Newbery Award Winners Page 1
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The Newbery Medal was named for eighteenth-century British bookseller John Newbery. It is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association, to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children.
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Sid Fleischman (Illustrator - Peter Sis).
This is a book surely to be read for the sheer joy of reading. It's very humorously entertaining. Sid Fleischman
paints fabulous word pictures. The story is about Prince Brat and his whipping boy, Jemmy-from-the-streets. One
day, Prince Brat runs away and makes Jemmy come with him. They are subsequently captured by two highwaymen and
held for ransom. The rest of the story is about how Jemmy and the Prince escape and how they become friends along
the way. One of the best things about this book is the humorous colloquialisms--such as "He's got enough lip for
two sets of teeth" and "Cows would give beer first."
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Esther Forbes (Michael McCurdy).
This story is about Johnny Tremain, a boy who was an apprentice silversmith but because of an injury to his hand,
became a horseboy for the Boston Observer. He becomes a messenger for John Hancock, Samuel Adams, Dr. Joseph Warren,
and other Sons of Liberty. Johnny is involved in pivotal events of the American Revolution--such as the Boston Tea
Party and the conflict at Lexington.
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Kate Seredy.
This book is about the migration of the Huns and Magyars from Asia to Europe--where they settled in the Hungarian
Plains. It is about Nimrod, Hunor, Magyar, Bendeguz, and most importantly, Attila, the Red Eagle. It is a story
about pagan gods, fairies, and warriors. The White Stag is a creature that leads the Huns to the "promised land."
This story is written in poetic prose; the illustrations are magnificently clear.
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Robert C. O'Brien (Illustrator - Zena Bernstein).
This book is about a mouse named Mrs. Frisby whose husband has died and her quest to find help. A friendly crow
takes her to see a wise old owl and he sends her to visit the rats that live under the rosebush and have a
reputation of being odd. Mrs. Frisby finds out that her husband and the rats had been imprisoned for several years
in the NIMH laboratories and had been injected with concoctions that made them wise, long-lived, and inventive.
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E. L. Konigsburg.
This is a story about Claudia and her brother, Jamie. Claudia decides to run away and asks her brother to come
along. They decide to live at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. While staying there, Claudia and Jamie discover a
statue so beautiful that Claudia does not want to go home until she discovers its maker.
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Jerry Spinelli.
This selection is about a boy named Palmer who doesn't want his 10th birthday to come. Every summer in his town,
there is a festival. On the last day of the festival, the town releases 5,000 pigeons, which they shoot for sport.
When the boys in town turn 10, they become wringers--meaning that they wring the necks of the pigeons that don't die
when they're shot. Palmer doesn't understand why his town does this and he doesn't want to be a wringer, especially
since he has a pet pigeon.
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Lois Lowry.
This is the story of two families living in German-occupied Denmark during World War II. Ellen Rosen and Annemarie
Johansen are the two main characters and best friends. The Rosens are Jewish and the Johansens are part of the
Danish Resistance against the German Nazis. The Johansens help the Rosens escape by boat to Sweden, which is
unoccupied by the Nazis.
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Betsy Byars (Illustrator - Ted CoConis).
This story is about Sara, a fourteen-year-old-girl who is feeling at odds with the world and herself and the world
because of all the changes she is undergoing. She grudgingly tolerates her Aunt Willie, affectionately envies her
pretty older sister, and feels uncomfortable with her own body. But everything changes when her mentally-retarded
younger brother, Charlie, disappears and Sara is terrified while searching for the brother that she loves.
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Scott O'Dell.
This is the story of Karana, and Indian girl who was left behind on an island that looks like a big fish sunning
itself in the sea. Year after year, she waits for a ship to come back and take her away. She keeps herself alive
by building shelter, making weapons, finding food, and fighting off the wild dogs.
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Linda Sue Park.
This is the story of Tree-ear, an orphan boy living in 12th-century Korea. He is called Tree-ear after the
mushrooms that grow on tree trunks without the benefit of a parent seed. Tree-ear used to spend his days foraging
in fields and on rubbish heaps, but now all he wants to do is watch master potter Min at work. Even though Min is
short-tempered, Tree-ear is irresistibly drawn to his workplace. He dreams of making a pot of his own someday.
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William H. Armstrong (Illustrator - James Barkley).
This is the story of a young black boy and his coon dog, Sounder. It is the true story of how this young man deals
with the injustice of his father being falsely accused of a crime that he did not commit.
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Lois Lowry.
This book is about a boy named Jonas who lives in the Community, where there is no fear, war, or pain. When Jonas
turns twelve, he is singled out to receive special training from the Giver, to be the next Receiver of Memory. The
Giver alone holds the memories of the true pain and pleasure of life.
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Beverly Cleary.
This story is about Leigh Botts, the number one fan of author Boyd Henshaw since second grade. Leigh is now in the
sixth grade, lives with his mother, and is the new kids at school. Leigh is lonely and he misses his father, a
cross-country trucker. He's also angry because someone keeps stealing from his lunchbag. When his teacher assigns
a letter-writing project, Leigh chooses to write to Mr. Henshaw. When Mr. Henshaw writes back, his answer changes
Leigh's life.
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Patricia MacLachlan.
This story is about a frontier family that is missing a mother. Papa places an ad inthe newspaper for a wife and he
receives a reply from a woman named Sarah, who lives in Maine. Once she comes, everyone hopes that she will stay,
but Sarah misses her home in Maine. This is based on a true story from the author's family.
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Elizabeth Yates (Illustrator - Nora S. Unwin).
This is the true story of Amos Fortune, born of the At-munshi African tribe and abducted by slave traders at age
fifteen. At the age of sixty, Amos finally bought his own freedom. He became an expert tanner and was an active
citizen until his death in 1801. He also fulfilled his life's dream of buying the freedom of many other enslaved
people.
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Newbery Award Winners Page | 1 |
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