Newbery

Many Newberys are Wonderful, but not All

I am an Newbery Medal fan, mostly.  My daughter and I set a goal to read all of the Newbery Medal winners (see how I’m perfect for Reader’s Challenges) before she left elementary school and we made a decent go of it, until we were stopped dead cold by a few of the selections.  Now, I must admit, I’m a little suspicious of the award selections.  A Man Booker Prize winner I’ll pick up without hesitation, but a Newbery I’ll leaf through and read the description.  Some of the greatest children’s literature has won the award, but then there are the other years. 

Tackling Lifes Great Issues

Susan Patron, author of The Higher Power of Lucky and winner of the 2007 Newbery, wrote about some of the Newbery criticism in a recent Los Angeles Times article.  One issue is the seriousness of the topics of the books in recent winners– death, mental challenges such as autism, the absence of one or both parents.  But she points out that Newberys historically have always dealt with the hard aspects of life, when she was younger the issues were death, war, being torn from your family during an invasion and losing a beloved dog.  I believe one of the best ways to confront scary issues is through literature, life isn’t Disneyland and I want my kids to learn that step-by-step, not as one large shock when they leave home. 

While there is always a reason to discuss life, there is never a reason to do it in a boring manner.  Over years of picking books, clearly the Newbery Committee isn’t going to hit the mark every time, who remembers Secret of the Andes by Ann Nolan Clark, the winner of the Newbery the year Charlotte’s Web was an honoree?  But they have noted some jewels in the winner and the honoree category:  Old Yeller, Island of Blue Dolphins, My Side of the Mountain, The Door in the Wall, One Hundred Dresses, From the Mixed Up File of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, Sounder, The Twenty-One Balloons, Mr. Poppin’s Penguins, Sounder, The Giver, Number the Stars.  As Ms. Patron points out, these books can change your life. Read the rest of this entry »