The Christopher Award (established 1949) is presented to the producers, directors, and writers of books, films and television specials that "affirm the highest values of the human spirit".The Christopher Awards , The Christophers, Inc. Retrieved May 26, 2011. It is given by The Christophers, a Christian organization founded in 1945 by the Maryknoll priest James Keller.
Judging process Publishers, TV networks, and film directors are asked to submit titles and work that they believe to be award-worthy. Industry professionals and Christopher staff members make the final selections based on:
Artistic and technical proficiency Significant degree of public acceptance Affirmation of the highest values of the human spirit
Categories Christopher Leadership Awards Christopher Life Achievement Award Christopher Spirit Award James Keller Award Books for Adults Books for Young People Feature Films Television & Cable
Selection of previous winners/honorees
Christopher Leadership Awards 2002 Rudy Giuliani 2004 Father John T. Catoir 2005 Sargent Shriver 2008 Cardinal John Patrick Foley 2011 Scotty Smiley
Christopher Life Achievement Award 2003 Mary Higgins Clark 2004 Art Linkletter 2005 Robert Coles 2006 Dave Brubeck 2008 David McCullough 2012 Mother Dolores Hart 2016 Ernie AnastosThe 67th annual Christopher Awards Special Awards , The Christophers, Inc. Retrieved June 27, 2016. 2018 Ken Burns
Christopher Spirit Award 2016 When Calls the Heart
James Keller Award 2004 Caroll Spinney 2005 Pat LaFontaine 2011 Shannon Hickey 2012 Marty Lyons
Books for Adults
1987 Kaffir Boy: The True Story of a Black Youth's Coming of Age in Apartheid South Africa
2001 Aging with Grace, by David Snowdon, PhD (Bantam Books) Choosing Mercy, by Antoinette Bosco (Orbis Books) Freedom's Daughters, by Lynne Olson (Scribner) An Hour Before Daylight, by Jimmy Carter (Simon & Schuster) John Adams, by David McCullough (Simon & Schuster) Nickel and Dimed, by Barbara Ehrenreich (Metropolitan Books/Henry Holt and Company, LLC)
2002 Aging with Grace by David Snowdon, PhD Choosing Mercy by Antoinette Bosco Freedom's Daughters by Lynne Olson An Hour Before Daylight by Jimmy Carter John Adams by David McCullough Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich
2003 Choosing Naia: A Family’s Journey by Mitchell Zuckoff The Day the World Came to Town: 9/11 in Gander, Newfoundland by Jim DeFede Fatal Passage: The Story of John Rae, The Arctic Hero Time Forgot by Ken McGoogan Five Past Midnight in Bhopal by Dominique Lapierre & Javier Moro Jim's Last Summer: Lessons on Living from a Dying Priest by Teresa Rhodes McGee Standing on Holy Ground: A Triumph Over Hate Crime in the Deep South by Sandra E. Johnson
2004 A Human Being Died That Night by Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela If I Get to Five by Fred Epstein, M.D., & Joshua Horwitz The Life You Save May Be Your Own: An American Pilgrimage by Paul Elie My Heart Will Cross This Ocean: My Story, My Son, Amadou by Kadiatou Diallo & Craig Wolff My Path Leads to Tibet by Sabriye Tenberken Sisters: Catholic Nuns and the Making of America by John J. Fialka Triangle: The Fire That Changed America by David Von Drehle
2005 Anatomy of Hope by Jerome Groopman, M.D. Blood Done Sign My Name by Timothy Tyson The Freedom Line by Peter Eisner I Am a Pencil: A Teacher, His Kids, and Their World of Stories by Sam Swope Love in the Driest Season: A Family Memoir by Neely Tucker Mao's Last Dancer: A Memoir by Li Cunxin
2006 The Death of Innocents: An Eyewitness Account of Wrongful Executions by Sister Helen Prejean The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls One Soldier's Story: A Memoir by Bob Dole The Prison Angel: Mother Antonia’s Journey from Beverly Hills to a Life of Service in a Mexican Jail by Mary Jordan & Kevin Sullivan They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky by Benson Deng, Alephonsion Deng & Benjamin Ajak, with Judy A. Bernstein
2007 Barefootin': Life Lessons from the Road to Freedom by Unita Blackwell with JoAnne Prichard Morris Enrique's Journey by Sonia Nazario The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief by Francis Collins Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust by Immaculée Ilibagiza with Steve Erwin The Lemon Tree: An Arab, a Jew, and the Heart of the Middle East by Sandy Tolan My Life with the Saints by James Martin
2008 Brother, I'm Dying by Edwidge Danticat The Florist's Daughter by Patricia Hempl The Invisible Wall: A Love Story That Broke Barriers by Harry Bernstein The Lonely Patient: How We Experience Illness by Michael Stein, M.D. A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah A Slave No More: Two Men Who Escaped to Freedom by David W. Blight
2009 Alex & Me by Irene Pepperberg American-Made—The Enduring Legacy of the WPA: When FDR Put the Nation to Work by Nick Taylor Final Salute: A Story of Unfinished Lives by Jim Sheeler Founding Faith: Providence, Politics, and the Birth of Religious Freedom in America by Steven Waldman The Soloist: A Lost Dream, an Unlikely Friendship, and the Redemptive Power of Music by Steve Lopez Until Our Last Breath: A Holocaust Story of Love and Partisan Resistance by Michael Bart and Laurel Corona
2010 A. Lincoln: A Biography by Ronald C. White, Jr. Stones into Schools by Greg Mortenson Strength in What Remains by Tracy Kidder Wrestling with Moses: How Jane Jacobs Took on New York's Master Builder and Transformed the American City by Anthony Flint
2011 Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy by Eric Metaxas The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything by James Martin Thea's Song: The Life of Thea Bowman by Charlene Smith and John Feister Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand Washington: A Life by Ron Chernow
2012 A Good and Perfect Gift by Julia Becker An Invisible Thread by Laura Schroff and Alex Tresniowski I Shall Not Hate by Izzeldin Abuelaish Kisses from Katie by Katie Davis and Beth Clark Little Princes by Conor Grennan
2013 Carly’s Voice by Arthur Fleischmann and Carly Fleischmann Fearless by Eric Blehm A Good Man by Mark Shriver My Sisters the Saints by Colleen Carroll Campbell Road to Valor by Aili and Andres McConnon
2014 American Story: A Lifetime Search for Ordinary People Doing Extraordinary Things by Bob Dotson (Viking Press/Penguin Group) Love and Salt: A Spiritual Friendship Shared in Letters by Amy Andrews and Jessica Mesman Griffith (Loyola Press) The Miracle of Father Kapaun: Priest, Soldier, and Korean War Hero by Roy Wenzl and Travis Heying (Ignatius Press) On These Courts: A Miracle Season That Changed a City, a Once-Future Star, and a Team Forever by Wayne B. Drash (Touchstone Books/Simon and Schuster) Walk In Their Shoes: Can One Person Change the World? by Jim Ziolkowski with James S. Hirsch (Simon and Schuster)
2015 The Invisible Front: Love and Loss in an Era of Endless War by Yochi Dreazen (Crown Publishers).
2016The 67th annual Christopher Awards , The Christophers, Inc. Retrieved June 27, 2016. Five Years in Heaven: The Unlikely Friendship That Answered Life’s Greatest Questions by John Schlimm (Image Books/Crown Publishing) The Gift of Caring: Saving Our Parents from the Perils of Modern Healthcare by Marcy Cottrell Houle and Elizabeth Eckstrom (Taylor Trade Publishing/Rowman & Littlefield) One Righteous Man: Samuel Battle and the Shattering of the Color Line in New York by Arthur Browne (Beacon Press) Tough As They Come by Travis Mills with Marcus Brotherton (Convergent Books/Crown Publishing) Under the Same Sky: From Starvation in North Korea to Salvation in America by Joseph Kim with Stephan Talty (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) The Wind in the Reeds: A Storm, a Play, and the City That Would Not Be Broken by Wendell Pierce (Riverhead Books/Random House)
Books for Young People
2001 Ages 6–8: How Do Dinosaurs Say Good Night? by Jane Yolen, illustrated by Mark Teague (The Blue Sky Press/Scholastic Inc.) Ages 9–10: The Mousery by Charlotte Pomerantz, illustrated by Kurt Cyrus (Gulliver Books/Harcourt, Inc.) Ages 11–12: The Yellow Star by Carmen Agra Deedy, illustrated by Henri Sørensen (Peachtree Publishers, Ltd.) Ages 11–12: Hope Was Here by Joan Bauer (G. P. Putnam's Sons) Young Adult: The Wanderer by Sharon Creech (Joanna Cotler Books/HarperCollins Publishers)
2002 Kiss Good Night by Amy Hest with illustrations by Anita Jeram Ages 6–8: Beatrice's Goat by Page McBrier with illustrations by Lori Lohstoeter Ages 8–10: Love That Dog by Sharon Creech Ages 10–12: Uncle Daddy by Ralph Fletcher Young Adult: Soldier X by Don L. Wulffson and Witness by Karen Hesse
2003 People Mole and the Baby Bird by Marjorie Newman with illustrations by Patrick Benson Ages 6–8: Dear Mrs. Larue: Letters from Obedience School written and illustrated by Mark Teague Ages 8–10: The Ugly Princess and the Wise Fool by Margaret Gray with illustrations by Randy Cecil Ages 10–12: Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff Young Adult: Left for Dead by Pete Nelson
2004 Preschool: Little Bear’s Little Boat by Eve Bunting with illustrations by Nancy Carpenter Ages 6–8: The Dot written and illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds Ages 8–10: Harvesting Hope: The Story of Cesar Chavez by Kathleen Krull with illustrations by Yuyi Morales Ages 10–12: Iqbal by Francesco D’Adamo Young Adult: The Silent Boy by Lois Lowry
2005 Preschool: Never, Ever Shout in a Zoo by Karma Wilson with illustrations by Doug Cushman Ages 6–8: The Hungry Coat: A Tale from Turkey written and illustrated by Demi Ages 8–10: Shredderman: Secret Identity by Wendelin Van Draanen with illustrations by Brian Biggs Ages 10–12: The Teacher's Funeral: A Comedy in Three Parts by Richard Peck Young Adult: Thura’s Diary: My Life in Wartime Iraq by Thura Al Windawi
2006 Preschool: Am I a Color Too? by Heidi Cole & Nancy Vogl with illustrations by Gerald Purnell (Preschool) Ages 6–8: I Could Do That! Esther Morris Gets Women the Vote by Linda Arms White with illustrations by Nancy Carpenter Ages 8–10: Game Day by Tiki Barber and Ronde Barber with Robert Burleigh, illustrations by Barry Root Ages 10–12: Friendship According to Humphrey by Betty G. Birney Young Adult: Hitch by Jeanette Ingold
2007 Preschool: Hero Cat by Eileen Spinelli with illustrations by Jo Ellen McAllister Stammen Ages 6–8: How We Are Smart by W. Nikola-Lisa with illustrations by Sean Qualls Ages 8–10: The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo with illustrations by Bagram Ibatoulline Ages 10–12: Listen! by Stephanie S. Tolan Young Adult: Bread and Roses, Too by Katherine Paterson
2008 Preschool: Taking a Bath with the Dog and Other Things That Make Me Happy by Scott Menchin Ages 6–8: How Many Seeds in a Pumpkin? by Margaret McNamara with illustrations by G. Brian Karas Ages 8–10: Owen & Mzee: The Language of Friendship by Isabella Hatkoff, Craig Hatkoff, and Dr. Paula Kahumbu with photographs by Peter Greste Ages 10–12: The Wild Girls by Pat Murphy Young Adult: Diamonds in the Shadow by Caroline B. Cooney
2009 Preschool: Close to You: How Animals Bond by Kimiko Kajikawa Ages 6–8: That Book Woman by Heather Henson with illustrations by David Small Ages 8–10: Clementine's Letter by Sara Pennypacker with illustrations by Marla Frazee Ages 10–12: Shooting the Moon by Frances O’Roark Dowell Young Adult: Sunrise Over Fallujah by Walter Dean Myers
2010 Preschool: Ten Days and Nine Nights: An Adoption Story by Yumi Heo Ages 6–8: Nubs: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine & a Miracle by Major Brian Dennis, Kirby Larson, & Mary Nethery Ages 8–10: Most Loved in All the World by Tonya Cherie Hegamin with illustrations by Cozbi A. Cabrera Ages 10–12: Extra Credit by Andrew Clements with illustrations by Mark Elliott Young Adult: A Pearl in the Storm: How I Found My Heart in the Middle of the Ocean by Tori Murden
2011