Black Eyed Susan Award

What is the Black Eyed Susan Award? The Black-Eyed Susan Book Award is a children's choice award for the state of Maryland. Each year since 1992, the Black-Eyed Susan Book Award has been given to authors and/or illustrators of outstanding books chosen for the award by Maryland students.

How a book is selected Books may be fiction or nonfiction. Books must have a copyright date of the current year or one of the preceding three years and be readily available. Each title selected will have received positive reviews from appropriate professional journals. Books must have been read, discussed, and voted upon by the appropriate Black-Eyed Susan reading committee before being placed on the appropriate list.

Deciding a Winner Students who vote for the winning titles must have followed the "Guidelines for School Participation" before voting. Students may cast one vote for the book they consider to be the most outstanding book in each of the categories. All votes from schools across the state of Maryland are submitted to the Black-Eyed Susan Book Award committee to be tallied in order to determine the winners. The winning authors and/or illustrators receive an award engraved with the book title, the year, and the Black-Eyed Susan Book Award logo. Authors, illustrators, and publishers recognize the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award as an honor bestowed by Maryland student readers.

What category will I read for? Picture Books (must read 8 out of the 15) Grades 4-6 (must read at least 3 out of the 10) Grades 6-9 (must read at least 3 out of the 10) High School

Picture Books

Now & Ben : the Modern Inventions of Benjamin Franklin Presents the life and accomplishments of Benjamin Franklin, one of the nation's most beloved figures, credited with introducing bifocals, daylight savings time, lightning rods, and the establishment of post offices.

Who is Melvin Bubble? An introduction to six-year-old Melvin Bubble as presented by his family, friends, and others.

Bob and Otto Otto the worm is shocked to discover that his best friend Bob is actually a caterpillar who emerges one day as a butterfly.

Dogku When a homeless dog shows up at the back door, a family takes him in, feeds and bathes him, and names him Mooch, but as the day draws to a close, the kids await to see if Mooch will be allowed to become a new member of the family..

Martina the Beautiful Cockroach: a Cuban Folktale In this humorous retelling of a Cuban folktale, a cockroach interviews her suitors in order to decide whom to marry.

This Jazz Man Presents an introduction to jazz music and nine well-known jazz musicians, set to the rhythm of the traditional song, "This Old Man." Includes brief facts about each. musician

The Luck of the Loch Ness Monster : a Tale of Picky Eating Have you ever wondered how the loch ness monster came to be? Well this is the tale for you. A little girl is off on a long boat journey and has to eat oatmeal each morning. She hates the oatmeal and throws it over board when a tiny worm goggles it up! That tiny worm grows and grows and turns into "Nessie"

Knock, Knock! Presents a collection of "knock-knock" jokes featuring contributions from such writers and artists as Tomie dePaola, Saxton Freymann, Brett Helquist, and Laurie Keller..

The Chicken-Chasing Queen of Lamar County A young farm girl tries to catch her favorite chicken, until she learns something about the hen that makes her change her ways.

Rough, Tough Charley Stagecoach driver Charley Parkhurst spoke few words but rode many miles. Throughout the West, folks trusted and respected Charley despite his crusty demeanor. After years on the road and even losing an eye, Charley retired, bought a house, and joined the Odd Fellows. But only in death was Charley's life-long secret revealed.

Velma Gratch & the Way Cool Butterfly Velma starts first grade in the shadow of her memorable older sisters, and while her newfound interest in butterflies helps her to stand out, it also leads to an interesting complication.

Across the Alley Jewish Abe's grandfather wants him to be a violinist while African-American Wille's father plans for him to be a great baseball pitcher, but it turns out that the two boys are more talented when they switch hobbies.

Mind Your Manners, B.B. Wolf When B.B. Wolf, who now lives in the Villain Villa Retirement Residence, is invited to the library for a storybook tea, he is careful to follow the advice of his crocodile friend and impresses everyone with how polite he can be.

Scaredy Squirrel Scaredy Squirrel thinks about all the things that could happen to him if he left the safety of his home, but he has no choice when he accidentally drops his emergency kit.

Small Beauties : the Journey of Darcy Heart O'Hara Darcy Heart O'Hara, a young Irish girl who neglects her chores to observe the beauties of nature and everyday life, shares "family memories" with her homesick parents and siblings after the O'Haras are forced to emigrate to America in the 1840s.

Chapter Books (Grades 4-6)

The Puzzling World of Winston Breen Puzzle-crazy, twelve-year-old Winston and his ten-year-old sister Katie find themselves involved in a dangerous mystery involving a hidden ring. Puzzles for the reader to solve are included throughout the text.

No Talking The noisy fifth grade boys of Laketon Elementary School challenge the equally loud fifth grade girls to a "no talking" contest.

The Story of Jonas In the mid-1800s, a slave boy dreams of escaping to freedom while on a journey from Missouri to the gold fields of Kansas Territory with his master's n'er-do-well son.

The Ghost of Poplar Point Prompted by the ghost of a young Seneca Indian girl, twelve-year-old Allie and her friend Dub are determined, despite the opposition of an unscrupulous property developer, that the historical pageant celebrating the founding of their town tells the truth about the fate of the Seneca people who lived there during the Revolutionary War.

The Thing about Georgie Georgie's dwarfism causes problems, but he could always rely on his parents, his best friend, and classmate Jeanie the Meanie's teasing, until a surprising announcement, a new boy in school, and a class project shake things up.

Witch Catcher Having just moved into the West Virginia home they inherited from a distant relative, twelve-year-old Jen is surprised that her father is already dating a local antiques dealer, but more surprised by what the spooky woman really wants.

Out of Order For years, Lily was the oldest in her family; then, as soon as her mom married Frank and their two families blended together, Lily became a middle child. "Out of Order" looks at what it means to suddenly have a whole new family and a new place in the birth order. In this book, 4 kids, ages 9 to 15, have to learn how to adjust in order to get along and still keep their personalities (and their sanity!).

A Friendship for Today In 1954, when desegregation comes to Kirkland, Missouri, ten-year-old Rosemary faces many changes and challenges at school and at home as her parents separate.

How to Steal a Dog Living in the family car in their small North Carolina town after their father leaves them virtually penniless, Georgina, desperate to improve their situation and unwilling to accept her overworked mother's calls for patience, persuades her younger brother to help her in an elaborate scheme to get money by stealing a dog and then claiming the reward that the owners are bound to offer.

Big One-Oh Determined not to be weird all his life like his neighbor, Charley Maplewood decides to throw himself a tenth birthday party, complete with a "house of horrors" theme, but first he will have to make some friends to invite.