ALA embraces LGBT Lit @YA Awards

Author: Edit Team

November 5, 2010

Our friends at The American Library Association are including the newly-created Stonewall Children’s and Young Adult Literature Award to the org’s annual Youth Media Awards [via].

The award honors exceptional merit in English-language works relating to the gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgendered experience.

Ours is a very inclusive profession and we represent a wide variety of viewpoints,” said ALA president Roberta Stevens. “Millions of children in this country are being raised by gay or lesbian parents. There are young people who are gay and sometimes they feel very alone. This is a real opportunity for youths who may be feeling alone to read about other like themselves.

The Youth Media awards, announced in January, already include a variety of categories, such as African-American literature, lifetime achievement and best children’s audio book.

The first Stonewall Children’s and Young Adult Literature Award was awarded to Lambda Award finalist, Nick Burd, for his debut novel, The Vast Fields of Ordinary, earlier this year.