Mock Newbery 2026 discussion

It's never too early to take a look at next year. In fact there has already been some discussion about the awards for 2014. So here we go again...

What are you reading?

The new arc by Claire Vanderpool titled NAVIGATING EARLY.

Navigating Early was utterly fantastic. I called for Ivan's win back in March 2012. Now I'm predicting Clare Vanderpool will go 2 for 2 with the Newbery in 2014. Just loved the book. The characters and quest reminded me often of "A Prayer for Owen Meany". My 11 year old son thought the book was great.

I loved Navigating Early. I thought it was so much better than Moon Over Manifest. I am getting ready to start Blue Balliett's new book, Hold Fast, which coincidentally has a character named...Early!

How about Linda Urban's The Center of Everything? I have just started reading an ARC, and am enjoying it. The comments I have heard have been glowing.

I loved NAVIGATING EARLY by Claire Vanderpool and am also looking forward to HOLD FAST

Is Hold Fast by Balliet?

Is it too hard to change the title of this discussion? The grammar nerd in me chafes at the first to.

I am currently reading Navigating Early and so far, I am enjoying it.

LauraW wrote: "Is it too hard to change the title of this discussion? The grammar nerd in me chafes at the first to.

I am currently reading Navigating Early and so far, I am enjoying it."

Small typo... fixed!

How about One Came Home by Amy Timberlake? Historical fiction/mystery

On Heavy Medal - the Mock Newbery blog on the School Library Journal, Jonathan Hunt posted a 2014 Newbery Reading list. He includes:

Jinx by Sage Blackwood

Emancipation Proclamation: The Trump of Jubilee by Tanya Bolden

Courage Has No Color, The True Story of the Triple Nickles: America's First Black Paratroopers by Tanya Lee Stone

One Came Home by Amy Timberlake

Navigating Early by Clare Vanderpool

Hokey Pokey by Jerry Spinelli

I 2nd Linda Urban's The Center of Everything. I thought it was brilliant.

I'm looking forward to
Hold Fastby Blue Balliet and Hokey Pokeyby Jerry Spinelli and Salt: A Story of Friendship in a Time of War by Helen Frost

I was going to read What Came From the Stars. But the reviews on Good Reads were mostly so so. I wanted to see what this group thought about it. Life's too short to read so so books. I completely adored The Wednesday Wars, just for the record.

I am part way through What Came from the Stars and I haven't made my mind up about it yet. I loved The Wednesday Wars, too, but this one isn't grabbing me just yet.

LauraW wrote: "I am part way through What Came from the Stars and I haven't made my mind up about it yet. I loved The Wednesday Wars, too, but this one isn't grabbing me just yet."

I skipped most of the first chapter. It was jibberish to me. I do like the humor of the lunchbox and well meaning grandma's.

What else did Amy Timberlake write? I think I've read her before....

Jo wrote: "Life's too short to read so so books."

Those are some wise words. :)

Amy Timberlake's most famous book is probably The Dirty Cowboy -- hilarious. A picture book, though.

As for What Came from the Stars -- what can I say? I loved Wednesday Wars but this one did not work at all for me. The parts from the other planet were written in a sort of jibberish that almost rose to the level of parody, although I'm not sure that's what Schmidt intended.

What Came from the Stars by Gary D. Schmidt is different from Schmidt's previous work, with a strong science fiction element.

The dual stories, on Earth and on a planet far, far away, are told in alternating chapters, with the Valorim's story written in a saga-like style and lyrical language, printed in italics. A Glossary in the back gives (with humor) definitions of Valorim vocabulary. A final chapter, The Testament of Young Waeglim, gives necessary background to the story of the Valorim, Ethelim and the O'Mondim.

Schmidt's writing remains descriptive, beautiful and insightful. The dialog between Tommy and his friends sounds extremely realistic. The relationship between Tommy and his family is well realized. The chapters in Plymouth focus on the struggle of Tommy, his sister and his father with the loss of Tommy's mother, the relationship between Tommy and his friends, the struggle with a realtor, and the action stemming from Tommy's gift of the chain.

The story of the Valorim is more challenging reading, requiring readers to check the glossary frequently and use their imagination. The final chapter should, in my opinion, be read first, and, imo, should have been placed at the beginning of the book. Science fiction and fantasy readers may enjoy this book more than others.

This book worked for me, but I really enjoy science fictiona dn fantasy. It will not be for everyone and may be challenging for many middle grade readers, which in my opinion is not necessarily a bad thing, but may result in less readership. The writing, voice, science fiction story, and the use of imagination required makes this a 4 star read for me.

Thanks for the advice. I will read the last chapter.

Ah yes....The Dirty Cowboy!! A banned book in a local community near me - of course! Well, now I'll have to read One Came Home - didn't know she wrote chapter books, too.

Jo wrote: "I was going to read What Came From the Stars. But the reviews on Good Reads were mostly so so. I wanted to see what this group thought about it. Life's too short to read so so books. I completely a..."

Ditto about The Wednesday Wars - but I hope you have also read OK For Now - I felt the characters were so human and so deep - just loved it.

I will put it on my to read list. Thank you

I just read Kindred Souls. It was good and totally Patricia MacLachlan. You know what was going to happen but I think she intended that unlike Edward's Eyes. Lucy the dog was a bit unusual.

I also love Okay For Now! And I am looking forward to reading The Center Of Everything by Linda Urban.

I just finished Navigating Early. An amazing book.

I thought this group may want to respond to a comment by Tracy Grant. It appeared today in many papers concerning "The One and Only Ivan" which she predicts children are going to love reading. Here is her comment which this librarian agrees with. " My problem is that too often the Newbery Medal winners seem like books kids should read rather than books kids want to devour. They’re important. They’re serious. They’re sometimes just hard to love."
Tracy Grant Momspeak columnist

Well, there is no critical love for Diary of a Wimpy Kid, which the kids LOVE. As I go around to many different classrooms as a substitute teacher, I rarely see kids reading the award-winning books. Kids LOVE Rick Riordan - have any of his books gotten awards? (I don't follow the awards closely.) It interests me to see what books kids LOVE and it isn't usually Newbery award winners. I have never seen a kid reading View from Saturday, even though I love the book.

I read the ARC for Courage Has No Color, The True Story of the Triple Nickles: America's First Black Paratroopers by Tanya Lee Stone. It is a fascinating account of the formation, training, frustrations and triumphs of this World War II unit.

LauraW wrote: "Well, there is no critical love for Diary of a Wimpy Kid, which the kids LOVE. As I go around to many different classrooms as a substitute teacher, I rarely see kids reading the award-winning book..."

But I wonder how much of that is marketing and availability. Even the grocery store sells DWK and Riordan. Where will they find , unless they go looking for it specifically?

It's also fad/cool thing to read those books.. That is where we librarians must get our students excited about other good literature. When I book talk, those books circulate like crazy.

I don't think it is wholly or even primarily marketing. The kids get a lot of their books through the school libraries and they get most of their recommendations from their friends. I often ask kids when I am subbing what books they would recommend for me. During silent reading time, I have them come up with their books and I ask them about them. I have never had a kid tell me to read many of the Newbery award-winning books. Oftentimes, kids have much less sophisticated tastes than the Newbery award winners. I don't dispute the quality of the award winners, but I do agree that they are often not the books kids really want to read.

And I didn't care for Dead End in Norvelt, anyway. LOL.

I read dead end in Norbert thinking maybe I missed something. Nope it just wasn't very good.

Jo wrote: "I read dead end in Norbert thinking maybe I missed something. Nope it just wasn't very good."

My students like it and recommend it to one another. I know Norvelt has gotten bashed pretty thoroughly here, but my point is that publishers and retail outlets aren't promoting the books that aren't going to sell a few million copies.

How many people do you know read the winner of the Pulitzer prize every year? How many do you know that read the latest Stephen King/Patterson/Danielle Steele (is she even still around? I don't know much about adult books.) The same argument can be made for adult books as well. That's because awards have very specific criteria that their judges and committees are looking for. Universal appeal and bestseller-list status are not criteria for the Newbery. Do we sometimes wish that the winners had a wider audience? Sure. But it's futile to complain that the award is not, well, a completely different award with completely different criteria.

I was not criticizing the awards at all. They are given to high quality books under very specific criteria. The question was asked whether they felt like books kids SHOULD read, rather than books they wanted to devour. My answer is still yes.

LauraW wrote: "I was not criticizing the awards at all. They are given to high quality books under very specific criteria. The question was asked whether they felt like books kids SHOULD read, rather than books..."

I think you are right. But with a few exceptions, they usually love them when they do read them. Many of them are required reading in K-6 so most of our students have read them before they reach me. No one picks up A Single Shard voluntarily. But when they 7/8th grade kids see it out for the 6th grade, the always stop and say how much they loved the book.

I have a problem with the word SHOULD. That is a judgment that can only be applied by people after the fact of the awards. I'd prefer to think of the Newbery books as ones WORTH reading, for any age reader, but aimed of course at age 14 or below. And then I have a problem with the words SEEM, FEEL or FELT. That is of course completely subjective. It speaks only to the attitude of the person who uses the word, in this case an adult who is speaking for children. I don't believe a book on its own can SEEM like something one SHOULD read. Do sunsets SEEM like you SHOULD appreciate them? It's nice when someone (or a committee) points out some especially distinguished sunsets (in their opinion of course) so that you can take a look. Does the sunset have your favorite colors in it? Would it make it to the NYT best sunset list? Who cares? It is simply a distinguished sunset worth appreciating, by some children, if not all, and if not you.

I personally disliked most of Dead End in Norvelt. There are two parts I did like, the part where they are hunting and the boy passes gas in the woods to scare the dear away and the time he dresses up like the Grim Reaper to see if the old lady is still alive, and scares her half to death. I can do without the rest of it. Every time I read a book that came out in 2011 I think to myself "Yup. That one's better than Norvelt, too"

To answer the original question, I'm in the beginning of A Tangle of Knots by Lisa Graff, and I'm really enjoying it.

In terms of Dead End in Norvelt, I will admit, it was not my absolute favorite; however, I read this book to my 10-year-old son, and to this day, it is one of his favorite books. I grew to love the book more as it went on, simply because it triggered so much curiousity (and laughter) in my son. He seemed to relate to the story in ways I could not have even imagined.

There are so many books I read and loved as a child that upon a second read today just lack the magic I remembered. A few have held up (The Secret Garden, Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, The Phantom Tollbooth), but I feel like sometimes I overthink and overanalyze books as part of my job and miss out on the simple joy children find in those same books.

Even today at my library, Dead End in Norvelt circulates like crazy, so perhaps our critical eye is missing some of the magic of this book, but it seems that kids are finding it in loads. The question may be, will this book stand the test of time?

Judy wrote: "I have a problem with the word SHOULD. That is a judgment that can only be applied by people after the fact of the awards. I'd prefer to think of the Newbery books as ones WORTH reading, for any ag..."

I agree Judy; kids SHOULD be reading, period. I do not care what it is as long as they are reading. I do think it is a lack of exposure and some students at my school haven't built the stamina to read long novels. We are almost 70% Hispanic and a lot are English Language Learners, so they many are still reading Magic Tree House/Junie B. Jones in 4th and 5th grade. All kids at my school LOVE Diary of a Wimpy Kid and the Percy Jackson series is also popular. My kids also love Graphic Novels; I wish there was an award for just this format whereas most of the time they do not make it to the awards.

I love love love Dead End in Norvelt and I say that being someone who does not do well with blood, depictions of bloody injuries, or dead bodies. It was just a great tale expertly told.

After seeing Jack Gantos at the Tucson Book Festival last year, I could hear him telling the story. He shared pictures of his childhood in Norvelt and his Dad's airplane in which he actually did fly out of Norvelt to Florida. He could be a stand-up comedian if he wasn't a writer. If you missed him on Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me (NPR), it is worth a listen: http://www.npr.org/2012/01/28/1459987...

I loved the scene with the wax on the hands. I use a parafin wax bath for my hands and the first time my son walked in and saw me with my hands covered in wax was much like the scene in the book.

Would love to see him live! Thanks for the link.

I second Christine's recommendation of taking time to listen to Jack Gantos on NPR; I'm glad some media source cares about the Newbery since The Today Show dropped its coverage of the winners.

One of the producers of that show (Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me) is Emily Ecton who I think has written some middle-grade novels herself.

I further recommend hearing Jack Gantos speak, especially in person. He is very funny and relates very well to kids. His Jack books are very popular.

Christine wrote: "Jo wrote: "I read dead end in Norbert thinking maybe I missed something. Nope it just wasn't very good."

My students like it and recommend it to one another. I know Norvelt has gotten bashed pret..."

I read Dead End aloud to my class last November. I totally enjoyed it but I don't read an entire book to the class. Well, midway through when I told them it would be our last chapter, it was clear I'd have a mutiny on my hands if I didn't keep reading. Usually, if I don't get 85% of the kids loving my choice, I move on. Dead End and When You Reach Me have been my rock-solid 100%-ers. Boy am I glad I didn't give it up. The class reaction to Dead End's announcement during the livestream was one I'll never forget. As satisfying as the Sox 2004 victory.

I love trying to read aloud books I've never read before so the kids can see me struggling to figure out how to read a character, having to repeat a line because my perception of the context was off. Any time I'm unsuccessful with two picks in a row, WYRM and DE are my default books to get everyone back in the spirit for read aloud.

Plus, I love being able to go into other classrooms to read the deer hunting scene. As I tell the kids after, it's the most empathetic fart to ever grace the hallowed pages of the Newbery.

I'm glad the committee elevated Norvelt to such an esteemed status. It's a "funny" book that's way more than just funny. Gantos does such a phenomenal job with the characters and weaving in history to the story, that the fact we didn't even know we were reading a mystery until the end was every bit as enjoyable as the book itself.

Cathy wrote: "Jo wrote: "I was going to read What Came From the Stars. But the reviews on Good Reads were mostly so so. I wanted to see what this group thought about it. Life's too short to read so so books. I c..."

I'm shocked that one was even published. Hats off to Schmidt for trying something new with fantasy. Who knows where it will eventually lead him but unfortunately, the only elements of Stars that worked were the realistic pieces.