March 6, 2008


Lisa Shulman
PENGUIN GROUP (USA) Inc.
Academic Marketing Department
375 Hudson Street
New York, NY 10014-3657

Dear Lisa Shulman:

As a project at Penn State, each member of my class created children's book awards and each of my classmates nominated a book for each award. I am writing to congratulate you on winning the Tortoise Award for Excellence in Children's Literature celebrating struggle, hard work, and perseverance for your book, Over in the Meadow at the Big Ballet. This award was created by myself, Samantha Adams, a student in the Elementary Education Program.

The criteria for the Tortoise Award is to celebrate struggle, hard work, and perseverance. This award is given to your picture book because it best portrays a character, the little swan, who never gives up, who must pick herself up when down, and who has been able to conquer any obstacle thrown her way. Your book epitomizes how life is not simple and how sometimes things get tough. Your book has all of these components and so much more. This idea is pulled from Grace Chetwin's article "Creating Ethical Heroes Who Know How to Win: Or Muddling Through" from Susan Lehr's book "Battling Dragons." Chetwin says, "This gift of rising is an analog for having the power to transcend the narrow limits of society to take a broader view and to describe what lies beyond"(187).

I encourage you to continue writing these great books for children. Also, I would like to thank you for giving us the opportunity to share your book because it is truly a spectacular book with a strong message for our children. Congratulations for winning the Tortoise Award and I look forward to your future writing endeavors.


Sincerely,




Samantha Adams
Penn State Student

The Tortoise Award for Excellence in Children's Literature celebrating struggle, hard work, and perseverance is to be given to the picture book that best portrays a character who never gives up, who must pick himself up when down, and who has been able to conquer any obstacle thrown his way. This idea is pulled from Grace Chetwin's article "Creating Ethical Heroes Who Know How to Win: Or Muddling Through" in Susan Lehr's "Battling Dragons" on pages 175-193. Chetwin says, "This gift of rising is an analog for having the power to transcend the narrow limits of society to take a broader view and to describe what lies beyond" (187). The book that you will nominate must be a picture book for ages 5-9. This book should show how life is not simple and how sometimes things do get tough. It should also explain how the journey or the struggle is the destination. Please submit nominations by February 19, 2008.