Everything Newbery

Temporary abondonment

2008-05-09T19:03:00.000-07:00

I've decided to temporarily abandon this blog, simply because it's slowing me down quite a lot. Perhaps sometime in the future I'll start it up again, but for now, I'm planning to give it a rest.

Newbery on YouTube?

2008-04-24T20:33:00.000-07:00

Browsing on YouTube, I found this two part video on the Newbery Award. It's kind of interesting, if you have the time to watch it.

Cool things on this video: Lloyd Alexander!

This video has a couple of really cute parts with some students performing poems from the Newbery Winner A Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices by Paul Fleischman.

Your Official Update on My Progress

2008-04-19T20:38:00.000-07:00

I’m a little over one-fifth of the way through this project, and I must admit, the going is getting tough. This is probably due to several reasons.

One, frankly, is this blog. The added step of writing a formal book review for every book I read has been slowing me down. I thought about quitting this blog for a while, for the sake of finishing the project, but I’ve decided to try to stick it out for a while. If I ever disappear, though, you’ll know why.

The other big reason I haven’t been as enthusiastic about reading the Newbery books is that I haven’t come across one that I really loved in a long time. Early in the project, I had some real moments like that, where I said, “Wow, I can’t believe I haven’t ever read this book before!” But it’s been a long time since that has happened. I’ve liked a lot of books, but not loved them.

I almost have the feeling that I’ve already read all of the really good books on the list. Which seems highly unlikely when I think of it clearheadedly, because I still have 280 books to go.

I’d love to hear some favorites from the Newbery list. In fact, if anyone wants to go to the extra work, you could click on the “View my progress” link on the sidebar and look at the books I’ve already read. If you find a book that you really like, and I haven’t read it yet, do tell me so. I could use the encouragement.

Hence, my reading has wandered somewhat from this project, and on to other subjects. There’s so much good stuff out there! But I’m going to discipline myself more. In the month of May, I hope to read at least five Newbery books. That sounds achievable, does it not?

In the month of April, however, I think I might be out of luck…

Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O'Brien

2008-04-17T19:06:00.000-07:00

1972 Newbery Winner
Finished 1-2-07

Mrs. Frisby the mouse is faced with a real dilemma. Her youngest son is sick with pneumonia and is too weak to move from the house. Yet Mrs. Frisby must find a way to move him, for very soon the farmer will plow up the field in which her family is living. Desperate for help, she visits the owl for advice. He tells her that there is just a chance that the rats might help her. Her deceased husband did them a service once.

Mrs. Frisby is quite surprised to hear this. What connection could her husband have had with rats? Nevertheless, she goes to visit the rats’ headquarters. And it is then that she hears a very surprising story, about her husband, and the rats of NIMH.

The biggest problem I had with this book was the balance between the stories of Mrs. Frisby’s dilemma with her son and the rats of NIMH. I wished the author had focused more on either one or the other of the stories, rather than balancing pretty much equally between the two. That part just didn’t work so swell for me.

However, the writing was good, and I wouldn’t be one to deny that this was a very exciting book. I wouldn’t hesitate to hand it over to a kid.

There were some unsatisfactory loose ends, but I understand that the author’s daughter, Jane Leslie Conly, wrote a sequel called Rasco and the Rats of NIMH. If someone was really dying to find out what happened, and wasn’t a real purist, that could be read in conjunction with this book.

From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg

2008-04-15T18:56:00.000-07:00

1968 Newbery Winner
Finished 12-30-06

Claudia has been developing a master plan for weeks. She is going to run away to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, find some excitement, teach her parents to appreciate her, and come home. Oh, and she’ll take her younger brother Jamie, because he happens to be the rich one in the family. The plan is executed, but it takes an unexpected turn when the museum acquires a statue of an angel, supposedly sculpted by Michaelangelo, that fascinates Claudia. She is determined to find the true origin of the statue.

When talking about this book, a point that a lot of people bring up is the utter lack of concern that Claudia and Jamie have for how their parents will feel when they turn up missing. And it’s true, that did bother me a bit. I ended up feeling like the author was kind of ignoring the issue. It would have added a whole new dimension to the book had she dealt with that, and my guess is that she simply didn’t want to go into that. After a little bit of thought, I decided that definitely wasn’t something worth getting up in arms over.

Claudia and Jamie were portrayed well. They displayed a moderate amount of sibling irritation towards each other, yet this was shown in almost a humorous way. Their relationship had elements of realism, but never turned overly sour. I was glad for that. I didn’t want to read a book all about sibling rivalry.

I liked this book a lot, but didn’t love it as much as many others do. Still, it was a worthy Newbery book, and the enthralling idea of “running away” to a museum will keep its appeal for many generations of kids.

Quotable ~ The Golden Goblet

2008-04-12T16:31:00.000-07:00

“'Then all my wishes have been carried out,' the queen was saying. 'Excepting one.' She paused and leaned forward; her tone changed a little. 'Ranofer the son of Thutra, all is well in the tomb of my beloved parents because of you and your courage. I wish to reward you. Tell me, what do you crave most in all the world? You have only to ask for it.'

Ranofer lifted wide, incredulous eyes. He could ask for anything? Anything? Visions of golden collars and vast palaces flashed through his mind, and then out again. He knew what he wanted.

'Your Majesty,' he said tremulously, 'could I have a donkey?'”

The Golden Goblet by Eloise Jarvis McGraw, page 247

Read my review here

The Hero and the Crown by Robin McKinley

2008-04-10T18:01:00.000-07:00

1985 Newbery Winner
Finished 12-28-08

I feel extremely guilty writing this review. See, everywhere I look, people love this book. They identify with the main character, they love the excitement, and so on. And the truth of the matter is—I didn’t. So if you’re a big fan of this book, you may want to read no further. Because I dislike it for a very silly reason.

However, summaries first. Aerin is the daughter of the king, but she doesn’t feel like she has a place with the royalty. The people whisper that her mother was a witch. On top of that, Aerin doesn’t display “the Gift”, like all persons of royal lineage are supposed to do. She decides to make her place by taking up a very dangerous occupation—that of a dragon killer.

It sounds ridiculous, but I believe that reason behind my apathy for this book is because of the author’s use of semicolons. They were everywhere! It seemed like practically every other sentence contained a semicolon. I don’t know if that was an effect the author created on purpose, but it drove me a little zonkers. Okay, a lot zonkers. For me, the semicolons often created the feel of a run-on sentence. I would think, “How can this sentence go on so long?” Then I would look at it more closely, and there would be a semicolon plopped in the middle of it.

I sincerely thought of giving this book another try, simply because so many seem to like it. Then I picked it up at the library, flipped it open, and saw a few of those semicolons. Already a feeling of annoyance was creeping over me, so I decided to call it quits on this one.

I do have to read The Blue Sword, the book’s sequel, as it is on the Newbery list as well. I’m hoping to like it better; if I can just get past those semicolons…

P.S. I just looked at the reviews for this book on GoodReads, and not a single person mentioned semicolons! *sigh* Am I crazy?

Carry On, Mr. Bowditch by Jean Lee Latham

2008-03-12T15:31:00.000-07:00

1956 Newbery Winner
Finished 12-25-08

Our family owns this book, and as such, I’ve read it several times throughout the years. Funny story: it took me for-ever to figure out that Nathaniel Bowditch was a real person. I always thought it was just a nice story about some fictional guy. I don’t really remember when I discovered that Nathaniel Bowditch actually lived—I just remember sputtering to my sister over it. She was pretty amazed that I’d never figured it out.

At any rate, the book is a retelling of the life of Nathaniel Bowditch, a man who did much for the art of navigation in the 1700s. Nat loves working with numbers, but at the age of twelve, he is forced to drop out of school and become indentured for nine years. Yet he refuses to give up. Using hard work and perseverance (what he calls “Sailing by the ash breeze”), he teaches himself all he can about mathematics and things related to it. In addition, he learns three new languages—all the result of plain hard work.

After his indenture is over, Nat signs on a ship. There he learns about navigation and teaches the common men on the ship that they, too, are smart enough to learn how to navigate if only they work hard enough. He soon becomes disgusted with the quality of the books of that day on navigation, and makes it his goal to write a book that even the unschooled seaman can understand.

I’m not sure whether it’s good or bad that it took me so long to figure out this wasn’t a fictional book. I’m inclined to think it’s good. The author worked the facts so smoothly into the book, that I obviously didn’t even notice. It’s filed in the biography section in one of my local libraries, but it doesn’t read like a long list of facts. The author created fictitious dialogue, so it isn’t strictly a facts book at all. It’s more like the story of his life. I, for one, really like that effect.

The character of Nathaniel Bowditch is definitely memorable. His sister claimed that he couldn’t even “pay a compliment without arithmetic”, he was so enamored with mathematics. Jean Lee Latham brought him alive for me, and for that reason, Carry On, Mr. Bowditch makes my top ten list.

Crispin: The Cross of Lead by Avi

2008-03-06T15:53:00.000-08:00

2003 Newbery Winner
Finished 12-18-06

I remember when I first started working at my local library, one of the librarians, in an attempt to find out what I liked to read, asked me if I liked Avi. Avi, I thought. Who in the world is Avi? And why does he have such a weird name? The conversation slipped from my mind until I saw this book on the Newbery list and picked it up. Oh yeah, the guy with the weird name.

Crispin is a wolf’s head. Anyone can kill him without getting into trouble. How did this come about? Well, Crispin doesn’t really understand it himself. He was accused of a crime he didn’t commit, and forced to flee for his life. A man named John Aycliffe seems to be behind all this trouble. Crispin does his best to protect himself, but John Aycliffe is a powerful man. Will Crispin’s wits, and the help of his new friend Bear, be enough to keep him alive?

I was predisposed to like this book, because the cover flap promised adventure. Those types of Newbery books seem to be more of a rarity, and I usually enjoy the ones I come across. And sure enough, the book delivered what I was expecting. It wasn’t ever slow or boring.

The other thing that I really enjoyed about this book was the time period it was set in. It gives an interesting picture of the Medieval age—and not the glamorous one with knights and ladies either. It was quite realistic and kind of a revelation to me that things weren’t as sappy sweet back then as sometimes is implied.

So, now I know who Avi is. I must say, I enjoyed this book quite a bit, and directly after reading it, resolved in my Newbery notebook that I would try more of this author.

My Top Ten List

2008-03-03T16:55:00.000-08:00

After I mentioned in my review of The Giver that it would be on my top-ten list of Newbery books, I thought, "Hey, it might be kind of fun to make a top-ten list." So I did.

Please understand that I'm not trying to say that these are the best Newbery books. I'm saying that they're my personal favorites. I absolutely know that someone else's list would look completely different.

Also, this list is incomplete, for the simple reason that I've got, oh, 200 something more books to read. Ha. Yeah. I'm planning to repost the list about once a month, and tell whether it has changed and why.

Without further ado, here is my top-ten list of favorite Newbery books. It includes both Winner and Honor books. The books are listed in no particular order.

The Giver by Lois Lowry, review here

I love the way this book is so accessible, yet it makes me think. It has the perfect balance between the two.

The Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander
and
The High King by Lloyd Alexander

I debated about putting two books from the same author AND the same series on this list, but in the end I couldn't help it. I love Lloyd Alexander. His characters captured me and I'm still as enthusiastic about them now as when I first read the books.

Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo

I loved this book for its sweetness and simplicity, and for its awesome characters.

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle, review here

The impulsiveness of Meg. The creepiness of IT. The triumphant ending. Okay, mainly the triumphant ending. All these combined to make an unforgettable book for me.

Charlotte's Web by E.B. White, review here

The slightly comical tone of this book is one of the reasons I like it so much. Among many other things.

Carry On, Mr. Bowditch by Jean Lee Latham

This might seem like a slightly odd choice, but me and this book have a long history. I've been rereading it since I was a kid, and it's always held up. Very enjoyable.

Princess Academy by Shannon Hale

I knew as soon as I saw the cover of this book that I was going to like it. And like it I did.

These Happy Golden Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder

Fine, I admit it. Sometimes I fall into a big, wet, sloppy puddle over a romance. This is one of those times. Awwwww.

Holes by Louis Sachar

Why do I like this? Does the fact that it's fun count?

I can't wait until I get to kick a book off this list, just because it means that I'll have found another book to drool over, to force in front of the noses of all my friends and relatives. It will be great fun.

The Giver by Lois Lowry

2008-02-29T19:06:00.000-08:00

1994 Newbery Winner
Finished 12-14-06

Jonas lives in a world as near to perfect as it can be made. Every citizen of his community respects every other citizen. Each person has his or her place. The community runs like a well-oiled machine. Jonas is perfectly happy with this—until. Until he meets the Giver. Suddenly Jonas’s wonderful perception of his community begins to rust away, flake by flake.

When I started out reading the Newbery Award and Honor books, I was basically rereading. I didn’t want to spend a whole lot of time going “Well, I read this about five years ago. Should I count that as having read it for this project?” So I just decided to reread everything. We had quite a few Newbery books laying around the house, so I gathered them into a pile, and using the highly scientific method of eeny-meeny-miny-moe, began reading. None of the books were really new or exciting to me.

The Giver was one of the first Newbery books that I borrowed from the library, one that I hadn’t read yet. I think I’d kind of heard of it. But really, I wandered into it unawares, and came out grinning like some kind of overly happy clown. Looking back in my Newbery notebook, I see that I babbled somewhat incoherently about how great it was after I was finished.

What can I say about this book that hasn’t already been said by dozens of other reviewers? I can tell you why I think it clicked for me. It was the mixture of depth and accessibility. When I think of a “serious” book, words like “slow-moving” and “dull” come to mind. That’s probably a wrong assumption—but that’s a topic for another post. What I liked about The Giver was that it actually moved. Yet it also made me use my brain, and challenged ideas I had taken for granted.

If you haven’t read the book, you may not want to read this paragraph of the review. I want to give my opinion on the ending. A lot of people seem to dislike it because of its ambiguity. Me? I don't mind not knowing what happened to Jonas. It's obvious to me that he is going to be fine. I want to know what happened to the people he left behind. What about Asher and Fiona? And Jonas’s family? Do they change for the better? Those were the questions I wanted badly to be answered.

If I had a top-ten list of Newbery books, this would make the cut. Is that recommendation enough?

Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse

2008-02-19T19:08:00.000-08:00

1998 Newbery Winner
Finished 12-14-06

The dust bowl is hard for Billie Jo and her family, but they still have each other, and Billie Jo can lose herself by playing the piano. Then an accident occurs, and everything changes. Bereft of so many things important to her, Billie Jo struggles to deal with the circumstances she finds herself in.

The word that comes to mind when I think of this book is “raw”.

I don’t mean like unpolished, or any of that stuff. I mean, it almost hurts to read it. None of the words are wasted, and as such, they pack a powerful enough punch to knock you down. The emotions aren’t excessive, but they’re so undiluted that they sort of take your breath away.

I’m slightly allergic to books written free verse. After all, why write a book with all those funny little lines when you could just put them in perfectly nice paragraphs? Much more organized. I won’t say that this book won me over to free verse, but I will say that I don’t think this book would have been nearly as good had it not been written in free verse. So if you, like me, are a little worried about the format of this book, I would give it a try anyway. I think most will like it.

Mr. Popper's Penguin's by Richard and Florence Atwater

2008-02-15T18:36:00.000-08:00

1939 Newbery Honor
Finished 12-13-06

When Mr. Popper, a dedicated Polar expedition fanatic, tunes in to the broadcast of the Drake Antarctic Expedition, he gets the surprise of his life.

“’That’s nothing,’ said Mrs. Popper. ‘Just a lot of men at the bottom of the world saying “Hello, Mamma. Hello, Papa.”’

‘Sh!’ commanded Mr. Popper, laying his ear close to the radio.

There was a buzz, and then suddenly, from the South Pole, a faint voice floated out into the Popper living room.

‘This is Admiral Drake speaking. Hello, Mamma. Hello, Papa. Hello, Mr. Popper.’

‘Gracious goodness,’ exclaimed Mrs. Popper. ‘Did he say “Papa” or “Popper”?’

‘Hello, Mr. Popper, up there in Stillwater. Thanks for your nice letter about the pictures of our last expedition. Watch for an answer. But not by letter, Mr. Popper. Watch for a surprise. Signing off. Signing off.’”
After this mysterious message, Mr. Popper can hardly wait to see what the surprise could be. And one day a package arrives. It is covered with warnings, like “Unpack at Once” and “Keep Cool”, and it has holes punched in it. And lo and behold, when Mr. Popper unpacks it, he discovers a penguin inside! Thus is the beginning of a wonderful adventure for the Popper family.

This book is a wacky, fun ride. The authors don’t in any way attempt to make the book believable, and in a way, that’s the best part of it. The reader is asked to sit back for a few hours, suspend practicality, and travel along with Mr. Popper and his penguins (notice the plurality of the word) on a wild adventure.

There are plenty of laughs along the way. Mr. Popper’s mischievous penguins interrupt a diva in the middle of her operatic concert, cause havoc on a train by giving in to the temptation to climb the porters’ ladders, and come close to getting into a fight with half-a-dozen seals.

An engaging and amusing book for anyone who’s willing to give it a try.

By the Shores of Silver Lake by Laura Ingalls Wilder

2008-02-12T20:41:00.000-08:00

1940 Newbery Honor
Finished 12-12-06

When we meet the Ingalls family in this book, there have been drastic changes. Mary has gone blind from the affects of scarlet fever. The Ingalls are once more preparing for a move, this time to Dakota Territory. Their hardships and triumphs are recorded here.

It seems like the older Laura gets in these stories, the more I enjoy them. In this book, she is forced to become more unselfish in order to help Mary. I can relate to her more as she deals with more mature problems.

You can read my review of On the Banks of Plum Creek here.

Newbery trivia

2008-02-09T14:57:00.000-08:00

For any Newbery fanatics out there, here's a fun quiz at Linda Sue Park's website. (Linda Sue Park won the 2002 Newbery Medal for A Single Shard.) Head on over and see how much you know about the Newbery award. There's a couple of stumper questions. Here's another quiz she did that isn't Newbery related--but I'll post it anyway. Children's books, Newbery award, they're all related, right?

The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare

2008-02-08T12:20:00.000-08:00

1984 Newbery Honor
Finished 12-10-06

Being chased by a swarm of bees isn’t the best way to meet friends, but that’s what happens to Matt. His father has left him to protect their cabin in the Main wilderness while he goes to fetch his wife and daughter, and Matt was doing perfectly fine—that is, until he decided that it might be a good idea to get some honey from a bee tree. His plan backfires. Fortunately, two Indians rescue him. One of them is a boy his age named Attean, and soon Matt and Attean strike up a tentative friendship.

Days pass. Months pass. Soon, it is way past time for Matt’s family to return. The Indians are moving to better hunting grounds, and they invite Matt to come. It is a difficult decision for Matt. Will he stay, clinging to the hope that his family will return? Or will he move on with his friend?

I liked how the author showed both Attean's and Matt's way of living. It didn’t feel like she had an agenda, to show that one or the other way was better. Neither was shown in a bad light. I felt as if it was a very fair and accurate representation of both worlds.

I enjoyed reading the book through once, although I don’t think it would become a favorite of mine. The reason for that is simply because I’m not a huge fan of wilderness survival stories. I think it would be an excellent book for any adventure-loving boy.

An interesting aside—Elizabeth George Speare only wrote four books in her lifetime. Three of them made the Newbery list—two were winners, and this one was an honor. That’s pretty amazing. It’s a shame that she didn’t write more books.

King of the Wind by Marguerite Henry

2008-02-04T18:11:00.000-08:00

1949 Newbery Winner
Finished 12-10-06

When Sham is born, Agba knows there is something special about him, and that he will be a swift horse. And indeed, Sham is one of the horses sent by the Sultan as a gift to the King of France. Agba is sent with him, and ordered to care for the horse as long as Sham lives.

When the horses arrive, however, they are scrawny from the journey, and the king rejects them. One by one, people reject and underestimate Sham. Agba knows Sham can be great, but who will recognize this?

I wasn’t very fond of the other book I read by Marguerite Henry, Misty of Chincoteague, but I liked this one better. The plot was innovative, I enjoyed the character of Agba, and the ending was fitting. I’m sure that horse-lovers will like this one, but I think it will appeal to others as well.

Abel's Island by William Steig

2008-01-30T20:40:00.000-08:00

1977 Newbery Honor
Finished 12-10-06

When his wife’s scarf blows away during a thunderstorm, Abel, a gallant mouse, attempts to rescue it. Through a series of circumstances, he is stranded upon an island that seems to have no way off. Abel is naturally dismayed. He must get back home to his wife—but how?

It’s hard to pinpoint what I didn’t care for about this book. It may have had something to do with the length of the book. The book is interspersed with illustrations, and isn’t horribly long, and I wanted it to be either longer or shorter. It seemed to fall a little bit too much in the middle of the two. Abel spends quite a while on the island, and the events seem a little too summarized.

My other problem, I think, was that I found there to be a lack of excitement. Even when exciting things happened, the author told them in a way that I felt was slightly yawn worthy.

If I were to recommend this to someone, it would be to a child who was just starting to read chapter books. The length would probably be good for him or her, and hopefully the author’s style wouldn’t bother him or her.

Charlotte's Web by E.B. White

2008-01-28T18:22:00.000-08:00

1953 Newbery Honor
Finished 12-9-06

Wilbur the pig is having the worst day of his entire two-month-old life. The rain ruins all of his nice plans for the day, he doesn’t have any friends, a rat is eating his breakfast, and Mr. Zuckerman dosed him with sulphur and molasses. As he is trying to go to sleep that night, wallowing in his misery, a voice speaks up and offers to be his friend. Wilbur can hardly sleep that night in anticipation, and when he wakes up in the morning, he meets his new friend: a spider named Charlotte. And though neither of them knows it, Charlotte’s friendship with Wilbur will save him—from death—in a way he can’t even imagine.

I loved the gentle humor in this book. The whole foundation of the book is the friendship between Charlotte and Wilbur, and the combination of the cluelessness of Wilbur and the zip and bite of Charlotte is often a comical contrast. The other characters from the barn are creative as well, and provide some entertaining moments.

For those of you who have heard of the ending, and are hesitant to the read the book because of that, I can assure you that it’s not how you think it is. Though at first it might seem like it would end the book on a sour note, to me, the very ending is sweetly satisfying. Even though the book has its sad moments, I don’t get that desire to rewrite the ending as I always do when I read a book that has a dissatisfying ending.

If you haven’t yet, this is a must read. On a side note, this book only garnered a Newbery Honor. It will be interesting to read the Winner from that year and see what could have been placed over Charlotte’s Web. I already suspect that it can’t be as good. But if it is, I’ll stand corrected.

Misty of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry

2008-01-25T14:34:00.000-08:00

1948 Newbery Honor
Finished 12-9-06

Paul and Maureen live with their grandparents on the island of Chincoteague. Not too far away, on Assateague Island, bands of wild horses roam. Every year on Pony Penning Day, the men of Chincoteague round up horses to sell for the benefit of the fire station. This year, Paul is resolved to catch an elusive horse named “Phantom”. He and Maureen are so confident that he will be able to accomplish this that they begin to save up money so they can buy Phantom at the sale. But a small surprise throws a wrench into their carefully laid plans.

I won’t deny that this is a lovely book for some. But I have to question how wide its appeal is. For me, the plot ended up being sort of ho-hum because it centered around the love that Paul and Maureen had for horses. I wasn’t able to relate to that at all. Add to it that I felt that one essential part of the plot was unrealistic and the ending was stereotypical, and it wasn’t the best read for me.

However, as I said, it could be a really good book for some. It’s quite likely that if it were put into the hands of some young horse enthusiast, he or she would end up loving it to death. For someone who isn’t into horses, I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it.

The Golden Goblet by Eloise Jarvis McGraw

2008-01-19T14:15:00.000-08:00

1962 Newbery Honor
Finished 12-8-06

Ranofer lives with his half-brother Gebu and works at a goldsmith’s shop. His one ambition is to become a master goldsmith worthy of making jewelry for the queen. His problem lies with Gebu. Gebu cruelly takes Ranofer away from the goldsmith’s shop and apprentices Ranofer at the stonemaker’s shop, and all of his dreams are dashed. His misery is only lightened by his friendship with Heqet and the Ancient. Then one day Ranofer’s little world is rocked. He discovers a golden goblet in Gebu’s room that could have only been stolen from a tomb. Gebu—a tomb robber? Ranofer resolves to stop Gebu and earn his freedom from the stonemaker’s shop at the same time.

This was quite an exciting read. There was a lot of tension and excitement throughout the book, and I think it would hold the attention of most readers. I liked how the author offered some humor in the person of Heqet in contrast to the tautness of the rest of the book.

Another really great think about this book was that it gave an interesting portrayal of Egypt in the Ancient Times. For anyone who is studying Ancient Egypt, it would be a wonderful resource. It seemed historically accurate, and it showed the way people lived, worked, ate, their superstitions, and many other informational things.

I say that entertainment and education are lovely things to mix together, so I would definitely give this book a thumbs-up and a recommendation.

The big winner

2008-01-14T04:49:00.000-08:00

The 2008 Newbery Winner and Honors were announced today at the American Library Association’s Midwinter Meeting.

Winner: Good Masters! Sweet Ladies!: Voices from a Medieval Village by Laura Amy Schlitz

Honor: Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis

Honor: The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt

Honor: Feathers by Jacqueline Woodson

I haven’t read any of these—another four for my list, then.

On the Banks of Plum Creek by Laura Ingalls Wilder

2008-01-11T15:00:00.000-08:00

1938 Newbery Honor
Finished 12-5-06

It is the Ingalls family’s first year in Minnesota—a fresh, new start. They are hoping for a good wheat crop, but instead, grasshoppers come and eat every green thing in sight. And the next year, a whole new batch of grasshoppers hatch. How will the Ingalls survive if the grasshoppers keep eating all their crops?

The nature of this book is that it has a rather ordinary, everyday sort of feel to it. Because of that, it was a little difficult to get into, but once I did and became attached to the characters, it was a very good read.

There are 5 books more books by Laura Ingalls Wilder on the Newbery list, so I plan to keep each review pretty brief. But if you’re interested in reading the Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder, I would recommend that you start with Little House on the Prairie. Each book can stand alone, but they read better as a whole.

Call it Courage by Armstrong Sperry

2008-01-08T15:54:00.000-08:00

1941 Newbery Winner
Finished 12-02-06

Mafatu is afraid of the sea. It claimed his mother when he was just an infant, and Mafatu is sure that it will claim him, given the chance. That is why he never goes out in the canoes with the other boys his age. But one day, Mafatu gets tired of being looked at with contempt because of his fear. He takes off in a canoe, planning to prove his bravery and return to make his father proud. And as it turns out, he will have plenty of chances to prove his bravery…

The majority of this book is set with Mafatu alone on an island. The obvious pitfall there: no dialogue=boredom. At least, for me. I like dialogue. However, the author did manage to make the book interesting despite that. He worked in some dialogue with Mafatu talking to his dog, and other than that, there was enough action that it didn’t really bother me.

Another thing that was potentially a turn-off for me was the descriptions. I don’t always follow descriptions very well, and this book was a little heavy on them. But for once, I was actually able to understand what Mafatu was seeing and feeling pretty well.

Personally, I’m not a huge fan of the desert island survival stories. But for guys around the age of 8-12, I think this would be a perfect book. It has a strong male protagonist, plenty of excitement, and an enjoyable conclusion.

Favorite Sentences from A Wrinkle in Time

2008-01-05T14:30:00.000-08:00

Last year for a writing class, I had to pick ten sentences from a book that I thought were good representatives of the author's writing. I picked sentences from A Wrinkle in Time. Of course, my favorite line is "It was a dark and stormy night.", but I wasn't really sure that was good writing. So I didn't put it down. Here are the ones I chose:

“What could there be about a shadow that was so terrible that she knew that there had never been before or ever would be again, anything that would chill her with a fear that was behind shuddering, beyond crying or screaming, beyond the possibility of comfort?”

“Her heart tried to beat; it gave a knifelike, sidewise movement, but it could not expand.”

“It was a pulsing not only about her, but in her as well, as though the rhythm of her heart and lungs was no longer her own but was being worked by some outside force.”

“Behind the trees clouds scudded frantically across the sky. Every few moments the moon ripped through them, creating wraithlike shadows that raced along the ground.”

“This was the moment for which she had been waiting, not only since Mrs. Which whisked them off on their journeys, but during the long months and years before, when the letters had stopped coming, when people made remarks about Charles Wallace, when Mrs. Murry showed a rare flash of loneliness or grief.”

“The voice was Charles Wallace’s voice, and yet it was different, too, somehow flattened out, almost as a voice might have sounded on the two-dimensional planet.”

"The pupils grew smaller and smaller, as though he were looking into an intensely bright light, until they seemed to close entirely, until his eyes were nothing but an opaque blue.”

“Something in the pot was bubbling, and it smelled more like one of Mrs. Murry’s chemical messes than something to eat.”

“'He is a physicist.’ Meg bared her teeth to reveal the two ferocious lines of braces.”

“There was the brain, there was IT, lying pulsing and quivering on the dais, soft and exposed and nauseating.”

Posts will continue January 1st

2007-12-08T13:06:00.000-08:00

I'm planning a break from the internet for the rest of the month. I will resume posting at the beginning of January.

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle

2007-12-07T22:43:00.000-08:00

1963 Newbery Winner
Finished 11-29-06

Meg Murry’s father hasn’t been heard from for a year now. He simply disappeared into thin air. Meg’s mother firmly believes he is still alive, but everyone else who knows about the situation is convinced he is gone for good. One day Meg meets three mysterious women named Mrs. Whatsit, Mrs. Which, and Mrs. Who. Soon she finds herself traveling through the fifth dimension, along with her brother Charles Wallace and her friend Calvin. Their mission is to rescue Meg’s father from the planet of Camazotz where the forces of evil are holding him.

Do you know the experience of having a gift card to a certain bookstore, and knowing you only have a certain amount of money to spend? You pick carefully through the books, looking for just the right ones to buy. It has to be something you know you like. Preferably something you know you LOVE. If you know what I’m talking about, then you’ll know what it means when I say that I bought A Wrinkle in Time with my gift card last time I was at Barnes and Noble.

I love the deeper themes in this book. The epic struggle between good and evil, and how it reminds me that I, too, am in a battle against evil. The triumphant theme of all-conquering love. Those are a big part of what gives this book substance.

Of course, you can find those kinds of themes in a lot of other fantasy books. So why else do I like it? I think one thing that makes this book stick more with me is because it’s not weighted down with a lot of wordy and unnecessary descriptions like a lot of fantasy can be. Many times I’ll get lost in the extra fluff of a book and miss out on the important things that are happening. For me, one thing that makes A Wrinkle in Time memorable is because the book moves forward at a good pace without getting bogged down.

In case you’re not convinced, I present you with one final argument. Note the first line of this book: “It was a dark and stormy night.” Read it aloud to yourself in a dramatic voice. How can you not want to read a book that starts like that? It’s awesome.

Amos Fortune, Free Man by Elizabeth Yates

2007-12-06T21:07:00.000-08:00

1951 Newbery Winner
Finished 11-29-06

At-mun was supposed to be a king. Instead he is a slave. When he was just a boy, slave traders abducted him. He is sold in America and his name is changed to Amos. Amos Fortune, Free Man is a chronicle of his life from that point, until his death at the ripe old age of ninety.

Amos Fortune really was an inspiring man. Despite the way he had been wronged, he did not harbor anger in his heart. His goal in life was to make people free: some from slavery, some from poverty, and some from hatred.

But (here it comes) I really think this could have been written more compellingly. It wasn’t difficult to read. It wasn’t terrible. I just think the book could have made Amos Fortune come more to life. I’m not a big nonfiction reader, so if I’m going to like something that’s nonfiction, it has to be really good. The way the book was written felt okay—but it wasn’t great.

I do think Amos Fortune was a man worth writing about. I’m just not sure that this book did him justice.

(Wow, that’s three somewhat-negative review in a row. I promise, promise that I will do a positive review next time.)

Strawberry Girl by Lois Lenski

2007-12-01T16:25:00.000-08:00

1946 Newbery Winner
Finished 11-28-06

When the Boyer family moves onto their new farm in Florida, they are more than anxious to be neighborly. Unfortunately, the Slaters don’t reciprocate the feeling. In fact, Mr. Slater employs various methods to try to run the Boyers of their farm, from letting his cattle trample the Boyers strawberry crops, to cutting fences, to setting a fire. We see all this through ten-year-old Birdie Boyer’s eyes, as she attempts to sort out her feelings about the whole mess and struggles with how to treat the Slater boy, Shoestring.

I’m afraid that Lois Lenski books and I have never gotten along too well. I think it’s because I can never relate to her characters. Their emotions, the way they react, seem so out of place to me. They have so much harsh and abrupt anger, and they change from nice to ornery faster than you could blink. Maybe it wouldn’t bother me if I understood the reasons behind the changes, but to me, everything seems so abrupt.

Something that bothered me particularly about this book was the sudden resolution of the conflict. I don’t want to give away what happened, but it just seemed like a cop-out to me. I would have preferred a more gradual build-up to the resolution rather than the quick, easy fix that happened.

On the good side, however, I enjoyed the setting of the book. You don’t read much about the pioneers of Florida. The only other book I can think of (which doesn’t mean their isn’t more) that is set in the wilds of Florida is The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings.

So overall, I’m afraid I wasn’t very fond of Strawberry Girl. If you know you enjoy Lenski’s style of writing, I’d recommend it. Otherwise, not so much.

Sounder by William H. Armstrong

2007-11-30T17:04:00.000-08:00

1970 Newbery Winner
Finished 11-27-06

The boy's family is hungry. Even though they own the most special hunting dog around, named Sounder, game has been scarce this Winter. But one morning, the boy wakes up to the smell of sausages frying. And later that day, the boy's father is arrested for stealing a pig. When Sounder tries to protect him, he is shot, and the boy's mother says he might die. Sounder is really the story of how the boy learns to cope with the possibility of death and the absence of his father.

This was the first book I read for my project, and I'm halfway surprised that I didn't throw in the towel right then and there. Sounder is written in a very different style. None of the characters have names except the dog, Sounder. The other characters are simply called "the boy", "the boy's father", etc. Additionally, the dialogue is pretty sparse, so the pace of the book is not very fast.

I think what really bothered me about Sounder was the lack of direction. It didn't seem like there was any climax, or any point where everything culminates. Everything just sort of happens, and I was left with a feeling of "That's it?"

I certainly did not dislike the book, but it didn't do much for me. However, if you are a fan of "coming of age" stories, you might just enjoy Sounder.

Newbery Award and Honor books

2007-11-29T21:26:00.000-08:00

Titles marked in red are the ones I have read. If a title is red AND has a line under it, you can click on it and be taken to my review of it. I will continue to update this as I read. Beware--the list is long. I would recommend that you scan rather than read it.

The 2000s

2008 Medal Winner: Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village by Laura Amy Schlitz (Candlewick)

Honor Books:

Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis (Scholastic)
The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt (Clarion)
Feathers by Jaqueline Woodson (Putnam)

2007 Medal Winner: The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron, illus. by Matt Phelan (Simon & Schuster/Richard Jackson)

Honor Books:

· Penny from Heaven by Jennifer L. Holm (Random House)
· Hattie Big Sky by Kirby Larson (Delacorte Press)
· Rules by Cynthia Lord (Scholastic)

2006 Medal Winner: Criss Cross by Lynne Rae Perkins (Greenwillow Books/HarperCollins)
Honor Books:

· Whittington by Alan Armstrong, illustrated by S.D. Schindler (Random House)
· Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow by Susan Campbell Bartoletti (Scholastic)
· Princess Academy by Shannon Hale (Bloomsbury Children's Books)
· Show Way by Jacqueline Woodson, illustrated by Hudson Talbott (G.P. Putnam's Sons)

2005 Medal Winner: Kira-Kira by Cynthia Kadohata (Atheneum Books for Young Readers/Simon & Schuster)

Honor Books:

· Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko (G.P. Putnam's Sons/a division of Penguin Young Readers Group)
· The Voice that Challenged a Nation: Marian Anderson and the Struggle for Equal Rights by Russell Freedman (Clarion Books/Houghton Mifflin)
· Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy by Gary D. Schmidt (Clarion Books/Houghton Mifflin)

2004 Medal Winner: The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Timothy Basil Ering, (Candlewick Press)

Honor Books:

· Olive's Ocean by Kevin Henkes (Greenwillow Books)
· An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793 by Jim Murphy (Clarion Books)

2003 Medal Winner: Crispin: The Cross of Lead by Avi (Hyperion Books for Children)

Honor Books:

· The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer (Atheneum)
· Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff (Random House/Wendy Lamb Books)
· Hoot by Carl Hiaasen (Knopf)
· A Corner of The Universe by Ann M. Martin (Scholastic)
· Surviving the Applewhites by Stephanie S. Tolan (HarperCollins)

2002 Medal Winner: A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park (Clarion Books/Houghton Mifflin)

Honor Books:

· Everything on a Waffle by Polly Horvath (Farrar Straus Giroux)
· Carver: A Life In Poems by Marilyn Nelson (Front Street)

2001 Medal Winner: A Year Down Yonder by Richard Peck (Dial)

Honor Books:

· Hope Was Here by Joan Bauer (G.P. Putnam’s Sons)
· Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo (Candlewick Press)
· Joey Pigza Loses Control by Jack Gantos (Farrar, Straus, and Giroux)
· The Wanderer by Sharon Creech (Joanna Cotler Books/HarperCollins)

2000 Medal Winner: Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis (Delacorte)

Honor Books:

· Getting Near to Baby by Audrey Couloumbis (Putnam)
· Our Only May Amelia by Jennifer L. Holm (HarperCollins)
· 26 Fairmount Avenue by Tomie dePaola (Putnam)

The 1990s

1999 Medal Winner: Holes by Louis Sachar (Frances Foster)

Honor Book:

· A Long Way from Chicago by Richard Peck (Dial)

1998 Medal Winner: Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse (Scholastic)

Honor Books:

· Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine (HarperCollins)
· Lily's Crossing by Patricia Reilly Giff (Delacorte)
· Wringer by Jerry Spinelli (HarperCollins)

1997 Medal Winner: The View from Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg (Jean Karl/Atheneum)

Honor Books:

· A Girl Named Disaster by Nancy Farmer (Richard Jackson/Orchard Books)
· The Moorchild by Eloise McGraw (Margaret McElderry/Simon & Schuster)
· The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner (Greenwillow/Morrow)
· Belle Prater's Boy by Ruth White (Farrar Straus Giroux)

1996 Medal Winner: The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman (Clarion)

Honor Books:

· What Jamie Saw by Carolyn Coman (Front Street)
· The Watsons Go to Birmingham: 1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis (Delacorte)
· Yolonda's Genius by Carol Fenner (Margaret K. McElderry/Simon & Schuster)
· The Great Fire by Jim Murphy (Scholastic)

1995 Medal Winner: Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech (HarperCollins)

Honor Books:

· Catherine, Called Birdy by Karen Cushman (Clarion)
· The Ear, the Eye and the Arm by Nancy Farmer (Jackson/Orchard)

1994 Medal Winner: The Giver by Lois Lowry (Houghton)

Honor Books:

· Crazy Lady by Jane Leslie Conly (HarperCollins)
· Dragon's Gate by Laurence Yep (HarperCollins)
· Eleanor Roosevelt: A Life of Discovery by Russell Freedman (Clarion Books)

1993 Medal Winner: Missing May by Cynthia Rylant (Jackson/Orchard)

Honor Books:

· What Hearts by Bruce Brooks (A Laura Geringer Book, a HarperCollins imprint)
· The Dark-thirty: Southern Tales of the Supernatural by Patricia McKissack (Knopf)
· Somewhere in the Darkness by Walter Dean Myers (Scholastic Hardcover)

1992 Medal Winner: Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor (Atheneum)

Honor Books:

· Nothing But The Truth: a Documentary Novel by Avi (Jackson/Orchard)
· The Wright Brothers: How They Invented the Airplane by Russell Freedman (Holiday House)

1991 Medal Winner: Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli (Little, Brown)

Honor Book:

· The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi (Jackson/Orchard)

1990 Medal Winner: Number the Stars by Lois Lowry (Houghton)

Honor Books:

· Afternoon of the Elves by Janet Taylor Lisle (Jackson/Orchard)
· Shabanu, Daughter of the Wind by Suzanne Fisher Staples (Knopf)
· The Winter Room by Gary Paulsen (Jackson/Orchard)

The 1980s

1989 Medal Winner: Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices by Paul Fleischman (Harper)

Honor Books:

· In The Beginning: Creation Stories from Around the World by Virginia Hamilton (Harcourt)
· Scorpions by Walter Dean Myers (Harper)

1988 Medal Winner: Lincoln: A Photobiography by Russell Freedman (Clarion)

Honor Books:

· After The Rain by Norma Fox Mazer (Morrow)
· Hatchet by Gary Paulsen (Bradbury)

1987 Medal Winner: The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman (Greenwillow)

Honor Books:

· A Fine White Dust by Cynthia Rylant (Bradbury)
· On My Honor by Marion Dane Bauer (Clarion)
· Volcano: The Eruption and Healing of Mount St. Helens by Patricia Lauber (Bradbury)

1986 Medal Winner: Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan (Harper)

Honor Books:

· Commodore Perry In the Land of the Shogun by Rhoda Blumberg (Lothrop)
· Dogsong by Gary Paulsen (Bradbury)

1985 Medal Winner: The Hero and the Crown by Robin McKinley (Greenwillow)

Honor Books:

· Like Jake and Me by Mavis Jukes (Knopf)
· The Moves Make the Man by Bruce Brooks (Harper)
· One-Eyed Cat by Paula Fox (Bradbury)

1984 Medal Winner: Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Cleary (Morrow)

Honor Books:

· The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare (Houghton)
· A Solitary Blue by Cynthia Voigt (Atheneum)
· Sugaring Time by Kathryn Lasky (Macmillan)
· The Wish Giver: Three Tales of Coven Tree by Bill Brittain (Harper)

1983 Medal Winner: Dicey's Song by Cynthia Voigt (Atheneum)

Honor Books:

· The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley (Greenwillow)
· Doctor DeSoto by William Steig (Farrar)
· Graven Images by Paul Fleischman (Harper)
· Homesick: My Own Story by Jean Fritz (Putnam)
· Sweet Whispers, Brother Rush by Virginia Hamilton (Philomel)

1982 Medal Winner: A Visit to William Blake's Inn: Poems for Innocent and Experienced Travelers by Nancy Willard (Harcourt)

Honor Books:

· Ramona Quimby, Age 8 by Beverly Cleary (Morrow)
· Upon the Head of the Goat: A Childhood in Hungary 1939-1944 by Aranka Siegal (Farrar)

1981 Medal Winner: Jacob Have I Loved by Katherine Paterson (Crowell)

Honor Books:

· The Fledgling by Jane Langton (Harper)
· A Ring of Endless Light by Madeleine L'Engle (Farrar)

1980 Medal Winner: A Gathering of Days: A New England Girl's Journal, 1830-1832 by Joan W. Blos (Scribner)

Honor Book:

· The Road from Home: The Story of an Armenian Girl by David Kherdian (Greenwillow)

The 1970s

1979 Medal Winner: The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin (Dutton)

Honor Book:

· The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson (Crowell)

1978 Medal Winner: Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson (Crowell)

Honor Books:

· Ramona and Her Father by Beverly Cleary (Morrow)
· Anpao: An American Indian Odyssey by Jamake Highwater (Lippincott)

1977 Medal Winner: Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor (Dial)

Honor Books:

· Abel's Island by William Steig (Farrar)
· A String in the Harp by Nancy Bond (Atheneum)

1976 Medal Winner: The Grey King by Susan Cooper (McElderry/Atheneum)

Honor Books:

· The Hundred Penny Box by Sharon Bell Mathis (Viking)
· Dragonwings by Laurence Yep (Harper)

1975 Medal Winner: M. C. Higgins, the Great by Virginia Hamilton (Macmillan)

Honor Books:

· Figgs & Phantoms by Ellen Raskin (Dutton)
· My Brother Sam is Dead by James Lincoln Collier & Christopher Collier (Four Winds)
· The Perilous Gard by Elizabeth Marie Pope (Houghton)
· Philip Hall Likes Me, I Reckon Maybe by Bette Greene (Dial)

1974 Medal Winner: The Slave Dancer by Paula Fox (Bradbury)

Honor Book:

· The Dark Is Rising by Susan Cooper (McElderry/Atheneum)

1973 Medal Winner: Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George (Harper)

Honor Books:

· Frog and Toad Together by Arnold Lobel (Harper)
· The Upstairs Room by Johanna Reiss (Crowell)
· The Witches of Worm by Zilpha Keatley Snyder (Atheneum)

1972 Medal Winner: Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O'Brien (Atheneum)

Honor Books:

· Incident At Hawk's Hill by Allan W. Eckert (Little, Brown)
· The Planet of Junior Brown by Virginia Hamilton (Macmillan)
· The Tombs of Atuan by Ursula K. LeGuin (Atheneum)
· Annie and the Old One by Miska Miles (Little, Brown)
· The Headless Cupid by Zilpha Keatley Snyder (Atheneum)

1971 Medal Winner: Summer of the Swans by Betsy Byars (Viking)

Honor Books:

· Knee Knock Rise by Natalie Babbitt (Farrar)
· Enchantress From the Stars by Sylvia Louise Engdahl (Atheneum)
· Sing Down the Moon by Scott O'Dell (Houghton)

1970 Medal Winner: Sounder by William H. Armstrong (Harper)

Honor Books:

· Our Eddie by Sulamith Ish-Kishor (Pantheon)
· The Many Ways of Seeing: An Introduction to the Pleasures of Art by Janet Gaylord Moore (World)
· Journey Outside by Mary Q. Steele (Viking)

The 1960s

1969 Medal Winner: The High King by Lloyd Alexander (Holt)

Honor Books:

· To Be a Slave by Julius Lester (Dial)
· When Shlemiel Went to Warsaw and Other Stories by Isaac Bashevis Singer (Farrar)

1968 Medal Winner: From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg (Atheneum)

Honor Books:

· Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth by E. L. Konigsburg (Atheneum)
· The Black Pearl by Scott O'Dell (Houghton)
· The Fearsome Inn by Isaac Bashevis Singer (Scribner)
· The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatley Snyder (Atheneum)

1967 Medal Winner: Up a Road Slowly by Irene Hunt (Follett)

Honor Books:

· The King's Fifth by Scott O'Dell (Houghton)
· Zlateh The Goat and Other Stories by Isaac Bashevis Singer (Harper)
. The Jazz Man by Mary Hays Weik (Atheneum)

1966 Medal Winner: I, Juan de Pareja by Elizabeth Borton de Trevino (Farrar)

Honor Books:

· The Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander (Holt)
· The Animal Family by Randall Jarrell (Pantheon)
· The Noonday Friends by Mary Stolz (Harper)

1965 Medal Winner: Shadow of a Bull by Maia Wojciechowska (Atheneum)

Honor Book:

· Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt (Follett)

1964 Medal Winner: It's Like This, Cat by Emily Neville (Harper)

Honor Books:

· Rascal: A Memoir of a Better Era by Sterling North (Dutton)
· The Loner by Ester Wier (McKay)

1963 Medal Winner: A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle (Farrar)

Honor Books:

· Thistle and Thyme: Tales and Legends from Scotland by Sorche Nic Leodhas, pseud. (Leclaire Alger) (Holt)
· Men of Athens by Olivia Coolidge (Houghton)

1962 Medal Winner: The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare (Houghton)

Honor Books:

· Frontier Living by Edwin Tunis (World)
· The Golden Goblet by Eloise Jarvis McGraw (Coward)
· Belling The Tiger by Mary Stolz (Harper)

1961 Medal Winner: Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell (Houghton)

Honor Books:

· America Moves Forward: A History for Peter by Gerald W. Johnson (Morrow)
· Old Ramon by Jack Schaefer (Houghton)
· The Cricket In Times Square by George Selden, pseud. (George Thompson) (Farrar)

1960 Medal Winner: Onion John by Joseph Krumgold (Crowell)

Honor Books:

· My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George (Dutton)
· America Is Born: A History for Peter by Gerald W. Johnson (Morrow)
· The Gammage Cup by Carol Kendall (Harcourt)

The 1950s

1959 Medal Winner: The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare (Houghton)

Honor Books:

· The Family Under The Bridge by Natalie Savage Carlson (Harper)
· Along Came A Dog by Meindert Dejong (Harper)
· Chucaro: Wild Pony of the Pampa by Francis Kalnay (Harcourt)
· The Perilous Road by William O. Steele (Harcourt)

1958 Medal Winner: Rifles for Watie by Harold Keith (Crowell)

Honor Books:

· The Horsecatcher by Mari Sandoz (Westminster)
· Gone-Away Lake by Elizabeth Enright (Harcourt)
· The Great Wheel by Robert Lawson (Viking)
· Tom Paine, Freedom's Apostle by Leo Gurko (Crowell)

1957 Medal Winner: Miracles on Maple Hill by Virginia Sorensen (Harcourt)

Honor Books:

· Old Yeller by Fred Gipson (Harper)
· The House of Sixty Fathers by Meindert DeJong (Harper)
· Mr. Justice Holmes by Clara Ingram Judson (Follett)
· The Corn Grows Ripe by Dorothy Rhoads (Viking)
· Black Fox of Lorne by Marguerite de Angeli (Doubleday)

1956 Medal Winner: Carry On, Mr. Bowditch by Jean Lee Latham (Houghton)

Honor Books:

· The Secret River by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings (Scribner)
· The Golden Name Day by Jennie Lindquist (Harper)
· Men, Microscopes, and Living Things by Katherine Shippen (Viking)

1955 Medal Winner: The Wheel on the School by Meindert DeJong (Harper)

Honor Books:

· Courage of Sarah Noble by Alice Dalgliesh (Scribner)
· Banner In The Sky by James Ullman (Lippincott)

1954 Medal Winner: ...And Now Miguel by Joseph Krumgold (Crowell)

Honor Books:

· All Alone by Claire Huchet Bishop (Viking)
· Shadrach by Meindert Dejong (Harper)
· Hurry Home, Candy by Meindert Dejong (Harper)
· Theodore Roosevelt, Fighting Patriot by Clara Ingram Judson (Follett)
· Magic Maize by Mary & Conrad Buff (Houghton)

1953 Medal Winner: Secret of the Andes by Ann Nolan Clark (Viking)

Honor Books:

· Charlotte's Web by E. B. White (Harper)
· Moccasin Trail by Eloise Jarvis McGraw (Coward)
· Red Sails to Capri by Ann Weil (Viking)
· The Bears on Hemlock Mountain by Alice Dalgliesh (Scribner)
· Birthdays of Freedom, Vol. 1 by Genevieve Foster (Scribner)

1952 Medal Winner: Ginger Pye by Eleanor Estes (Harcourt)

Honor Books:

· Americans Before Columbus by Elizabeth Baity (Viking)
· Minn of the Mississippi by Holling C. Holling (Houghton)
· The Defender by Nicholas Kalashnikoff (Scribner)
· The Light at Tern Rock by Julia Sauer (Viking)
· The Apple and the Arrow by Mary & Conrad Buff (Houghton)

1951 Medal Winner: Amos Fortune, Free Man by Elizabeth Yates (Dutton)

Honor Books:

· Better Known as Johnny Appleseed by Mabel Leigh Hunt (Lippincott)
· Gandhi, Fighter Without a Sword by Jeanette Eaton (Morrow)
· Abraham Lincoln, Friend of the People by Clara Ingram Judson (Follett)
· The Story of Appleby Capple by Anne Parrish (Harper)

1950 Medal Winner: The Door in the Wall by Marguerite de Angeli (Doubleday)

Honor Books:

· Tree of Freedom by Rebecca Caudill (Viking)
· The Blue Cat of Castle Town by Catherine Coblentz (Longmans)
· Kildee House by Rutherford Montgomery (Doubleday)
· George Washington by Genevieve Foster (Scribner)
· Song of The Pines: A Story of Norwegian Lumbering in Wisconsin by Walter & Marion Havighurst (Winston)

The 1940s

1949 Medal Winner: King of the Wind by Marguerite Henry (Rand McNally)

Honor Books:

· Seabird by Holling C. Holling (Houghton)
· Daughter of the Mountains by Louise Rankin (Viking)
· My Father's Dragon by Ruth S. Gannett (Random House)
· Story of the Negro by Arna Bontemps (Knopf)

1948 Medal Winner: The Twenty-One Balloons by William Pène du Bois (Viking)

Honor Books:

· Pancakes-Paris by Claire Huchet Bishop (Viking)
· Li Lun, Lad of Courage by Carolyn Treffinger (Abingdon)
· The Quaint and Curious Quest of Johnny Longfoot by Catherine Besterman (Bobbs-Merrill)
· The Cow-Tail Switch, and Other West African Stories by Harold Courlander (Holt)
· Misty of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry (Rand McNally)

1947 Medal Winner: Miss Hickory by Carolyn Sherwin Bailey (Viking)

Honor Books:
· Wonderful Year by Nancy Barnes (Messner)
· Big Tree by Mary & Conrad Buff (Viking)
· The Heavenly Tenants by William Maxwell (Harper)
· The Avion My Uncle Flew by Cyrus Fisher, pseud. (Darwin L. Teilhet) (Appleton)
· The Hidden Treasure of Glaston by Eleanor Jewett (Viking)

1946 Medal Winner: Strawberry Girl by Lois Lenski (Lippincott)

Honor Books:

· Justin Morgan Had a Horse by Marguerite Henry (Rand McNally)
· The Moved-Outers by Florence Crannell Means (Houghton)
· Bhimsa, the Dancing Bear by Christine Weston (Scribner)
· New Found World by Katherine Shippen (Viking)

1945 Medal Winner: Rabbit Hill by Robert Lawson (Viking)

Honor Books:
· The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes (Harcourt)
· The Silver Pencil by Alice Dalgliesh (Scribner)
· Abraham Lincoln's World by Genevieve Foster (Scribner)
· Lone Journey: The Life of Roger Williams by Jeanetter Eaton (Harcourt)

1944 Medal Winner: Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes (Houghton)

Honor Books:

· These Happy Golden Years by Laura Ingalls Wilder (Harper)
· Fog Magic by Julia Sauer (Viking)
· Rufus M. by Eleanor Estes (Harcourt)
· Mountain Born by Elizabeth Yates (Coward)

1943 Medal Winner: Adam of the Road by Elizabeth Janet Gray (Viking)

Honor Books:

· The Middle Moffat by Eleanor Estes (Harcourt)
· Have You Seen Tom Thumb? by Mabel Leigh Hunt (Lippincott)

1942 Medal Winner: The Matchlock Gun by Walter Edmonds (Dodd)

Honor Books:

· Little Town on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder (Harper)
· George Washington's World by Genevieve Foster (Scribner)
· Indian Captive: The Story of Mary Jemison by Lois Lenski (Lippincott)
· Down Ryton Water by Eva Roe Gaggin (Viking)

1941 Medal Winner: Call It Courage by Armstrong Sperry (Macmillan)

Honor Books:

· Blue Willow by Doris Gates (Viking)
· Young Mac of Fort Vancouver by Mary Jane Carr (Crowell)
· The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder (Harper)
· Nansen by Anna Gertrude Hall (Viking)

1940 Medal Winner: Daniel Boone by James Daugherty (Viking)

Honor Books:

· The Singing Tree by Kate Seredy (Viking)
· Runner of the Mountain Tops: The Life of Louis Agassiz by Mabel Robinson (Random House)
· By the Shores of Silver Lake by Laura Ingalls Wilder (Harper)
· Boy with a Pack by Stephen W. Meader (Harcourt)

The 1930s

1939 Medal Winner: Thimble Summer by Elizabeth Enright (Rinehart)

Honor Books:

· Nino by Valenti Angelo (Viking)
· Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard & Florence Atwater (Little, Brown)
· Hello the Boat! by Phyllis Crawford (Holt)
· Leader By Destiny: George Washington, Man and Patriot by Jeanette Eaton (Harcourt)
· Penn by Elizabeth Janet Gray (Viking)

1938 Medal Winner: The White Stag by Kate Seredy (Viking)

Honor Books:

· Pecos Bill by James Cloyd Bowman (Little, Brown)
· Bright Island by Mabel Robinson (Random House)
· On the Banks of Plum Creek by Laura Ingalls Wilder (Harper)

1937 Medal Winner: Roller Skates by Ruth Sawyer (Viking)

Honor Books:

· Phebe Fairchild: Her Book by Lois Lenski (Stokes)
· Whistler's Van by Idwal Jones (Viking)
· The Golden Basket by Ludwig Bemelmans (Viking)
· Winterbound by Margery Bianco (Viking)
· The Codfish Musket by Agnes Hewes (Doubleday)
· Audubon by Constance Rourke (Harcourt)

1936 Medal Winner: Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink (Macmillan)

Honor Books:

· Honk, the Moose by Phil Stong (Dodd)
· The Good Master by Kate Seredy (Viking)
· Young Walter Scott by Elizabeth Janet Gray (Viking)
· All Sail Set: A Romance of the Flying Cloud by Armstrong Sperry (Winston)

1935 Medal Winner: Dobry by Monica Shannon (Viking)

Honor Books:

· Pageant of Chinese History by Elizabeth Seeger (Longmans)
· Davy Crockett by Constance Rourke (Harcourt)
· Day On Skates: The Story of a Dutch Picnic by Hilda Von Stockum (Harper)

1934 Medal Winner: Invincible Louisa: The Story of the Author of Little Women by Cornelia Meigs (Little, Brown)

Honor Books:

· The Forgotten Daughter by Caroline Snedeker (Doubleday)
· Swords of Steel by Elsie Singmaster (Houghton)
· ABC Bunny by Wanda Gág (Coward)
· Winged Girl of Knossos by Erik Berry, pseud. (Allena Best) (Appleton)
· New Land by Sarah Schmidt (McBride)
· Big Tree of Bunlahy: Stories of My Own Countryside by Padraic Colum (Macmillan)
· Glory of the Seas by Agnes Hewes (Knopf)
· Apprentice of Florence by Ann Kyle (Houghton)

1933 Medal Winner: Young Fu of the Upper Yangtze by Elizabeth Lewis (Winston)

Honor Books:

· Swift Rivers by Cornelia Meigs (Little, Brown)
· The Railroad To Freedom: A Story of the Civil War by Hildegarde Swift (Harcourt)
· Children of the Soil: A Story of Scandinavia by Nora Burglon (Doubleday)

1932 Medal Winner: Waterless Mountain by Laura Adams Armer (Longmans)

Honor Books:

· The Fairy Circus by Dorothy P. Lathrop (Macmillan)
· Calico Bush by Rachel Field (Macmillan)
· Boy of the South Seas by Eunice Tietjens (Coward-McCann)
· Out of the Flame by Eloise Lownsbery (Longmans)
· Jane's Island by Marjorie Allee (Houghton)
· Truce of the Wolf and Other Tales of Old Italy by Mary Gould Davis (Harcourt)

1931 Medal Winner: The Cat Who Went to Heaven by Elizabeth Coatsworth (Macmillan)

Honor Books:

· Floating Island by Anne Parrish (Harper)
· The Dark Star of Itza: The Story of A Pagan Princess by Alida Malkus (Harcourt)
· Queer Person by Ralph Hubbard (Doubleday)
· Mountains are Free by Julie Davis Adams (Dutton)
· Spice and the Devil's Cave by Agnes Hewes (Knopf)
· Meggy MacIntosh by Elizabeth Janet Gray (Doubleday)
· Garram the Hunter: A Boy of the Hill Tribes by Herbert Best (Doubleday)
· Ood-Le-Uk the Wanderer by Alice Lide & Margaret Johansen (Little, Brown)

1930 Medal Winner: Hitty, Her First Hundred Years by Rachel Field (Macmillan)

Honor Books:

· A Daughter of the Seine: The Life of Madame Roland by Jeanette Eaton (Harper)
· Pran of Albania by Elizabeth Miller (Doubleday)
· Jumping-Off Place by Marion Hurd McNeely (Longmans)
· The Tangle-Coated Horse and Other Tales by Ella Young (Longmans)
· Vaino by Julia Davis Adams (Dutton)
· Little Blacknose by Hildegarde Swift (Harcourt)

The 1920s

1929 Medal Winner: The Trumpeter of Krakow by Eric P. Kelly (Macmillan)

Honor Books:

· Pigtail of Ah Lee Ben Loo by John Bennett (Longmans)
· Millions of Cats by Wanda Gág (Coward)
· The Boy Who Was by Grace Hallock (Dutton)
· Clearing Weather by Cornelia Meigs (Little, Brown)
· Runaway Papoose by Grace Moon (Doubleday)
· Tod of the Fens by Elinor Whitney (Macmillan)

1928 Medal Winner: Gay Neck, the Story of a Pigeon by Dhan Gopal Mukerji (Dutton)

Honor Books:

· The Wonder Smith and His Son by Ella Young (Longmans)
· Downright Dencey by Caroline Snedeker (Doubleday)

1927 Medal Winner: Smoky, the Cowhorse by Will James (Scribner)

Honor Books:

· [None recorded]

1926 Medal Winner: Shen of the Sea by Arthur Bowie Chrisman (Dutton)

Honor Book:

· The Voyagers: Being Legends and Romances of Atlantic Discovery by Padraic Colum (Macmillan)

1925 Medal Winner: Tales from Silver Lands by Charles Finger (Doubleday)

Honor Books:

· Nicholas: A Manhattan Christmas Story by Annie Carroll Moore (Putnam)
· The Dream Coach by Anne Parrish (Macmillan)

1924 Medal Winner: The Dark Frigate by Charles Hawes (Little, Brown)

Honor Books:

· [None recorded]

1923 Medal Winner: The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle by Hugh Lofting (Stokes)

Honor Books:

· [None recorded]

1922 Medal Winner: The Story of Mankind by Hendrik Willem van Loon (Liveright)

Honor Books:
· The Great Quest by Charles Hawes (Little, Brown)
· Cedric the Forester by Bernard Marshall (Appleton)
· The Old Tobacco Shop: A True Account of What Befell a Little Boy in Search of Adventure by William Bowen (Macmillan)
· The Golden Fleece and The Heroes Who Lived Before Achilles by Padraic Colum (Macmillan)
· The Windy Hill by Cornelia Meigs (Macmillan)

The story behind the blog

2007-11-29T16:33:00.000-08:00

Almost exactly a year ago today (two days off--it was November 27th) I began this project to read all of the Newbery Award and Honor books. I was taking a certain writing course, and that course recommended books that were on the Newbery list as good literature to read. I looked up the list, and for some strange reason, thought "Hey, I should read all of these!"

First mistake.

Then, I suppose inspired by the vast expanse of an empty five-in-one notebook, I thought, "Hey, I should write down a summary and some thoughts about each book I read!"

Second mistake.

So I started reading. A little ways into the project, I actually stopped to count how many books were on the list. 366. Gulp.

So fast forward to now, a year later. I've read 69 books, and found some really cool ones. And I had this huge book of all these summaries I've written for them. So I figured as long as I was going to write them all out anyway, I might as well share some of my thoughts in the form of a blog.

Thus the start of this blog.