ATLANTA — The bestselling March graphic novel trilogy broke new records today by winning four major awards in the American Library Association's Youth Media Awards, more than any book in the awards' history. March: Book Three, the concluding volume by Congressman John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell, was announced as the winner of:
the Coretta Scott King Book Award (for outstanding African-American books for youth),
the Michael L. Printz Award (for excellence in young adult literature),
the Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award (for most distinguished informational book for children),
and the YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults.
These honors for March: Book Three follow closely on the heels of the National Book Award for Young People's Literature and the Walter Dean Myers Award for Outstanding Children’s Literature – Young Adult Category, making it the first book to win both the Printz and the National Book Award.
"I'm delighted and honored that America's librarians are supporting March with these awards," said Congressman Lewis. "I love books and I love librarians. When I was growing up I tried to read every single thing I could. I hope these awards will help inspire all of our young people — and some of us not so young — to read, to learn, and to act. March is a guidebook reminding us that we all must speak up and stand up for what is right, what is fair, and what is just."
The March trilogy, which depicts Lewis’s firsthand account of the Civil Rights Movement, has previously won such honors as the Robert F. Kennedy Book Award, the Eisner Award, two Harvey Awards, and a Coretta Scott King Author Honor. It is rapidly being adopted by universities and public school systems from New York to San Francisco, and recently spent six continuous weeks holding the top 3 spots on the New York Times Bestseller List.
Congressman Lewis accepted the YALSA Nonfiction Award on behalf of the three creators today at the ALA Midwinter Conference in Atlanta. The King, Printz, and Sibert Awards will be handed out in ceremonies at the ALA Annual Conference in June.