Newbery Books

Newbery Gold Medal

Armstrong, William H. Sounder. New York. HarperCollins Children’s Books.1969.

Sounder may look like just any other coon dog, but to the boy he represents his home and father. The family has been hungry, no animals in the forest to be hunted and killed to feed them. One morning the boy wakes up to the smell of ham and sausage, and it wasn’t even Christmas! No one questions where the ham came from, until several days later when the sheriff comes and arrests the father for theft. During the arrest, Sounder is shot and seriously wounded. This incident sets the boy off on a journey to find Sounder, his father, and ultimately, himself.

Newbery Gold Medal

Cleary, Beverly. Dear Mr. Henshaw. New York. William Morrow and

Company. 1983.

Leigh Botts discovers Boyd Henshaw’s book, Ways to Amuse a Dog when he is in second grade. Thus begins a story told in the letters Leigh begins sending to his favorite author, both in reality and in his diary. Leigh reveals his innermost thoughts and feelings through his letters: how he feels about school, his dog, but most of all, how he feels about his parent’s divorce.

A great book for children struggling to cope with divorce and an absentee parent.

Newbery Gold Medal

Curtis, Christopher Paul. Bud, Not Buddy. New York. Bantam

Doubleday Dell Books for Young Readers. 1999.

Bud’s mother is dead. Having no one to care for him, Bud takes off to find the man in the picture his mother always carried. He hopes it’s his long lost father, but who he is doesn’t really matter. All Bud cares about is finding someone who once knew his mother. Bud skillfully navigates his way to finally meet the man in the picture. What Bud finds out about his mother and who this trumpet player is makes him wonder if the trip to find answers was worth it after all.

Newbery Silver Honor Book

DiCamillo, Kate. Because of Winn-Dixie. Cambridge. Candlewick Press. 2000.

India Opal Buloni is new to the town of Naomi, Florida. Her father and she had moved there so he could be the preacher at the Open Arms Baptist Church. Her mother had run off so many years before that Opal could barely remember her. One morning, while shopping for tomatoes and other items at the local Winn-Dixie, she rescues a dog. Since he was found in Winn-Dixie, that’s what she names him. Winn-Dixie opens doors to friendship for Opal she had never expected. Winn-Dixie helps Opal and her father finally accept her mother’s departure and be open to making a new family with the friends they make.

Newbery Silver Medal

Gipson, Fred. Old Yeller. New York. Harper & Row Juvenile Books.

1956.

Travis had loved his dog Bell. When Bell got himself killed by playing with a dead rattler, Travis cried for a week. He never wanted another dog, especially not the ugly yeller one that found its way to their farm. When Travis won’t have anything to do with the dog his little brother Arliss attaches himself to the dog and claims it for his own. But when Old Yeller saves Arliss from being killed by a bear, Travis can’t do enough for the dog. Old Yeller steps in and guards Travis, Arliss, and their mother while their father drives cattle to market. Travis learns, with the help of Old Yeller, that learning to be responsible and becoming an adult are both the most wonderful and most heartbreaking times of his life.

Newbery Gold Medal

Lowry, Lois. Number the Stars. Boston. Houghton Mifflin Company. 1989.

Annemarie Johansen and Ellen Rosen are best friends. Life in Copenhagen during the Nazi occupation has been difficult and scary, but never dangerous. Or so they thought until the Nazi’ began closing Jewish businesses and forcing the Jews out of work. Annemarie learns that the Nazi’s are arresting all the Danish Jews and that her best friend Ellen is one the people to be arrested. The Johansens and Rosens hatch a plan to get Ellen out of Denmark. Fleeing to her Uncle Henrick’s house in the countryside, Annemarie learns what love, friendship, and courage really are.

Newbery Gold Medal

Park, Linda Sue. A Single Shard. New York. Clarion Books. 2001.

Tree Ear is an orphan in Korea of the 1300’s. He lives under a bridge with Crane-man, who has looked after him ever since a monk placed Tree Ear in his care. They are poor, but live with a simple dignity of working rather than begging. Tree Ear’s favorite activity is to secretly watch the potter Min as he works at creating the wonderful celydon pottery his village is known for. One day Tree Ear creeps close enough to Min’s work area to examine his work. Carelessly, Tree Ear drops one of the pieces, breaking it into little pieces. Min is furious, but works out a deal with Tree Ear to work off his debt. Tree Ear becomes Min’s helper, but he will never become his protégé, as this knowledge is always passed from father to son. Even so, Tree Ear continues to work for Min. When Min has the opportunity to become the potter to the royal court, Tree Ear volunteers to take the exquisite vases to Songdo. On his journey, Tree Ear is set upon by robbers who smash the priceless pieces. Will a single piece of Min’s pottery Tree Ear saved be enough to convince the royal emissary to give the commission to Min?

Newbery Gold Medal

Paterson, Katherine. Bridge to Terabithia.

Life is hard for Jess. His older sister is always too “busy” to help-out around the house and his little sister is too small. All the work falls to him. He has to help out to keep the farm going while his father goes to Washington to look for work. His only dream is to beat all the other boys in foot races this year in school. His dreams are dashed by Leslie. She is new to the school and doesn’t know that the races are only for the boys. After she beats all the boys, boys and girls alike decide they don’t want to be her friend. Jess, though, soon discovers that Leslie has many great ideas on things they can do for fun and they become best friends. Together they build a magical world called Terabithia, where they reign supreme. In Terabithia Jess learns about love, loss, and that sometimes, the only way to heal is to share the magic.

Newbery Gold Medal

Sacher, Louis. Holes. New York. Random House. 2000.

Stanley Yelnats has always had bad luck. In fact everyone, going back to his great-great-grandfather, has had terrible luck. His has the bad fortune to get caught with a pair of stolen shoes. These weren’t just any shoes though, they belonged to Clyde “Sweet Feet” Livingston. Livingston had donated them to a charity to be auctioned. No one believes Stanley when he says that he didn’t steal them. He is tried, convicted, and sent to the juvenile detention facility, Camp Green Lake. The woman in charge, Mr. Sir, makes everyone dig up the surrounding desert. She’s looking for something, but no one knows what. Stanley can’t stand it anymore, and with Zero in tow, he runs away across the dry lakebed. Will Stanley’s bad luck follow them and lead to their capture, or will he finally break the family curse?