Newbury Awarded Books

	Island of the Blue Dolphins O'Dell, S. (1960). Island of the Blue Dolphin. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. This is a story about a young girl, Karana, who survives by herself on an island for 18 years. She was a daughter of a chief who was slain by fur traders. As her people were leaving the island to seek a new place her brother, Ramo, was left behind accidently when the ships were sailing away, and she refused to leave her brother behind so she bravely dove into the sea to swim back to the island. Sadly, her brother didn’t survive long on the island and Karana was left alone. Karana developed her skills in hunting, weapon making, and much more to survive the wild and harsh elements. This is truly a well-written book and many could appreciate the dynamics of this book and character. I really enjoyed the story and watch Karana grow as a character. It's one of my favorite books to read.
	Hatchet Paulsen, G. (1987). Hatchet. New York, NY: Bradbury Press. This is a great story about a young boy, Brian Robeson, who crash lands in the middle of the Canadian wilderness on his way to see his father. Brian luckily survives a plane crash and he slowly swims to the shore to survey the area. During Brain’s time alone he uses his many skills that he read about to survive the harsh elements of the wilderness, and he even survived a twister. When the harsh storm was over he realizes that it somehow lifted the plane that had crashed into the water up, and Brian daringly worms his way into the plane to get the much-needed survival bag. Brain’s time there in the wilderness helped him grow in many ways. Find out what Brain went through in order to survive. Brain is a well-developed character and the mere thought of his trails, and some of the pain he went through made me love the character even more.
	The Sign of the Beaver Speare, E. G. (1998). The Sign of the Beaver. New York, NY: Random House. This is a great story of a young pioneer boy, Matt, who is left behind to tend to the house while his father goes and fetches the rest of the family. While Matt is left behind he falls prey to the theft and he almost dies from a severe reaction to bees. When he awakens, he finds an old Indian man and a young Indian boy tending to him and helping him get back onto his feet. While Matt regains his strength, he is asked to teach the young Indian boy, Attean, English. Matt does his best to teach Attean but it’s really Attean who is teaching Matt. Find out what Attean and Matt learned from each other and what each of them had to offer. Matt and Attean are two completely opposite characters who are both developed well. I enjoyed reading this story because of how opposite they were, and how they became friends at the end.
	The Witch of Blackbird Pond Speare, E. G. (2011). The Witch of Blackbird Pond. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin. This story is set in the colonial period where our young character Kit Taylor recently came from Barbados to come live with her aunt after her grandfather died. Kit is perceived to be unusual and many consider her odd because of the way she acts. Throughout the story these misunderstandings and misconceptions make Kit vulnerable to being accused of witchcraft. Through plain luck Kit is released and can go back home to her family, but sadly Kit decides after that event that she doesn’t belong with her family and she wishes to go back home to Barbados. Find out what if Kit makes it back home or not. This is another one of my favorites because of how Kit Taylor is written is just marvelous. I was rooting for Kit the whole time when I was reading this book and her story made me just want to cry for everything she went through.
	The One and Only Ivan Applegate, K. (2012). The One and Only Ivan. New York, NY: Harper Collins. This story is about a gorilla, Ivan, and his life at a shopping mall. Ivan no longer remembers his old life in the jungle and he merely observes the humans who are outside of his domain. Ivan is an easy-going gorilla who has a couple of friends; like Stella the elephant and Bob the stray dog, and Ivan enjoys making art which he has learned to appreciate thanks to the caretaker’s young daughter. Ivan’s life is about to change when a new animal, Ruby, a baby elephant joins the gang. Ruby was taken from the wild and when she sees Ivan’s pictures she begins to share her memories with Ivan which triggers his own long ago memories. As the story continues Ivan decides that this isn’t the place for Ruby to live and begins to come up with a plan to free Ruby. Find out if Ivan succeeded with his plan or not. Ivan and his fellow characters were a great read and I thoroughly enjoyed what Ivan went through to get him and Ruby to be free.
	One Crazy Summer Williams-Garcia, R. (2010). One Crazy Summer. New York, NY: Amistad/Harper Collins. This is a story is set during the late 1960’s, it’s about three sisters who travel from Brooklyn to Oakland, California to stay the month with their mother who abandoned her children a long time ago. Delphine is the oldest sister and she’s overseen her younger sisters ever since their mother left. She’s is the only one who recalls what her mother, Cecile, was like when she was little. When they finally land in Oakland and meet their mother, they find out that she’s a poet and print-maker. Delphine learns that her mother prints out letters and other things to spread the Black panthers message. During their month long stay their mother is arrested, and it’s up to Delphine to take care of her sisters. Find out what happens to Delphine and her sisters. After reading this first book by Rita Williams-Garcia and these characters she created I knew I found another author who I enjoyed to read. This is truly a great book and author.
	Shiloh Naylor, P. R. (1991). Shiloh. New York, NY: Atheneum. This is a story about a young boy who does everything in his power to save a dog, Shiloh. Our young boy, Marty Preston, always wanted a dog of his own but his family couldn’t afford a dog. One day Marty happens to come across a little beagle in the woods and he decides he wants to keep the little dog, but he finds out the dog belongs to the crusty-old mean man, Judd Travers. It breaks his hurt to give the dog back to Judd, but Shiloh runs back to Marty. Even though, Marty hides Shiloh away from anyone it doesn’t stop Shiloh from getting hurt, and that’s when Judd finds out that Marty had been keeping him all along. Marty, who is determine to keep Shiloh at any cost decides to fight for Shiloh’s freedom. Find out if Marty got to keep Shiloh or if Shiloh had to return to his hateful owner, Judd. This is by far a tearing-jerking book but I'm glad to have read it and that it worked out for Marty in the end. This book reminded me of Where the Red Fern Grows and I'm glad this one had a better ending then the Red Fern.
	Because of Winn-Dixie DiCamillo, K. (2000). Because of Winn-Dixie. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press. Because of Winn-Dixie is about a mother-less girl named, Opal Buloni, who finds a dog when she’s out grocery shopping. Opal is new to town and doesn’t have any friends so she takes the dog as a sign and decides to name the dog Winn-Dixie since she found the dog outside of the Winn-Dixie grocery store. With the help of Winn-Dixie, Opal begins meeting new people and starts to make new friends. It’s during this time that Opal with the help of Winn-Dixie’s support she decides to ask her Dad about her mother and why did she leave them. As the story continues Opal and her new friends are at a party when a terrible storm comes in and scares poor Winn-Dixie to the point the dog runs away. Read to find out if Opal finds Winn-Dixie and to see what happens next. They always say a book is different from the movie and I'm always happy to read a book then watch the movie. I find it funny that Opal's grocery store is the same one in Alabama when I visit my mother's side of the family. This book is similar to Shiloh and Where the Red Fern grows, so be prepared to cry if your the emotional type like me.
	Charlotte’s Web White, E. B. (2012). Charlotte's Web. New York, NY: Harper Collins. This enchanting tale is about a pig, Wilbur, who is a lonely little piglet in need of a friend. The farmer’s daughter saves Wilbur’s life and she provides him with enough love and care that helps Wilbur grow into a fine pig. During the story, Wilbur is sold to another farm which causes him to feel extremely lonely and sad until he meets Charlotte the spider that lives in the rafters above Wilbur’s pen. Charlotte becomes a great friend to Wilbur and she create marvelous signs that help save Wilbur’s life from ending too soon. Find out how Charlotte creates her signs and what happens to Wilbur. Even though, I've read and watch two different movies over this story I always find that I missed something or discovered something new when I read the book. What a good story to read to a little one.
	Like Jake and Me Jukes, M., & Bloom, L. (1984). Like Jake and Me. New York, NY: A.A. Knopf. This loving story is about a boy, Alex, who is always trying to be helpful now that his mother is about to have twins and his stepfather is always working hard on the farm. Alex feels that he and Jake aren’t quite alike, but Alex’s mother assures him that Jake and he are alike. During the story, a spider lends a helping hand to help the father and the son develop a sincere relationship. Alex learns that Jake does need his help to find the spider that is crawling around in Jake’s clothing. Find out if they found the spider and see how Jake and Alex are doing. This is a good book for parents of divorce and stepparents because it always the child and stepparent to bond which is always a big worry for some who remarry. I've never been in that situation but it was nice story to read and the illustrations really made the story come to life.