Newbery Awards, Part 4 (and Last)

Sigh. There’s not enough time to write about all the wonderful books before the winner is named tomorrow. In addition to Keeper and Countdown, there are (in no particular order) The Dreamer by Pam Munoz Ryan, Chasing Orion by Kathryn Lasky, The Mysterious Howling by Maryrose Wood, The Heart of a Samurai by Margi Preus, One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams Garcia, and The Candymakers by Wendy Mass. I guess that’s my shortlist.

Some of those I loved and am sure won’t win (Chasing Orion and The Mysterious Howling, to name names). Some I didn’t like so much (The Heart of a Samurai, but we know how I feel about historical fiction and all the while I was reading it, I feared a chapter like Herman Melville’s centerpiece of Moby Dick, detailing whaling in ways I didn't want to read about in college or now).

Of course, I’m looking forward to hearing who the winner is. And to another year of fantastic reading.

Comments

"Beartown" by Fredrik Backman

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"The Boy at the End of the World," by Greg van Eekhout

I’m very grateful for The Boy at the End of the World , by Greg Van Eekhout. It’s a good, though not outstanding, book. More important, it fills a gap: science fiction for 3 rd -5 th graders. Because at some point during the school year, a teacher will assign a science fiction book report and I will have a hard time recommending books. I grew up reading science fiction and fantasy. And we know how much I like dystopian fiction (a lot). I have no problem finding good science fiction books for teens. In fact, some of the other librarians are tired of me telling teens (regardless of the assignment), “You must read Feed . Everyone should.” Or “You have to read Ender’s Game . You'll love it.” But younger kids come into the library looking for science fiction and it feels like there’s nothing very good. Most of them balk at the length of The True Meaning of Smekday (by Adam Rex), no matter how hard I sell it. They shrug their shoulders at The City of Ember (Jean DuPrau), even when I

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