Marvelous Cornelius Explained

Marvelous Cornelius:  Hurricane Katrina and the Spirit of New Orleans is a semi-biographical picture book written by Phil Bildner, illustrated by John Parra, and published August 4, 2015 by Chronicle Books. The book, which is based on a true story, follows Cornelius after he cleans up New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.

Reception

Marvelous Cornelius was met with praise, applauding the message of the impact of individuals' efforts. While some reviews discussed how the book served as a "stirring story of resilience in the face of adversity"^[1] or a "fine tribute to an unsung African-American hero,"^[2] others noted that the book "[e]mphasize[d] the vibrant life before Hurricane Katrina and makes the impact of the terrible flood."^[3]

Marvelous Cornelius received a starred review from Shelf Awareness,^[4] as well as positive reviews from Kirkus,^[2] School Library Journal, Booklist,^[3] USA Today.^[5]

Beyond popular media, Marvelous Cornelius has also been discussed in academic circles to review the stories told to children about working-class Americans and tragedy.^{[6] [7]}

Accolades for Marvelous Cornelius!Year!Accolade!Result!Ref.

N/A	Junior Library Guild	Selection	^[8]
2015	Cybils Award for Fiction Picture Books	Nominee
	Parents’ Choice Book Awards for Picture Books	Gold	^[9]
2016	Golden Kite Award for Picture Book Illustration	Winner	^[10]
	Bank Street College of Education Best Books of 2016	Selection	^[11]
	Children's Book Council's Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People, K–2	Selection	^[12]
	Margaret Wise Brown Prize in Children's Literature	Winner	^[13]
	International Literacy Association, Teacher's Choices Reading List	Selection	^[14]
2017-2018	Georgia Picture Book Award (K-4)	Nominee
2018	Association of Indiana School Library Educators' Read Alouds Too-Good-To-Miss	Selection	^[15]
	Louisiana Young Readers Choice Award, Grades 3-5	Nominee

Notes and References

1. Web site: Marvelous Cornelius: Hurricane Katrina and the Spirit of New Orleans. 2021-12-30. School Library Journal.
2. Web site: 2015-06-16. Marvelous Cornelius: Hurricane Katrina and the Spirit of New Orleans. 2021-12-29. Kirkus Reviews.
3. Web site: McDermott. Jeanne. 2016-01-21. Marvelous Cornelius: Hurricane Katrina and the Spirit of New Orleans. 2021-12-29. Booklist.
4. Web site: Brown. Jennifer M.. 2015-08-07. Marvelous Cornelius: Hurricane Katrina and the Spirit of New Orleans. 2021-12-30. Shelf Awareness.
5. Web site: Schrefer. Eliot. 2016-02-14. Kids' picture books celebrate black history. 2021-12-30. USA Today. en-US.
6. Burrow and Chrissy Cross. Lauren. Cross. Chrissy. October 2019. STREAMing Engineering: An elementary schoolwide endeavor to build young engineers prioritizes training teachers first. Science and Children. National Science Teaching Association. 57. 3. 78–84. 26901548 . JSTOR.
7. Klęczaj-Siara. Ewa. 2019. Protecting the Spirit of the American South: Representations of New Orleans Culture in Contemporary Children's Picture Books. Polish Journal for American Studies. 13. 281–292.
8. Web site: Marvelous Cornelius: Hurricane Katrina and the Spirit of New Orleans by Phil Bildner. 2021-12-30. Junior Library Guild.
9. Web site: 2015-04-22. Marvelous Cornelius. 2021-12-31. Phil Bildner. en-US.
10. Web site: 2016 Golden Kite Winners. 2021-12-30. Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. en-US.
11. Web site: Bank Street College of Education. Children's Book Committee. 2015-03-10. The Best Children's Books of the Year [2016 edition]]. 2021-12-29. The Center for Children's Literature.
12. Book: Notable Social Studies Trade books for Young People 2016. Children's Book Council. 2016. 4. English.
13. Web site: 2016-04-21. Hollins Announces Winners of the Inaugural Margaret Wise Brown Prize in Children's Literature. 2021-12-31. Children's Book Council. en-US.
14. Book: Teachers' Choice 2016 Reading List. International Literacy Association. 2016. 3. English.
15. Web site: Read Aloud Indiana Past Book List. 2021-12-31. Indiana Library Federation.