The Contemporary Jewish Museum (The CJM) the Ezra Jack Keats Foundation, the San Francisco Public Library (SFPL) and the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) are pleased to announce the winners of the fifth annual Ezra Jack Keats Bookmaking Competition on the West Coast! To promote the art and craft of original bookmaking in the classroom, students from San Francisco Public Schools in grades K through 12 were invited to design, write, and create their own books. 

Nearly eighty books from twenty-three schools were submitted and reviewed by our panel of judges. Judges ranged from writers to librarians to educators and included: Demetri Broxton, Director of Education, MOAD; Cristina Mitra, Family Engagement Coordinator, SFPL; Brian McMullen, Author and Artist; Liz Ozol, Program Officer, SF Arts Commission; Rachelle Resnick, Retired Supervisor, SFUSD Library Services; and Sophie Schwabacher, Curatorial Associate, The CJM.

This bookmaking competition is inspired by the work of Caldecott winner Ezra Jack Keats, the creator of over twenty children’s books, including the classic The Snowy Day. He was motivated to pursue a career as an author/illustrator as the result of an art achievement medal he received while attending public school in Brooklyn, New York.

Heartfelt thanks to all participating schools:

Alice Fong Yu, Aptos, Bessie Carmichael, Burton, Chinese Education Center, Fairmount, Francisco, Glen Park, Gordon Lau, Grattan, Jefferson, Longfellow, Malcolm X, McKinley, Redding, Rooftop, Roosevelt, SF Community, SF Montessori, Sloat, Starr King, Sunset, Yick Wo