Author Tomie dePaola receives children’s literature award from UConn Libraries

The Thomas J. Dodd Research Center awarded the inaugural Northeast Children’s Literature Collection Distinguished Service Award to renowned children’s book author and illustrator Tomie dePaola during a ceremony on Nov. 10.

The award, which will be given periodically, recognizes an individual’s or organization’s distinguished and long-standing contribution to the field of children’s literature, and their support and contribution to the Northeast Children’s Literature Collection.

dePaola, a native of Meriden, is the author of Strega Nona and 26 Fairmount Avenue, winners of the American Library Association’s Caldecott and Newbery Honors respectively, and more than 200 other children’s books.

His books have been translated into more than a dozen languages and he has more than 6 million books in print.

dePaola has received the Smithson Medal from Smithsonian Institution, the Regina Medal from the Catholic Library Association. UConn awarded him an honorary degree in 1999.

dePaola donated manuscripts, drawings, and papers representing his creative output to the Northeast Children’s Literature Collection in 1999.

He has provided support for its organization and continues to add material on a regular basis.

In addition, he often appears at the Connecticut Children’s Book Fair, a fund-raising event that supports the Northeast Children’s Literature Collection.