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Outstanding Books for Young People with Disabilities
2011 Selection
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
Background
Many young people with disabilities cannot read or enjoy a regular book, or they do not manage to find suitable books among the many publications that might meet their needs.
They may therefore need especially produced books or regular books selected according to guidelines regarding design, pictures, language and plot structure. These guidelines should combine a profound knowledge of various special needs with criteria of literary and artistic quality.
There is a very close connection between culture and health. Being an instrument for communication and participation, literature has an important role to play in the development of our identity and quality of life.
Aims
IBBY is continuing this activity in order to give young people with disabilities, like other children, the opportunity to enjoy books and also open the way for their inclusion in society.
The aim, in particular, is to obtain a general overview of suitable quality books for young people with disabilities, to inform about such books internationally, and to make them more readily available.
Another important aim is to encourage the production, promotion and dissemination of suitable books: including books especially made for young people with disabilities as well as regular books serving special needs.
Another objective of the project is to promote books for young people that depict disabled people with an emphasis on similarities rather than differences, and which can give all readers the possibility of identification and understanding.
Presentation of the project
The new exhibition and book list will be launched at the Children's Book Fair in Bologna in April 2011. We are aiming at an international selection of approximately 50 titles in the following three categories:
I. Books produced specifically for young people with special needs published in 2006 or later
II. Picture books from the regular production selected according to special guidelines, published in 2006 or later
III. Picture books and novels from the regular children's book production that portray persons with special needs, published in 2006 or later
NB! Books of particular value published before 2006 may be nominated, provided that they have not been included in previous IBBY projects, and are still available.
Work plan
Nominations by the National Sections
IBBY National Sections can nominate books, which, in their opinion, qualify regarding literary and artistic criteria and follow the guidelines developed by the IBBY Documentation Centre of Books for Disabled Young People.
Forwarding books to the Documentation Centre in Oslo
The National Sections should forward one copy of each nominated title to:
Heidi Boiesen
IBBY Documentation Centre of Books for Disabled Young People
Haug School and Resource Centre
Baerum Municipality
NO-1304 Sandvika – Norway
Tel [int. +47] 67 16 40 00 / Fax [int. +47] 67 16 40 01
The books should reach the Centre no later than 15 October 2010. For each nominated book, please enclose the publisher's address and an accompanying note indicating that the title has been nominated for the 2011 project by the National Section of ..............
Following the assessment and selection process the Sections will be asked to provide two more copies of each selected book for the travelling exhibitions.
Final selection
The final selection of the titles for the exhibition and book list will be the responsibility of the project director. All submissions will be kept in the permanent collection of the IBBY Documentation Centre of Books for Disabled Young People in Norway.
Book list
The illustrated and annotated book list will be distributed worldwide by IBBY.
Exhibition
Because of the increased interest in the books and the work of the Documentation Centre three copies of each title selected will be requested. This will allow IBBY to be able to circulate two sets of exhibition books. The exhibition will be available on request from the IBBY Secretariat.
GUIDELINES FOR THE NOMINATIONS
General notes
If possible, please try to make nominations for each of the three categories. The number of titles should not exceed the maximum number prescribed for each category, unless agreed by the project director.
The nominated titles should primarily be fiction books. Non-fiction picture books may be accepted if they are of high artistic value.
Material intended only for teaching purposes should not be nominated.
We are in search of quality books: literary and artistic criteria should be carefully considered.
Please include relevant information about the nominated titles, for example, if they have won awards, or if a book has been tested and used with disabled people. Special bibliographies and reference books are also welcome.
NB! For books that are not written in English, the title should be translated into English and a summary in English given.
NB! It is very important to know whether or not the illustrations in the nominated books may be freely reproduced in the catalogue, therefore please check this with the publishers.
Special notes on each category
I. Books especially produced for young people with special needs
Total number of titles: four
Publication date: 2006 or later
Types of books sought:
a) Picture books with sign language illustrations
b) Story books with BLISS or pictograms (non-verbal communication systems, where words and concepts are represented by pictorial symbols, sometimes used with mentally disabled or people with physical disabilities)
1) Books with tactile pictures (raised pictures) that blind children can understand
NB! Braille books without illustrations should not be included
2) Tactile/textile books for young people with mental disability
3) Special «easy-to-read» books, particularly published for young people with disabilities, for example, for adolescents with mental disabilities
NB! General easy readers or easy reader series should not be included.
II. Picture books from regular production, selected according to special guidelines
Total number of titles: two
Publication date: 2006 or later
Primarily we have in mind: language-disabled young people and adolescents who have difficulties in understanding and using words and concepts; children and adolescents with poor visual perception who have difficulties in interpreting and understanding pictures; and, young people with poor motor skills.
The pictures of the books in this category should not be too complicated. Illustrations with clear colours and contrasts and without too many confusing details are suitable. Pictures that help develop language skills and general understanding may represent basic words, concepts, well-known objects, settings, situations and feelings or they feature the world around us and inform about society and other people.
A story told in pictures should be comprehensible by looking at the pictures and talking about them. Important books in this category are picture books with a «grown-up» look or story, suitable for language-disabled adolescents.
III. Picture books and novels portraying young people with special needs
Total number of titles: two, either two picture books or one picture book and one novel
Publication date: 2006 or later
Fiction books are preferred, but high quality non-fiction picture books are also accepted. The books in this category should be children's books that portray people with disabilities, children as well as adults, disabled persons being either the main characters of the story or secondary ones. We are looking for books that not only focus on the disability as such and the difference it makes, but also books that stress similarities by portraying the disabled person as one among many other human beings.
When selecting the entries, the special needs mentioned above should be considered in combination with the artistic and literary qualities. We hope to discover books that inspire joy, curiosity and imagination, as well as books that promote special skills, activities and artistic expression, such as motor skills, movement, drama, drawing, music, singing and dancing.
For additional information please refer to the catalogues "Outstanding Books for Young People With Disabilities" by Nina A. Reidarson (1997, 1999 and 2001) and "Outstanding Books for Young People With Disabilities" (2005, 2007, 2009) by Heidi Cortner Boiesen.
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