Malinda Lo

This morning, the American Library Association announced the winners of its 2010 Youth Media Awards. You may remember that Ash was a finalist for the William C. Morris Award for debut YA fiction.

Well, Ash did not win. But Flash Burnout by L.K. Madigan did! I am so happy for Lisa, whom I’ve gotten to know over the course of the last year as a fellow Deb. Her novel is a warm, funny, spirited and moving story, and I loved it. The main character in her book is a 15-year-old boy, Blake, who deals with first love and first heartbreak, but perhaps not in the way you expect. It did what very few books have done lately: It made me cry. I extend my heartiest congratulations to Lisa on Flash Burnout‘s success.

Today is also Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. I just watched Dr. King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech, and I don’t know how many times I’ve heard it, but it affects me every time. It is inspiring; it is galvanizing. It is a reminder that we as a society have come so far, but we still have far to go.

If you’ve never heard the speech (or even if you have), it’s well worth the 15 minutes to watch it today: