Michael L. Printz Award

For fifteen years, the Michael L. Printz Award has been given to books that display excellence within Young Adult literature. First given in the year 2000, the award honors one book every year, as well as naming up to four honor books alongside the winner. The Printz award was named after a librarian from Topeka, Kansas, who was not only a member of YALSA, but was also described to have real “passion for books and reading” (ALA). The award itself is sponsored by Booklist, which is a publication of the American Library Association.

The Printz award searches every year to find quality books, and has several criterion for doing so. One criterion for analyzing books for the award has to do with the genre. To be considered for the award, the book must be fiction, nonfiction, poetry, or an anthology. Another criterion for the award has to do with being able to recognize what is quality work. The analysts must consider things like genre, theme, story, setting, and characters, among other qualities to really find a quality book. The chair of the 2015 Printz committee, Diane Colson, wrote that she “realized that for each book the questions asked and the answers uncovered will be different. As a result the way these criteria are interpreted can be different from title to title” (Colson). Certainly, each winner of the award is very different. How I Live Now, by Meg Rosoff, won the Printz Award in 2005. Undoubtedly, it serves as an excellent example of the kinds of books that can win the award.

How I Live Now is a very intriguing novel, to say the least. It is work of fiction, first published in the year 2004. The main character, and also the narrator of the entire story, is a fifteen-year-old girl named Elizabeth. However, she promptly points out that she “has been more of a Daisy than Elizabeth from the word go” and has been called Daisy since birth (Rosoff 1). Daisy could be described as an average fifteen-year-old girl. Raised in New York City, she is fed up with her family situation. Her father and his girlfriend are due to have a new baby soon, and Daisy could not be less excited about it. To avoid the situation all-together, and to provide a new type of surrounding for her, Daisy is sent to England to live with her Aunt Penn and four cousins.

Living in England turns out to be more of a life-changing experience than Daisy bargained for. Her first few weeks are spent adjusting to life in England, as well as forming an intimate relationship with her cousin, Edmund. Edmund and Daisy quickly become infatuated with each other, spending much of their time in bed or just trying to be around each other. When their Aunt Penn is required to leave England for a few days, they do not think much of it, and instead take advantage of the alone time they are now allowed to have.

However, not long after Aunt Penn leaves, a war breaks out in England. Enemies infiltrate England, in something that is referred to as “The Occupation.” Things start to spiral slowly out of control at this point. With the war starting, Aunt Penn is now unable to return to England, leaving all of the children to fend for themselves. The children try to band together, but are eventually taken out of their Aunt’s home and separated, forcing Edmund and Daisy apart. Daisy must now fend for her life alongside her younger cousin, Piper. Every day is a struggle for Daisy and Piper, as they must learn how to survive on a small amount of food, as well as learn to cope with the amount of death going on around them.

Daisy and Piper want to reunite with Edmund and their other cousins, and spend much time and effort trying to do so. They follow footpaths and struggle to survive on very little food and water during their journey. However, before they can ever reunite with their cousins, Daisy is brought back home to America.

Daisy does not return to England until several years later, where she then finds that her Aunt Penn died near the beginning of the war, and that Edmund is in a state of depression. Edmund expresses his heartbreak over trying to find Daisy during the war, only to come back and realize she has been taken back to America. He feels that she left him alone. Daisy is deeply pained hearing this, as she had never wanted to leave to begin with. The novel ends with Daisy living in England, trying to repair her relationship with Edmund.

The novel sends several messages to the reader throughout the storyline. One key issue that was hinted to throughout the novel was the fact that Daisy had an eating disorder. Although never named, it was most likely anorexia. Several times in early parts of the novel she references food as something gross or unneeded. However, several months into the war, Daisy describes that “somewhere along the line (she) lost her will not to eat”, most likely due to the fact that food had become a very scarce luxury (Rosoff 159). Eating disorders are a very prevalent issue in young adults, and presenting it within the serious context of something like a war gives young readers perspective about it, in a way. It causes them to really think about the fact that something they take for granted, such as food, could easily disappear in a situation like Daisy’s.

Another thing that the novel really puts into context is how quickly one’s world can change. Daisy was presented in a way most normal teenagers would be able to relate to. The first thing she did when she got to England was check her phone, only to be annoyed by the fact it had no service. She makes references to taking for granted have clean clothes every day, or being able to take a bath. Only a few months later, she was concerned about even surviving through the next day. How I Live Now really puts perspective on the lives of young adults, as it forces the reader to come to reality with life in a war.

Overall, How I Live Now sends an empowering message to its readers. It shows young adults how they can grow in times of adversity, and become a stronger version of themselves. Daisy grows by hard work, and having to come to terms with death on a daily basis. While most readers will not have to experience this, it shows them that if Daisy can overcome in a situation like that, that they are also able to overcome any situation they may be in as well.

How I Live Now is an excellent choice for the winner of the Printz Award because it undeniably is an excellent piece of literature, which the award searches diligently every year for. Not only is the plot intriguing, but also the characters are presented in such a way that you cannot help but care about them. These qualities were mentioned as criteria for being a winner of the award, and are present in the novel in very strong ways. How I Live Now truly is an empowering piece of Young Adult fiction that will hopefully have an impact of young adults for years to come.

Works Cited:

“The Micahel L. Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature.” Yalsa. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Oct. 2015

Colson, Diane. ‘Selecting The Michael L. Printz Award.” Young Adult Library Services 13.3 (2015): 19-21. Academic Search Complete. Web. 16 Oct. 2015

Rosoff, Meg. How I Live Now. New York: Wendy Lamb Books. 2004. Print.