Newbery Books - Exodus Books

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Click here for a complete list of Newbery Medalists, organized by year with ratings, FLAWS, and links to book reviews.

Once upon a time there was a bookseller. His name was Frederic G. Melcher, and he knew in his heart that books for children were just as important as books for adults, if not more so. Why, he wondered, are they so often ignored? He thought and thought, and decided in the end that it didn't matter why; what mattered was that he did something to change all that.

He did. In 1921, he proposed the Newbery Award to the American Library Association, a prize named for 18th-century English bookseller John Newbery to be given to the most distinguished American children's book published the previous year. The Association's Executive Board approved the idea, much to the joy of children's librarians everywhere, and the first Newbery Award was given in 1922.

The express purpose of the medal was "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."

Melcher's brainchild was the first children's book award in the world, and remains the measure of all the others. He went on to initiate the Caldecott Award for best illustrated children's book, and together the Newbery and the Caldecott provide an important standard for evaluating children's books in the United States and beyond.

Between 2012-2014, our friend Caleb undertook the project of reviewing ALL the medalists, which he completed (he wrote a sad summary of his journey here). While that is essentially done (we haven't managed to keep it up), we're now gathering information to compile reviews for the honor books! If you'd like to be a part of that process, we invite you to join us at the Facebook group "The Newbery Books Discussion Group."

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37 Items found Print

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	Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt from Berkley Books Historical Fiction for 6th-9th grade 1965 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $8.49 $4.00 (1 in stock)
	Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt from Berkley Books Historical Fiction for 6th-9th grade 1965 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $8.49 $3.60 (1 in stock)
	Adam of the Road Puffin Newbery Library by Elizabeth Gray from Puffin Books Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade 1943 Newbery Medal winner in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $8.49
	Adam of the Road Puffin Modern Classics by Elizabeth Gray from Puffin Books Historical Fiction for 3rd-8th grade 1943 Newbery Medal winner in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF) $8.49
	Amos Fortune, Free Man by Elizabeth Yates, illustrated by Nora S. Unwin from Puffin Books Realistic Fiction for 4th-8th grade 1951 Newbery Medal winner in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $7.64
	Corn Grows Ripe Puffin Newbery Library by Dorothy Rhoads from Puffin Books for 4th-6th grade 1957 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $6.79
	Door in the Wall by Marguerite de Angeli from Yearling Realistic Fiction for 3rd-6th grade 1950 Newbery Medal winner in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $6.79
	Door in the Wall by Marguerite de Angeli from Yearling Realistic Fiction for 3rd-6th grade 1950 Newbery Medal winner in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $6.79
	Dragonwings Golden Mountain Chronicles: 1903 by Laurence Yep from HarperCollins Historical fiction for 5th-8th grade 1976 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $6.79 $3.60 (2 in stock)
	Dragonwings Golden Mountain Chronicles: 1903 by Laurence Yep from Scholastic Inc. Historical fiction for 5th-8th grade 1976 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $3.20 (1 in stock)
	Gathering of Days A New England Girl's Journal, 1830-32 by Joan Blos from Aladdin Paperbacks Historical Fiction for 4th-6th grade 1980 Newbery Medal winner in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $7.64
	Golden Goblet by Eloise J. McGraw from Puffin Books Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade 1962 Newbery Honor Book in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $8.49
	Indian Captive The Story of Mary Jemison by Lois Lenski from HarperCollins Historical Fiction for 4th-9th grade 1942 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $8.49
	Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell Anv from Sandpiper Books Realistic Fiction for 5th-8th grade 1961 Newbery Medal winner in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $8.49 $4.00 (2 in stock)
	Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes from Yearling Historical Fiction/Adventure for 3rd-10th grade 1944 Newbery Medal winner in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $4.50 (2 in stock)
	Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes Reprint from Sandpiper Books Historical Fiction/Adventure for 5th-9th grade 1944 Newbery Medal winner in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
	Matchlock Gun by Walter Edmonds from PaperStar Books Historical Fiction for 2nd-4th grade 1942 Newbery Medal winner in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $7.64 $3.60 (3 in stock)
	Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman from Clarion Books Realistic Fiction for 7th-10th grade 1996 Newbery Medal winner in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
	Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Realistic Fiction for 7th-10th grade 1996 Newbery Medal winner in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
	Moccasin Trail Puffin Newbery Library by Eloise J. McGraw from Puffin Books Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade 1953 Newbery Honor Book in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $7.64 $4.00 (1 in stock)
	My Brother Sam Is Dead by James & Christopher Collier from Scholastic Inc. Historical Fiction for 5th-8th grade 1975 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $6.79
	Nothing But the Truth A Documentary Novel by Avi from Scholastic Press 1992 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $8.49
	On the Banks of Plum Creek Little House Series #4 by Laura Ingalls Wilder from HarperCollins Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade 1938 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $8.49
	Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse from Scholastic Inc. Realistic Fiction for 6th-8th grade 1998 Newbery Medal winner in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $7.64
	Rifles for Watie by Harold Keith from HarperCollins Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade 1958 Newbery Medal winner in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $13.59
	Road from Home by David Kherdian from Greenwillow Books for 7th-9th grade 1980 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $7.64 $4.80 (2 in stock)
	Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare from Yearling Historical Fiction for 3rd-6th grade 1984 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $2.80 (1 in stock)
	Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare from Houghton Mifflin Historical Fiction for 3rd-6th grade 1984 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $8.49
	Slave Dancer by Paula Fox from Laurel-Leaf Books Historical Fiction for 6th-8th grade 1974 Newbery Medal winner in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $5.53 $2.40 (1 in stock)
	Slave Dancer by Paula Fox from Aladdin Paperbacks Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade 1974 Newbery Medal winner in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $5.94
	To Be a Slave by Julius Lester from Scholastic Inc. Historical Non-fiction for 6th-10th grade 1969 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $5.09
	To Be a Slave Puffin Modern Classics by Julius Lester, illustrated by Tom Feelings from Puffin Books Historical Non-fiction for 6th-10th grade 1969 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $3.60 (1 in stock)
	Trumpeter of Krakow by Eric P. Kelly from Aladdin Paperbacks Historical Fiction for 6th-9th grade 1929 Newbery Medal winner in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV) $7.64
	Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis from Laurel-Leaf Books for 5th-8th grade 1996 Newbery Honor Book in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $7.64
	White Stag Puffin Newbery Library by Kate Seredy from Puffin Books Heroic Legend for 4th-6th grade 1938 Newbery Medal winner in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $6.79
	Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare Reissue from Sandpiper Books Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade 1959 Newbery Medal winner in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF) $8.49 $4.80 (1 in stock)
	Young Fu of the Upper Yangtze by Elizabeth Foreman Lewis, illustrated by William Low from Square Fish Publishing Realistic Fiction for 5th-8th grade 1933 Newbery Medal winner in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA) $8.49

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