The Newbery Medal, and Newbery Honor Books
Winning the Newbery Medal is the greatest thrill and honor for an author of middle grade or young adult literature. It means that the chosen book has been read and enjoyed by experts in the field of children's literature, and that the book has lasting value.
The American Library Association (ALA) is the organization that chooses Newbery Medal winners. The Newbery Medal is one of many awards given by the ALA each year.
The Newbery Medal is given to one distinguished book annually. The book can be fiction, non-fiction, or poetry, but it must be original. Reprints and compilations don't qualify. Each year ALA member librarians review all eligible books printed the previous year, and select winners based on the following criteria:
- Interpretation of the theme or concept
- Presentation of information including accuracy, clarity, and organization
- Development of a plot
- Delineation of characters
- Delineation of setting
- Appropriateness of style
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Contents of This Lens
- Featured Newbery Medal Winner for the Month of August, 2008
- History of the Newbery Medal
- Who Was John Newbery?
- 2008 Newbery Winners
- 2007 Newbery Winners
- Newbery Lenses, 1922 through 2008
- Newbery Medal Acceptance Speeches
- Vote for Newbery Medal Winners You've Read
- Newbery Book Reviews
- New Featured Lenses
Featured Newbery Medal Winner for the Month of August, 2008
August's featured Newbery book is the 1979 Newbery Medal winner, The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin.-
The Westing Game
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This was one of my favorite books as a child, and one that I bought a copy of as an adult so I could re-read it whenever I was feeling nostalgic for those more laid back days. I think adults would enjoy this book too - its only 192 pages and is...
History of the Newbery Medal
The original formal agreement stated that the Newbery Medal was intended "To encourage original creative work in the field of books for children. To emphasize to the public that contributions to the literature for children deserve similar recognition to poetry, plays, or novels. To give those librarians, who make it their life work to serve children's reading interests, an opportunity to encourage good writing in this field."
The medal is named for John Newbery, a bookseller who lived in the 1800's.
Who Was John Newbery?
...the man behind the medal.
At the age of 16 Newbery became a printer's apprentice. His master passed away and left half the business to him when he was 24.
About one-fifth of the books he printed were for children. His first big success was A Pretty Little Pocket Book, published in 1744.
Newbery's motto was Deluctando Monemus, meaning "instruction through delight".
2008 Newbery Winners
Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village
This is the Newbery Medal winner for 2008. Come visit a medieval village in England. The year is 1255. Through a series of narratives you will hear the words of many town citizens.
Amazon Price: $13.59 (as of 08/07/2008)
Elijah Of Buxton (Newbery Honor Book) (Newbery Honor Book)
Buxton is a town in Canada where escaped slaves built their colony. Elijah was the first boy born there in freedom.
Amazon Price: $11.55 (as of 08/07/2008)
The Wednesday Wars
Holling Underwood is doomed to spending time with a teacher who hates him enough to force him to study Shakespeare. Yet he learns to love Shakespeare and to respect his teacher who makes a definite positive impact on his life.
Amazon Price: $10.88 (as of 08/07/2008)
Feathers
Frannie, age 11, is intrigued by the new white boy in her all-black school. The story takes place in 1971 and touches on deafness, the Vietnam War, and racism.
Amazon Price: $10.87 (as of 08/07/2008)
2007 Newbery Winners
...the most recent winners.
The Higher Power of Lucky
This is the Newbery Medal winner for 2007. It's about a girl named Lucky, age 10, living in the California desert with her guardian. Her mother is dead and her father is absent. She eavesdrops on AA meetings and longs for the comfort of knowing her own Higher Power.
Amazon Price: $11.53 (as of 08/07/2008)
Rules (Newbery Honor Book)
Cynthia, age 12, has a younger brother who is autistic. She is embarrassed by the way he acts, and makes up rules for him to follow. She is learning to accept him the way he is.
Amazon Price: $10.87 (as of 08/07/2008)
Penny from Heaven (Newbery Honor Book)
Penny is 11 and lives in Brooklyn with her mother. She often visits her dead father's large Italian family, hoping to find out more about the man she never knew. He died during WW2 at a time when non-naturalized Italians were declared "enemy aliens".
Amazon Price: $10.85 (as of 08/07/2008)
Hattie Big Sky
Set during WW1, an orphaned teenager, Hattie, age 16, inherits 320 acres in Montana, and must cultivate 80 acres within a year, or lose her homestead. While working on her land she learns more about herself. A first-person narrative.
Amazon Price: $10.85 (as of 08/07/2008)
Newbery Lenses, 1922 through 2008
...find out who won.
- Newbery Winners, 1922-1929
- Great childrens books of the Twenties - most of them still readily available for us to enjoy.
- Newbery Winners, 1930-1939
- Children's books of the Thirties. Worth reading.
- Newbery Winners, 1940-1949
- Newbery books of the Forties. Check them out!
- Newbery Winners, 1950-1959
- Children's novels from the Fifties... that was when this lens owner was born.
- Newbery Winners, 1960-1969
- More great Newbery winners - these are from the Sixties.
- Newbery Winners, 1970-1979
- Newbery winning books of the Seventies.
- Newbery Winners, 1980-1989
- Great treasures of children's literature from the Eighties.
- Newbery Winners, 1990-1999
- The Nineties gave birth to a number of excellent Newbery winning novels.
- Newbery Winners, 2000-2009
- The most recent Newbery winning books.
Newbery Medal Acceptance Speeches
- Madeleine L'Engle: Newbery Award Acceptance Speech
- Madeline L'Engle won the Newbery Medal in 1963 for A Wrinkle in Time.
- Avi: Newbery Award Acceptance Speech
- Avi won the Newbery Medal in 2003 for Crispin: The Cross of Lead.
- Karen Hesse: Newbery Award Acceptance Speech
- Karen Hesse won the Newbery Medal in 1998 for Out Of The Dust.
- Lois Lowry: Newbery Medal Accptance Speech
- Lois Lowry won the Newbery Medal in 1994 for The Giver.
- Katherine Paterson: Newbery Medal Acceptance Speech
- Katherine Paterson won the Newbery Medal in 1978 for Bridge to Terabithia.
- Robin McKinley: Newbery Medal Acceptance Speech
- Robin McKinley won the Newbery Medal in 1985 for The Hero and the Crown.
Vote for Newbery Medal Winners You've Read
... you can vote them up or down.
Johnny Tremain
Johnny is injured while working as a silversmith, but helps during the US Revolutionary War.4 points
The Voyages of Doctor Doolittle
An animal loving doctor takes a boy and some animals on a wild journey.3 points
The Cat Who Went To Heaven
A cat residing with an artist wants recognition.2 points
Caddie Woodlawn
The story of an 11-year-old girl growing up in Wisconsin as a rural pioneer.2 points
Roller Skates
A 10-year-old girl visits neighbors on her roller skates in New York City.2 points
Strawberry Girl
The life of a girl living in strawberry country, Central Florida.2 points
The Twenty-One Balloons
A man flies a balloon to Krakatoa from turn-of-the-century San Francisco.2 points
Secret of the Andes
A young boy who cares for llamas learns his destiny.2 points
The Witch of Blackbird Pond
A girl moves in with relatives but has trouble adjusting to their puritanical ways.2 points
Island of the Blue Dolphins
A woman is left behind on an island when her tribe migrates to mainland California.2 points
The Story of Mankind
The first Newbery Medal winner; a thick history book.1 point
Thimble Summer
A young girl believes all the luck coming to her family is the result of finding a thimble.1 point
Carry On, Mr. Bowditch
True story of a maritime warehouse apprentice who succeeds.1 point
Julie of the Wolves
An Eskimo girl relies on wolves to survive in the wilderness.1 point
The Trumpeter of Krakow
A Polish family guards a treasure and plans to give it to the King.0 points
Waterless Mountain
A young Navajo boy chooses to become a medicine man.0 points
Young Fu of the Upper Yangtze
A Chinese boy works to become a coppersmith.0 points
Invincible Louisa: The Story of the Author of Little Women
Biography of Louisa May Alcott.0 points
Dobry
A Bulgarian boy's choice to become an artist doesn't please his mother.0 points
The White Stag
The legend of the founding of Hungary, starring Attila the Hun.0 points
Newbery Books on eBay
...for your reading pleasure
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Newbery Medal Links
...find out more.
- American Library Association
- The ALA sponsors the Newbery Medal awards.
- PDF List of Newbery Medal Winners and Honor Books
- A PDF e-book version of the Newbery winning book list.
- The Newbery Project
- A blog with reviews of Newbery Medal books.
- Newbery Ranking
- How one group of readers ranked the Newbery books.
Newbery Book Reviews
I've read a lot of books from the Newbery list, and plan to create Squidoo lenses on all of them in time. I've started with a lens about the 1953 winner, Secret of the Andes.-
Secret of the Andes
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Welcome to this lens about a classic in children's literature. The Secret of the Andes won the Newbery Medal in 1953. Like many Newbery award winning books, Secret of the Andes provides children with a pleasant way to learn about a foreign culture....
Your comments are WELCOME
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cherangelry
Oh, the Newbery Award! I don't think I have ever read a book which has earned a Newbery and been dissatisfied! Even though the award is given to "middle grade literature", these books are often very intriguing for people much older! After all, quality books are worth reading no matter what! Posted July 04, 2008 |
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stemcells
Wonderful source of Information! Posted March 25, 2008 |
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jeffwend
Thanks for teaching me who Newbery was. I never had heard of the award, but was not aware of his story. Welcome to Squidoo Bookstores Posted August 20, 2007 |
If you liked this lens, you might like...
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Newbery Medal Winners, 1940-1949
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Every book on this list is a treasure in its own right. Each is unique, lovable, different. But if you only read two of them, don't miss Johnny Tremain and The Twenty-One Balloons. They are my two favorites for quality and originality. Of course, I'm...
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Newbery Medal Winners, 1950-1959
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At the beginning of this decade, children's books were still fairly simplistic, but by the end, we're favored with an outstanding historical novel, The Witch of Blackbird Pond, that sets a precedent for the increased quality of children's books in th...
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Newbery Medal Winners, 1922-1929
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Early Newbery Medal winners included short story collections, non-fiction, and novels. Many are out of print, difficult to locate, and rare. Books older than 1927 may now be in the public domain. This lens has links to Amazon pages for all the Newber...
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Newbery Medal Winners, 1930-1939
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During the 1930s, Newbery winners were mainly fiction, with a few fictionalized biographies and non-fiction titles. The quality of children's literature started to improve though it was nowhere near the high standards expected of writers today. Still...
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Newbery Medal Winners, 1990-1999
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Writers are under a lot of pressure these days to produce high quality novels. The competition is enormous. Consequently the cream of the crop books on this list are excellent. My favorite novels from this list are Holes and Walk Two Moons. I'm als...
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Newbery Medal Winners, 1960-1969
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There are some excellent novels in this, plus at least one great non-fiction reference book. My picks for best novels are From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, I, Juan de Pareja, A Wrinkle in Time, and Island of the Blue Dolphins.
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Newbery Medal Winners, 1980-1989
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This was an amazing decade for Newbery Medal and Honor Books. During this period two of the winners were poetic. A non-fiction book won the medal for the first time in many years, and two others were honor books. Plus there were many excellent novels...
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Newbery Medal Winners, 2000-2008
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Amazing things are happening in the world of children's literature. Authors are striving to write outstanding novels and non-fiction for children. This can be directly attributed to award programs like the Newbery Medal. My favorite from this decade...
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Newbery Medal Winners, 1970-1979
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There are some outstanding novels in this collection of Newbery books, and I get excited when I remember reading and enjoying them. Some of my favorites are Sing Down the Moon, The Westing Game, and The Periolous Gard. There are other excellent novel...