Library Book Awards
DRT Library Award Books Currently on Display
All of the winners of the June Franklin Naylor and Virginia M. Law Book awards are currently being displayed on the 1st floor display cases in the Bexar County Archives building where our DRT Library Collection is housed and will stay through the DRT Convention.
DRT Library Collection Book Awards
The June Franklin Naylor Award for the Best Book for Children on Texas History
The June Franklin Naylor Award for the Best Book for Children on Texas History is endowed by the family of June Franklin Naylor and sponsored by the Daughters of the Republic of Texas DRT Library Collection Committee. Mrs. Naylor was a former schoolteacher and long-time resident of Odessa and she served as President General of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas from 1989 to 1991. The award is presented annually to the author/illustrator of the most distinguished book for children, grades K-6, that accurately portrays the history of Texas, whether fiction or nonfiction. The winning book receives a monetary gift, the honor of a DRT Library book medallion for their book covers and an invitation to attend and receive their award at the Daughters of the Republic of Texas State Convention in May.
Award Recipients
2004 Cattle Trails and Cowboys by Sally Senzell Isaacs
2005 Buddy: The Story of Buddy Holly by Dr. Anne Bustard
2006 The Lady in the Blue Cloak by Eric Kimmel and illustrated by Susan Guevara
2007 Remember the Alamo: Texians, Tejanos and Mexicans Tell Their Stories by Paul Robert Walker
2008 Buffalo Music by Tracey E. Fern and illustrated by Lauren Castillo
2009 The Crimson Cap by Ellen Howard
2010 Crosswire by Dottie Enderle
2013 A Picture Book of Sam Houston by David A. Adler and Michael Adler and illustrated by Matt Collins
2018 Evangelina Takes Flight by Diana Nobles
2020 Sweet Child Born in Texas by Susan Giles and Dr. Kathleen Cooter
2021 Alamo Tree by Tana S. Holmes
General Guidelines for the June Franklin Naylor Award
The book must have been published for the first time within the calendar years specified. The exception to this rule is the reprint of an earlier book for children that is annotated or revised to make its story accessible to today’s students. Three (3) copies of the book must be submitted for each nomination. All books become the property of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas, and will not be returned. Publishers should submit entries published during the specified years, to the DRT Library Committee Chair and postmarked no later than November 30.
Entries are to be mailed to:
DRT Library Collection Committee Chair
DRT Headquarters
P.O. Box 6290
Austin, Texas 78762-6290
Selections will be made from books nominated. If no book nominated is considered to meet the listed criteria, no award will be presented. The text and illustrations should be of highest quality and accuracy.
A three-member panel of judges will be comprised of persons from the following categories: historians, teachers, school and public librarians, Library Science and Children’s Literature professors, library/educational coordinators, and DRT members with library science/education degrees who are approved by the DRT Library Committee Chairman. These judges will select the winning entry.
The winning book will receive a cash prize of $400, a framed certificate and the honor of having the DRT Library Collection Award Seal displayed on their books. If the winning entry has multiple authors and/or illustrators, the committee may choose to honor them singularly or together. If there is more than one honored, the cash award will be divided among them. Awards will be presented in May at the Historical Evening dinner during the Annual Conference of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas. Only the finalist will be notified prior to the awards ceremony. The award winner will be responsible for his/her travel expenses, but will attend the dinner as a guest of the DRT Library Collection Committee.
Questions should be directed to Headquarters
Ph: 512-339-1997
Email: [email protected]