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SEATTLE– Macmillan Audio, producer of the audiobook, “Sadie,” has won the 2019 Odyssey Award for Excellence in Audiobook Production. The award announcement was made today during the �������ϲʿ���app () Midwinter Meeting & Exhibits held January 25 - 29, in Seattle, Washington.

The Odyssey Award is given to the producer of the best audiobook produced for children and/or young adults, available in English in the United States. The award is jointly administered by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) and the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), divisions of the , and is sponsored by Booklist magazine.

“Sadie” written by Courtney Summers and narrated by Rebecca Soler, Fred Berman, Dan Bittner, Gabra Zackman, and more. Part true crime podcast part revenge road trip, “Sadie” is the story of a young girl as she seeks vengeance for her sister’s murder. The full ensemble cast brings together more than thirty voices, with Rebecca Soler authentically capturing Sadie’s stutter and angry, tortured emotions while Dan Bittner gives voice to radio journalist West McCray as he tries to piece together what has happened to Sadie.

“Sadie is the epitome of what an audiobook can do, elevating it to a whole new level. The two formats woven together should not be missed” said Odyssey Award Committee Chair Stephanie R. Charlefour.

The Odyssey Committee selected four Honor Audiobooks.

“Du Iz Tak” written by Carson Ellis, narrated by Eli and Sebastian D’Amico, Burton, Galen, and Laura Fott, Sarah Hart, Bella Higginbotham, Evelyn Hipp and Brian Hull and produced by Weston Woods Studios, a division of Scholastic.

Adorable children’s voices and music brilliantly enhance this unique story of backyard insects who communicate in their own language. This production helps listeners decipher the plot while sound effects and evocative music spark the imagination. An original song written for this production is a wonderfully “scrivadelly” bonus.

“Esquivel! Space-Age Sound Artist” written by Susan Wood, narrated by Brian Amador and produced by Live Oak Media.

The work of innovative composer Juan Garcia Esquivel is uniquely portrayed in this picture book biography by Susan Wood. Brian Amador’s narration, combined with tracks of space aged music and sound effects, presents a carefully orchestrated experience, with each element of the illustrations perfectly represented in stereo sound.

“The Parker Inheritance” written by Varian Johnson, narrated by Cherise Booth and produced by Scholastic Audiobooks.

In pursuit of the mysterious Parker inheritance, author Varian Johnson takes readers down a trail of clues spanning three generations of fear and discrimination in the American South. Narrator Cherise Boothe evokes an appropriate sense of time and place with her compelling cast of characters and authentic range of emotions.

“The Poet X” written and narrated by Elizabeth Acevedo and produced by HarperAudio, an imprint of HarperCollins Publisher.

Award-winning slam poet Elizabeth Acevado infuses her debut novel with palpable energy as she reads this coming-of-age tale. Acevado’s raw, rhythmic delivery is perfect for performing the novel’s free-verse poems, which describe Xiomara Barista’s transformation from an obedient young girl to a free-thinking young woman in Harlem.

Audiobooks constitute a fast-growing area of usage in libraries. The award is named after the epic poem titled, “The Odyssey,” that was told and retold in the oral tradition and eventually ascribed by the poet Homer on the tales of Ulysses as he returns to his kingdom after the Trojan War. The Odyssey Award allows us to return to the ancient roots of storytelling, while living in our modern world.

Members of the 2019 Odyssey Award Committee are Chair Stephanie R. Charlefour, Monadnock Regional School District, Swanzey, N.H.; Elizabeth Bast, Racine Unified School District - Starbuck Middle School, Racine, Wis.; Melanie Koss, Northern Illinois University Department of Curriculum and Instruction, Dekalb, Ill.; Jennifer L. Longee, Durham (N.C.) Academy Middle School; Andrea Lynn Pavlik, Huntington (N.Y.) Public Library; Jennie Grubb Randolph, Knox County Schools, Knoxville, Tenn.; Lynda Salem Poling, Long Beach Public Library, Long Beach, CA; Sara Saxton, Wasilla (Alaska) Public Library; and Ness Clarke Shortley, Horton Middle School, Pittsboro, N.C.

For information on the Odyssey Award and other Youth Media Awards, please visit .



About the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC)

The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) is driven by more than 4,000 members dedicated to the support and enrichment of library service to children. Our members include youth librarians, literature experts, publishers and educational faculty. ALSC supports its members in engaging communities to build healthy, successful, futures for all children. To learn more about ALSC and how to join, please visit our website at www.ala.org/alsc.

About the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA)

The mission of the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) is to support library staff in alleviating the challenges teens face, and in putting all teens ‒ especially those with the greatest needs ‒ on the path to successful and fulfilling lives. For more information about YALSA or to access national guidelines and other resources go to , or contact the YALSA office by phone, 800-545-2433, ext. 4390; or e-mail: yalsa@ala.org.

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