Newbery Books

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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204 Items found Print
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Abraham Lincoln
by Clara Ingram Judson
from Sterling Publishing Co.
Biography for 3rd-7th grade
1951 Newbery Honor Book
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Abraham Lincoln's World
by Genevieve Foster, expanded by Joanna Foster
from Beautiful Feet Books
Historical Non-fiction for 7th-10th grade
1945 Newbery Honor Book
in American Civil War (1860-1865) (Location: HISA-19CW)
$21.95
After Tupac & D Foster
by Jacqueline Woodson
Reprint from Puffin Books
for 6th-9th grade
2009 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Afternoon of the Elves
by Janet Taylor Lisle
Reprint from Atheneum
for 3rd-7th grade
1990 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Al Capone Does My Shirts
by Gennifer Choldenko
Reprint from Puffin Books
for 7th-10th grade
2005 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
All Sail Set
by Armstrong Sperry
from David R. Godine
Nautical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
1936 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$14.95 $10.00 (2 in stock)
Along Came a Dog
by Meindert DeJong & Maurice Sendak
from HarperCollins
Realistic Animal Fiction for 4th-8th grade
1959 Newbery Honor Book
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
Along Came a Dog
by Meindert DeJong & Maurice Sendak
from Inheritance Publications
Realistic Animal Fiction for 4th-8th grade
1959 Newbery Honor Book
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
And Now Miguel
by Joseph Krumgold
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction for 5th-8th grade
1954 Newbery Medal winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$5.99
Animal Family
by Randall Jarrell
Reprint from HarperTrophy
for 3rd-6th grade
1966 Newbery Honor Book
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
Annie and the Old One
by Miska Miles, Peter Parnall
Reprint from Little, Brown & Company
for Nursery-1st grade
1972 Newbery Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Anpao
by Jamake Highwater
from HarperCollins
for 5th-9th grade
1978 Newbery Honor Book
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.99
Apple and the Arrow
by Conrad & Mary Buff
from Houghton Mifflin
Realistic Fiction/Historical Fiction for 4th-6th grade
1952 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.99
Avion My Uncle Flew
by Cyrus Fisher, illustrated by Richard Floethe
from Purple House Press
for 5th-7th grade
1947 Newbery Honor Book
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$13.95
Because of Winn-Dixie
by Kate DiCamillo
from Candlewick Press
Realistic Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
2001 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Because of Winn-Dixie
by Kate DiCamillo
from Scholastic Inc.
Realistic Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
2001 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Because of Winn-Dixie
by Kate DiCamillo
Updated from Candlewick Press
Realistic Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
2001 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Black Cauldron
Prydain Chronicles #2
by Lloyd Alexander
from Henry Holt and Company
Fantasy for 4th-8th grade
1966 Newbery Honor Book
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.99
Blue Cat of Castle Town
by Catherine Coblentz, illustrated by Janice Holland
Dover 2017 from Dover Publications
for 3rd-6th grade
1950 Newbery Honor Book
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$6.95
Book of Boy
by Catherine Gilbert Murdock, illustrated by Ian Schoenherr
Frist Paperback from Greenwillow Books
for 3rd-7th grade
2019 Newbery Honor Book
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.99
Breaking Stalin's Nose
by Eugene Yelchin
from Square Fish Publishing
for 4th-7th grade
2012 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.99
Bronze Bow
by Elizabeth George Speare
from Houghton Mifflin
Historical Fiction for 5th-9th grade
1962 Newbery Medal winner
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.99 $5.00 (2 in stock)
Bud, Not Buddy
by Christopher Paul Curtis
from Yearling
Realistic Fiction for 4th-6th grade
2000 Newbery Medal winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99 $5.00 (3 in stock)
By the Shores of Silver Lake
Little House Series #5
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction/Pioneers for 3rd-6th grade
1940 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.99
Carry On, Mr. Bowditch
by Jean Lee Latham
from Houghton Mifflin
Biography for 5th-9th grade
1956 Newbery Medal winner
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.99
Claudette Colvin
by Philip Hoose
from Square Fish Publishing
for 6th-9th grade
2010 Newbery Honor Book, 2010 Robert F. Sibert Honor Book, National Book Award
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Clearing Weather
by Cornelia Meigs
Repint from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
1929 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.99
Commodore Perry in the Land of the Shogun
by Rhoda Blumberg
from HarperCollins
Historical Non-Fiction for 4th-8th grade
1986 Newbery Honor Book
in Japan (Location: HISMC-JAP)
$9.99 $7.00 (2 in stock)
Cow-Tail Switch
by Harold Courlander, George Herzog
Reissue from Square Fish Publishing
for 5th-7th grade
1948 Newbery Honor Book
Crispin: The Cross of Lead
by Avi
from Hyperion/Madison Press
for 4th-8th grade
2003 Newbery Medal winner
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.99
Criss Cross
by Lynne Rae Perkins
from Greenwillow Books
for 6th-9th grade
2006 Newbery Medal Winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Daniel Boone
by James Daugherty
from Sonlight Curriculum, Ltd.
for 4th-6th grade
1940 Newbery Medal winner
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Dark Frigate
by Charles Boardman Hawes
from Little, Brown & Company
Historical Fiction for 5th-8th grade
1924 Newbery Medal winner
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Dark Frigate
by Charles Boardman Hawes
Dover 2018 from Dover Publications
Historical Fiction for 5th-8th grade
1924 Newbery Medal winner
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.99
Dark-Thirty: Southern Tales of the Supernatural
by Patricia C. McKissack, illustrated by Brian Pinkney
from Yearling
for 4th-7th grade
1993 Newbery Honor Book
$7.99
Dead End in Norvelt
by Jack Gantos
from Square Fish Publishing
for 5th-8th grade
2012 Newbery Medal Winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Dicey's Song
by Cynthia Voigt
from Atheneum
for 6th-10th grade
1983 Newbery Medal winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$12.99
Dobry
by Monica Shannon, illustrated by Atanas Katchamakoff
from Puffin Books
for 4th-8th grade
1935 Newbery Medal winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Doctor De Soto
by William Steig
from Square Fish Publishing
Animal Fantasy for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1983 Newbery Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Dogsong
by Gary Paulsen
from Simon and Schuster
for 5th-8th grade
1986 Newbery Honor Book
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.99
Doll Bones
by Holly Black
Reprint from Margaret K. McElderry Books
for 5th-9th grade
2014 Newbery Honor Book
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.99
Down Ryton Water
by E.R. Gaggin
from Sonlight Curriculum, Ltd.
for 4th-6th grade
1942 Newbery Honor
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$4.50 (2 in stock)
Downright Dency
by Caroline Dale Snedeker
from Bethlehem Books
Realistic Fiction for 6th-9th grade
1928 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$16.95
Ear, the Eye, and the Arm
by Nancy Farmer
First Printing from Scholastic Press
for 4th-6th grade
1995 Newbery Honor Book
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.99
El Deafo
by Cece Bell
1st edition from Amulet Books
for 3rd-7th grade
2015 Newbery Honor Book
in Comic Books & Graphic Novels (Location: FIC-COMIC)
$14.99
Eleanor Roosevelt
by Russell Freedman
from Clarion Books
Biography for 4th-6th grade
1994 Newbery Honor Book
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$11.95 $7.50 (1 in stock)
Elijah Of Buxton
by Christopher Paul Curtis
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
2008 Coretta Scott King Author Award Winner, 2008 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Enchantress from the Stars
by Sylvia Engdahl
from Firebird Press
for 7th-9th grade
1971 Newbery Honor Book
in Science Fiction (Location: FIC-SCI)
$8.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Everything on a Waffle
by Polly Horvath
First Square Fish, May 2008 from Square Fish Publishing
for 4th-6th grade
2002 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Evolution of Calpurnia Tate
by Jacqueline Kelly
Reprint from Square Fish Publishing
for 4th-8th grade
2010 Newbery Honor
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Fearsome Inn
by Isaac Bashevis Singer, illustrated by Nonny Hogrogian
from Marcel Dekker
for 4th-6th grade
1968 Newbery Honor Book
Feathers
by Jacqueline Woodson
Reprint from Puffin Books
for 4th-7th grade
2008 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
Figgs & Phantoms
by Ellen Raskin
from Puffin Books
for 3rd-6th grade
1975 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Fine White Dust
by Cynthia Rylant
2nd Aladdin Paperbacks from Atheneum
for 5th-9th grade
1987 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Flora & Ulysses
by Kate DiCamillo
Reprint from Candlewick Press
for 3rd-6th grade
2014 Newbery Medal winner
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Forgotten Daughter
by Caroline Dale Snedeker
from American Home-School Publishing
for 7th-10th grade
1934 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Forgotten Daughter
by Caroline Dale Snedeker
from Bethlehem Books
for 7th-10th grade
1934 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$14.95
Genesis Begins Again
by Alicia D. Williams
from Atheneum
for 6th-8th grade
2020 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
George Washington's World
by Genevieve Foster, expanded by Joanna Foster
from Beautiful Feet Books
History Reference/Biography for 7th-10th grade
1942 Newbery Honor Book
in American Revolution (1765-1783) (Location: HISA-18REV)
George Washington's World
by Genevieve Foster, expanded by Joanna Foster and edited by Rea Berg
from Beautiful Feet Books
History Reference/Biography for 7th-10th grade
1942 Newbery Honor Book
in American Revolution (1765-1783) (Location: HISA-18REV)
$21.95
Getting Near to Baby
by Audrey Couloumbis
from Puffin Books
for 4th-8th grade
2000 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Getting Near to Baby
by Audrey Couloumbis
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
2000 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Ginger Pye
by Eleanor Estes
from Harcourt
Realistic Animal Fiction for 2nd-5th grade
1952 Newbery Medal winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Golden Fleece
by Padraic Colum & Willy Pogany
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Greek Mythology for 3rd-8th grade
1922 Newbery Honor Book
$10.99 $6.00 (2 in stock)
Gone-Away Lake
by Elizabeth Enright, illustrated by Beth & Joe Krush
from Harcourt
Realistic Fiction for 4th-6th grade
1958 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.99
Good Masters! Sweet Ladies!
by Laura Amy Schlitz
from Candlewick Press
for 5th-9th grade
2008 Newbery Medal Winner
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$12.99
Graven Images
by Paul Fleischman
from Candlewick Press
for 4th-7th grade
1983 Newbery Honor Book
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.99
Graveyard Book
by Neil Gaiman
from HarperCollins
for 6th-9th grade
2009 Newbery Medal winner, 2010 Carnegie Medal
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$10.99
Great Gilly Hopkins
by Katherine Paterson
from HarperCollins
for 5th-8th grade.
1979 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$4.00 (2 in stock)
Great Wheel
by Robert Lawson
from Walker and Company
Realistic fiction for 4th-8th grade
1958 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.99 $6.00 (2 in stock)
Hatchet
by Gary Paulsen
from Aladdin Paperbacks
for 4th-8th grade
1988 Newbery Honor Book
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.99
Headless Cupid
by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
6th Printing from Atheneum
for 3rd-6th grade
1972 Newbery Honor Book
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Hello, Universe
by Erin Entrada Kelly
from Greenwillow Books
for 4th-6th grade
2018 Newbery Medal winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Hero and the Crown
by Robin McKinley
Reissue from Puffin Books
for 5th-9th grade
1985 Newbery Medal Winner
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$6.99
Hero and the Crown
by Robin McKinley
from ACE Publishing
for 5th-9th grade
1985 Newbery Medal Winner
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Hidden Treasure of Glaston
Bethlehem Books Living History Library
by Eleanore Jewett
from Bethlehem Books
Historical Fiction for 5th-8th grade
1947 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$15.95
High King
Prydain Chronicles #5
by Lloyd Alexander
from Henry Holt and Company
Fantasy for 4th-8th grade
1969 Newbery Medal winner
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.99
Higher Power of Lucky
by Susan Patron
from Atheneum
for 4th-8th grade
2007 Newbery Medal Winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Hitler Youth
by Susan Bartoletti
Reprint from Scholastic Press
for 7th-9th grade
2006 Robert F. Sibert Honor Book, 2006 NCTE Orbis Pictus Honor Book
in World War II (1939-1945) (Location: HISA-20WW2)
$10.99
Holes
Holes Series #1
by Louis Sachar
from Yearling
for 4th-6th grade
1999 Newbery Medal winner
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.99
Homesick: My Own Story
by Jean Fritz
from PaperStar Books
Autobiography for 4th-8th grade
1983 Newbery Honor Book
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$7.99 $4.50 (2 in stock)
Hoot
by Carl Hiaasen
from Ember
for 4th-6th grade
2003 Newbery Honor Book
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.99
Hope Was Here
by Joan Bauer
from Penguin Putnam
for 4th-6th grade
2001 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
House of the Scorpion
by Nancy Farmer
Reprint from Atheneum
for 8th-Adult
2003 Newbery Honor Book; 2003 National Book Award for Young People's Literature
in Science Fiction (Location: FIC-SCI)
$12.99 $7.00 (1 in stock)
I, Juan de Pareja
by Elizabeth Borton de Treviño
from Square Fish Publishing
Realistic Fiction/Slavery for 5th-8th grade
1966 Newbery Medal winner
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.99 $4.50 (3 in stock)
I, Juan de Pareja
by Elizabeth Borton de Treviño
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Realistic Fiction/Slavery for 5th-8th grade
1966 Newbery Medal winner
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$4.00 (2 in stock)
In the Beginning
by Virginia Hamilton, Illustrated by Barry Moser
from Houghton Mifflin
for 3rd-8th grade
1989 Newbery Honor Book
$20.00 $11.00 (1 in stock)
Incident at Hawk's Hill
by Allan W. Eckert
from Little, Brown & Company
Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
1972 Newbery Honor Book
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Inside Out & Back Again
by Thanhha Lai
Reprint from HarperCollins
Narrative Poetry / Novel-In-Verse for 4th-8th grade
2012 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Inside Out & Back Again
by Thanhha Lai
Reprint from HarperCollins
Narrative Poetry / Novel-In-Verse for 4th-8th grade
2012 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Invincible Louisa
by Cornelia Meigs
from Little, Brown & Company
Biography for 5th-8th grade
1934 Newbery Medal winner
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$13.99
Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth
by E. L. Konigsburg
Third Aladdin Paperbacks: Feb.2007 from Atheneum
for 3rd-6th grade
1968 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
Joey Pigza Loses Control
by Jack Gantos
Reprint from Square Fish Publishing
for 7th-10th grade
2001 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Journey Outside
by Mary Q. Steele
Reprint from Puffin Books
for 5th-8th grade
1970 Newbery Honor Book
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.99
Joyful Noise
by Paul Fleischman
from HarperCollins
for 2nd-6th grade
1989 Newbery Medal winner
in Poetry for Children (Location: POET-CHIL)
$6.99
Jumping-Off Place
by Marion Hurd McNeely
Reprint from Dover Publications
for 6th-8th grade
1930 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.95
Kildee House
by Rutherford G. Montgomery
from Walker and Company
for 4th-6th grade
1950 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$4.00 (2 in stock)
Kira-Kira
by Cynthia Kadohata
from Atheneum
for 6th-9th grade
2005 Newbery Medal Winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
Li Lun
by Carolyn Treffinger
from Walker and Company
Realistic Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
1948 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Li Lun
by Carolyn Treffinger
from Walker and Company
Realistic Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
1948 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
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