Do award winning books neglect girls?

A study of Caldecott Medal winners undertaken by J. B. Hurst in 1981 found that "children's picture books present a biased, sexist view of women" ("Images in Children's Picture Books" in Social Education, 45, pp138 - 143) Hurst and other researchers have suggested that girls and women are portrayed as weak and submissive or are not central characters in books that win most of the awards. Plan a systematic survey of award winning books over a ten to twenty year period. Analyze the main characters—both male and female--and detail their character traits. What characteristics do you consider important to look for in the illustrations? In the written text? Determine if the representation of gender in award winning books has changed since 1981 and tell how you think so.