  

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Students at WIS who read at least four of the books on the list will have a pizza party on their voting day.  If a student elects to read all twelve books on the list, he or she will receive two free books from the Spring Book Fair.

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The 1970 Newbery Medal winning book Sounder, by William H. Armstrong, was the inaugural winner of the award in 1972.

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The Truman Award

The Truman Award is an award given annually to a book for students in grades six through eight through the Missouri Association of School Librarians (MASL). Students in grades six through eight in Missouri schools who read at least four books are eligible to vote for their favorite book from an annual list of nominees.  

 

Vision:

The Truman Readers Award encourages students in their early teen years to express their unique voice through exploring new literary genres, communicating with their peers about young adult literature, and honoring authors writing for young teens.

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Requirements for Nominees:

  • Books should interest students in grades 6-8.

  • Books should be written by an author living in the United States.

  • Books should be of literary value and enrich children's lives.

  • Books should be published 2 years prior to the nomination (2017 for current nominees).

Voting:

  • Students must have read 4 of the nominee books to be eligible to vote.

  • Voting will occur early in March.

  • An online voting link will be provided on the MASL website for the librarian to submit votes for the entire student body.

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