This is the fifth presentation of the award which was established in 1992 and is given every two years.

Del Negro, Janice. Lucy Dove. DK Publishing, 1998.
Del Negro rings feminine changes on "The Sprightly Tailor" in this lively, atmospheric story of a superstitious Scottish laird and the old seamstress who takes up his challenge to complete his "lucky" trousers by moonlight, in a haunted churchyard. Dismissed from the laird’s service when her nimble fingers grow slow, Lucy Dove wins her own pension in her reward for the lucky trousers. In language as nimble as Lucy’s own fingers, Del Negro draws an audacious heroine who braves a monster for "a comfortable old age, in a cottage of her own, on her own piece of shore."

Gershator, Phillis. Zzzng! Zzzng! Zzzng! A Yoruba Tale. Orchard Books, 1998.
"In the days when all things came together to make the world as it is...", Mosquito set out to find someone to marry. Spurned first by Ear, then Arm, and then Leg, Mosquito ultimately has his revenge. Another take on why mosquitoes buzz- and bite!- this is a rhythmic, repetitive, word-perfect retelling of a traditional Yoruba tale. Well-suited to the youngest of audiences and an excellent "story-stretcher" for audiences of any age, this really ZZZNGS!

Chief Lelooska and Christine Normandin. Spirit Of The Cedar People. DK Publishing, 1998.
These five tales of the world’s beginnings, rich in the spirit of the Kwakiutl people, sparkle with a stately humor and resonate with the beauty of first truths. Here Raven, Ant and Bear, puffins, halibuts and loons strut against the rugged backdrop of the Northwest Coast. Here animals and humans, one and the same, may change their shapes at will. Here legends unfold, making sense of the world and setting forth its rules. Alive with the "plenipotential" beings of an embryonic age, THE SPIRIT OF THE CEDAR PEOPLE is the embodiment of Martin’s THE WAY OF THE HUMAN BEING, below. At once particular and universal, it is a powerful and engaging reminder of who we are and where we have been.

Lunge-Larsen, Lise. The Troll With No Heart In His Body: And Other Tales Of Trolls From Norway. Houghton Mifflin Co., 1999.
The author, who grew up in Norway, tells nine troll stories in a wonderfully fresh and authentic voice. In her notes she shares her own childhood experiences: seeing trolls in the stark Scandinavian landscape, loving these scary yet comfortably familiar stories that embody such sturdy values as courage, endurance, following one’s dreams, and believing in the triumph of good over evil. This is a lovely and accessible collection by a popular storyteller who carefully details her sources and gives us the reasons for any changes and choices she has made so as to share the riches embodied in these ancient Norse tales, here and now.

Maguire, Jack. The Power Of Personal Storytelling: Spinning Tales To Connect With Others. J. P. Tarcher, 1998.
Professional stoyteller Jack Maguire calls on us to probe our memories for those personal stories which have shaped and given meaning to our lives. First he shares his own stories, then outlines step-by-step activities to get us going. Theory and practice merge in this eloquent and inspiring appeal. For experienced or would-be storytellers, and all who would seek to communicate more effectively, enhance personal and professional relationships, and understand themselves.

McKissack, Patricia and Frederick L. McKissack. Let My People Go: Bible Stories Told By A Freeman Of Color. Atheneum, 1998.
Struggling to make sense of the injustices she lives with in the ante bellum South, a young black girl draws nourishment from her father’s stories-both those from the Bible and those he weaves from the world of American slavery. Thus the tale of how Queen Esther saved her people is paired with one of a brave New Orleans woman who rescues a group of soon-to-be-auctioned slaves from a burning building, thereby revealing the fact that she has all the while been passing as white. With additional stories of ancient Jews--Moses, the Exodus, David and Goliath--paralleling those of African Americans, what emerges is a reading of the Bible that is as radiant and deeply felt as the hunger for freedom on American soil.

Martin, Calvin Luther. The Way Of The Human Being. Yale University Press, 1999.
When Europeans first landed on the American continent, they viewed indigenous Americans through an Anglo-European prism. For the next three-hundred years these newcomers missed, and worse, dismissed the storied, spiritual, lively, humorous, generous and profoundly intelligent world views of the first Americans. In this seminal work, Martin, drawing upon experiences living with Alaskan Eskimos and Navajos, introduces the reader to Indian worlds filled with grace, interrelatedness among all living and non-living things, and reciprocity, worlds that, above all else, were and are participatory. In these worlds, stories are the living tissue that binds, connects, reveals to us the many manifestations of life and how we humans may live in harmony and beauty. Martin illuminates what others who have worked with indigenous people on other continents have begun to process: indigenous wisdom, the dominant wisdom for 99% of human time, is eerily close to what scientists are discovering in Quantum Mechanics and Chaos theory, and, as such, has much to teach the modern world about the way of the human being.

Paye, Won-Ldy and Margaret H. Lippert. Why Leopard Has Spots: Dan Stories From Liberia. Raintree, 1998; Fulcrum Publishing, 1999.
An intriguing collection of authentic "how-and-why" tales from the Dan peoples of the western African nation of Liberia. Wrought with humor, these seemingly nonsensical animal stories are literary treasure-troves, rich in the storytelling tradition that marks the foundation of Dan culture. Embedded with African folklore, each witty story provides both listeners and storytellers with universal values and lessons to live by. A comprehensive glossary and a storytellers’ guide are welcome additions to this superb contribution to the rich legacy of the African storyteller.

Porte, Barbara Ann. Hearsay: Strange Tales From The Middle Kingdom. Greenwillow, 1998.
The author dazzles us with fantastic images taken from Chinese history and folklore, in this splendidly original array of tales. Court magicians, warrior crickets in jeweled cages, dragons who weep pearls, concubines with cherry lips, and a ghost peddling knishes in China’s long ago Jewish community parade across these pages, surprising us at every turn with their cleverness, courage and ability to survive life’s strangest twists of fate. For storytellers in search of material never heard before, as well as that which is as visual in nature as it is entertaining, this will truly be a find.

Prose, Francine. You Never Know: A Legend Of The Lamed-Vavniks. Illustrated by Marc Podwal. Greenwillow, 1998.
The town of Plotchnik has had no rain for forty days. The worthy townsfolk and their Rabbi pray in vain, until the shoemaker Schmuel--secretly called "poor stupid Schmuel" because of his senseless acts of generosity--adds his prayer. Then rain pours down for forty days and nights and they all pray for it to stop, without avail, until Schmuel prays again- and the rain stops instantly! The Rabbi ponders the question and learns the answer in a dream. Poor Schmuel, who has quietly left town after the "miracle", is one of 36 righteous men (the Lamed-vavniks) who according to ancient Jewish tradition live in the world unrecognized by their fellow men and whose prayers are always heard. Told with disarming simplicity, gentle humor, and absolutely no moralizing, this legend imparts its message about the power of prayer and the need for tolerance with memorable wit and grace.

Schwartz, Howard and Barbara Rush. A Coat For The Moon And Other Jewish Tales. Jewish Publication Society, 1999.
A glorious compendium of Jewish stories from around the world, these tales provide intriguing glimpses into the world of magic, the supernatural, enchantment, nature, and royalty. As playful as they are, the stories remain respectful of the entities they represent. The delightfully charming title tale personifies the moon: through perseverance, ordinary tailors take on the extraordinary task of creating a coat for the moon. They do succeed and so do these stories. The sky’s the limit, and these tales are sure to find a cozy way to warm the hearts of many.

Sobol, Joseph Daniel. THE STORYTELLERS’ JOURNEY: AN AMERICAN REVIVAL. University of Illinois Press, 1999.
Joseph Sobol, professional storyteller and folklorist, draws upon interviews with dozens of storytellers to chronicle the history of the past thirty years of American storytelling. He offers his readers an absorbing accounting of the nation’s search for myth and the concurrent development of the National Storytelling Association and its annual national storytelling festival. Cited are those individuals who have most vitally influenced the renaissance of storytelling in America, among them Carol Birch and Melissa Heckler, editors of Who Says? Essays on Pivotal Issues in Comtemporary Storytelling, who have called Sobol "our storytelling anthropologist. His book is original, insightful, and leavened with humor and compassion, offering a deep exploration of the territory we’ve traveled and a glimpse of future possibilities."

Yolen,Jane. Gray Heroes: Elder Tales From Around The World. Penguin, 1999.
Lamenting the dismal failure of popular culture to provide images of appealing, healthy, or heroic elders, we can rejoice at this collection of seventy-five tales edited by Jane Yolen. Her scholarly, yet entirely accessible, introduction provides an overview of common beliefs and folkloric motifs about old age. The stories from diverse cultures present older women and men whose lives remain vital and adventurous, whose hearts still love and quicken, whose minds are keen and lively. Newsweek called Jane Yolen the "Hans Christian Andersen of America" and The New York Times dubbed her the "Aesop of the twentieth century". We recognize her as a gifted storyteller and one of our own gray heroes.