Several prestigious children’s book awards were announced earlier this week by the American Library Association, CNN reports. Some of the winners included: The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo won the 2004 Newbery Medal given for the year’s best writing. It tells the “story of a small mouse in love with a princess”. The Man Who Walked Between the Towers by Mordicai Gerstein won the Caldecott prize awarded for best illustration. It is about “a young Frenchman who in 1974 walked on a tightrope between the World Trade Center twin towers”. Several animated film projects currently in development started as award winning children’s books, including The Polar Express and The Three Pigs.