Junior Library Guild facts for kids
The Junior Library Guild is a special club that helps libraries get great books for young people. It used to be called the Junior Literary Guild. This club started way back in 1929. It was part of a bigger club called the Literary Guild, which was for adult books.
At first, the club sold books to families. But by the 1950s, most of its sales were to libraries. Because of this change, the name was updated in 1988 to the Junior Library Guild. This new name showed that libraries were their main customers.
Today, the Junior Library Guild is run by a company called Media Source Inc.. Their main office is in Plain City, Ohio. However, the team that chooses the books works in New York City.
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How Books Are Chosen
When the Junior Library Guild picks a children's book, it's a big deal! Publishers and authors often use this selection to show how good their books are. It's like getting a special award. Each year, the Guild chooses 492 different books.
Only a few people have been in charge of choosing books for the Junior Literary Guild over the years. The first editor was Carl Van Doren. After him, Helen Ferris took over in August 1929 and stayed until 1960.
Eleanor Roosevelt's Role
Helen Ferris worked closely with Eleanor Roosevelt. Eleanor Roosevelt was a very important person. She was the wife of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. She also served on the Junior Literary Guild's editorial board from 1929 until she passed away in 1962.
Eleanor Roosevelt was quite active in the Guild. For example, in 1938, she wrote in her newspaper column, My Day, about how important these books were. She shared a story from a postmaster in a mining town. He said that some families there, even when they didn't have enough food, never stopped getting their Junior Literary Guild books. This shows how much people valued the books.
After Helen Ferris, other editors included Ann Durell (until 1962), Thérèse Doumenjou (until 1970), and Marjorie Jones (until 1994). Marjorie Jones was the editor when the name changed to Junior Library Guild. The current editorial director is Susan Marston.
Famous Book Selections
The Junior Library Guild has chosen many popular and classic children's books over the years. These books have become favorites for many young readers.
Books Selected in 2004
In 2004, the Junior Library Guild shared a list of four classic children's books that they had chosen in the past. These include:
- Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey
- Horton Hears a Who! by Dr. Seuss
- Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder
- From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg
Another book that the Guild published was All Aboard We Are Off by Nura in 1944.
Book Selected in 2006
Magazines Published
The Junior Literary Guild also published its own monthly magazine. It was called Young Wings. This magazine was published from 1929 until 1955.
Later, the company that owns the Junior Library Guild, Media Source Inc., bought other important magazines. They bought The Horn Book Magazine in 2009. Then, in 2010, they bought Library Journal and School Library Journal. These magazines are well-known in the world of libraries and books.
