< Newbery Medal and Honor Books
Given the Newbery Award's prestige it would be easy to assume that the award winners are all excellent books for children. The Biblioguides Team has not found this to be the case. We always want to provide parents with the information they need to make the best book decisions for their families. With that goal in mind, we've put together a complete list of all medal winners and honor books since inception, and the Biblioguides Review Team is working together to read our way through the winners and to provide a review. Where we have not yet reviewed a book, a description directly from the dust jacket or from the publisher has been provided. In some cases, we have shared a brief synopsis from The Newbery and Caldecott Awards: A Guide to the Medal and Honor Books (1999).
Reviews are the thoughts and opinions of the particular reviewer and do not necessarily represent all members of the team. Reviews will continue to be added as the team reads more of the Newbery books. We hope this list will help you familiarize yourself with the various winners and provide the necessary information to determine which books would be a good fit for your family!
Criss Cross
By: Lynne Rae Perkins
Medal Winner
NOT REVIEWED
In this acclaimed, award-winning, and timeless national bestseller, Newbery Medalist Lynne Rae Perkins explores the crisscrossing lives of four teenagers on the verge of adulthood. The unique format incorporates short vignettes, haiku, Q&As, and illustrations by the author. Written with love and humor, Criss Cross is an unforgettable story of friendship, family, and growing up.
From the publisher
Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow
By: Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Honor
NOT REVIEWED
Susan Campbell Bartoletti explores the riveting and often chilling story of Germany's powerful Hitler Youth groups. By the time Hitler became Chancellor of Germany in 1933, 3.5 million children belonged to the Hitler Youth. It would become the largest youth group in history. Susan Campbell Bartoletti explores how Hitler gained the loyalty, trust, and passion of so many of Germany's young people. Her research includes telling interviews with surviving Hitler Youth members. "I begin with the young. We older ones are used up . . . But my magnificent youngsters! Look at these men and boys! What material! With them, I can create a new world." — Adolf Hitler, Nuremberg 1933
From the publisher
Princess Academy
By: Shannon Hale
Honor
Reviewed by: Sherry Early
Also read and recommended by: Lara Lleverino
Princess Academy is the story of a group of uneducated mountain girls who are chosen to attend the Princess Academy. One of the girls will be chosen to marry the Prince and become the new Princess of Danland. Miri, the central character of the novel, is not sure she even wants to become the princess, but she does want to learn and excel at the academy. And she does want to do something extraordinary to prove to her village and to her Pa that she is not useless even though she is not allowed to work in quarry with the rest of the villagers.
There are some fairy tale elements to this story, but mostly it’s a story about teenage girls thrown into a challenging situation, about how they cope with adversity, about how they relate to one another, about their growth from children into adults. Miri is smart, brave, funny, and independent, however, she does have some growing up to do in this book, some decisions to make, and an important realization to attain.
Have all the girls in your life read this book. Some of the boys might enjoy it, too. Read it yourself for a dose of growing up realism in the midst of fairyland.
Read full review
★
REVIEW TEAM FAVORITE
Show Way
By: Jacqueline Woodson
Illustrated by: Hudson Talbott
Honor
Reviewed by: Deanna Knoll
Also read and recommended by: Christine Kallner, Sandy Hall, Sarah Kim
Writing with an authentic voice, this author connects a young girl to her past through a generational skill: the art of quilt making. In this powerful picture book linking each generation to the next through freedom quilts, the story is told in both beautiful language and eye-catching art. As someone who cherishes the few things of my grandmother's, the idea of having pieces of quilt that guided one's ancestors to freedom to inspire the next generation is beautiful—I love this book!
Whittington
By: Alan Armstrong
Illustrated by: S.D. Schindler
Honor
NOT REVIEWED
This Newbery-Honor winning tale introduces Whittington, a roughneck Tom who arrives one day at a barn full of rescued animals and asks for a place there. He spins for the animals—as well as for Ben and Abby, the kids whose grandfather does the rescuing—a yarn about his ancestor, the nameless cat who brought Dick Whittington to the heights of wealth and power in 16th-century England. This is an unforgettable tale about the healing, transcendent power of storytelling, and how learning to read saves one little boy.
From the publisher
