The Newbery Medal Winner, named after John Newbery, is awarded to the author of the most prestigious awards by children's authors in America. Since 1922, the Association for Library Service to Children, an ALA division, has awarded this honor to distinguished children's authors.
Turtle in Paradise
By: Jennifer L. Holm
Reviewer: Christopher Schiemann
Grade Level: 3-6
Reading Level: 5.1
Turtle in Paradise is told through the eyes of 11 year old Turtle who must move down to Key West, Florida to live with her aunt. She is the child of a single mother who works as a housekeeper, and her mother's new employer dislikes children. Turtle's arrival is unbeknownst to her Aunt Minnie who is "scheduled" to take care of young Turtle, in addition to her own three children and a husband who's rarely home since he's often working in another part of Florida. Readers will learn some of the local vernacular of Key West such as "bungy", "alligator pear", and "conch."
The story is set in depression era 1935 back when Key West was still home to mostly locals and tourists hadn't arrived yet. In the book, readers are told that construction on the highway connecting the islands is on-going. Turtle and the boys go on many adventures throughout the book, including their baby-sitting adventures as a part of "The Diaper Gang". The gang picks up the young babies in their wagon and wraps them up tightly in blankets. In addition, they provide the secret indispensable diaper ointment that soothes the skin of these infants (near the end of the story, readers are finally told the "secret" ingredient).
Most of the story tells of the adventures around the island of Turtle and The Diaper Gang boys. As always, a group of pre-adolescents with too much time on their hands can lead to mischief and even treasure hunts. The book itself is a great read and full of great characters to keep readers anxious to read more.
Dead End in Norvelt
By: Jack Gantos
Grade Level: 5-8
Reading Level: 6.0
From the Publisher: Dead End in Norvelt is the winner of the 2012 Newbery Medal for the year's best contribution to children's literature and the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction! Melding the entirely true and the wildly fictional, Dead End in Norvelt is a novel about an incredible two months for a kid named Jack Gantos, whose plans for vacation excitement are shot down when he is "grounded for life" by his feuding parents, and whose nose spews bad blood at every little shock he gets. But plenty of excitement (and shocks) are coming Jack's way once his mom loans him out to help a fiesty old neighbor with a most unusual chore - typewriting obituaries filled with stories about the people who founded his utopian town. As one obituary leads to another, Jack is launced on a strange adventure involving molten wax, Eleanor Roosevelt, twisted promises, a homemade airplane, Girl Scout cookies, a man on a trike, a dancing plague, voices from the past, Hells Angels... and possibly murder. Endlessly surprising, this sly, sharp-edged narrative is the author at his very best, making readers laugh out loud at the most unexpected things in a dead-funny depiction of growing up in a slightly off-kilter place where the past is present, the present is confusing, and the future is completely up in the air.
Elijah of Buxton
By: Christopher Paul Curtis
Grade Level: 3-6
Reading Level: 5.6
From the Publisher: Newbery Medalist and CSK Award winner Christopher Paul Curtis's debut middle-grade/young-YA novel for Scholastic features his trademark humor, compelling storytelling, and unique narrative voice. Eleven-year-old Elijah is the first child born into freedom in Buxton, Canada, a settlement of runaway slaves just over the border from Detroit. He's best known for having made a memorable impression on Frederick Douglass, but that changes when a former slave steals money from Elijah's friend, who has been saving to buy his family out of captivity in the South. Elijah embarks on a dangerous journey to America in pursuit of the thief and discovers firsthand the unimaginable horrors of the life his parents fled--a life from which he'll always be free, if he can find the courage to get back home.
The Wednesday Wars
By: Gary D. Schmidt
Grade Level: 5-8
Reading Level: 5.6
From the Publisher: Gary D. Schmidt offers an unforgettable antihero in THE WEDNESDAY WARS--a wonderfully witty and compelling novel about a teenage boy's mishaps and adventures over the course of the 1967-68 school year. Meet Holling Hoodhood, a seventh-grader at Camillo Junior High, who must spend Wednesday afternoons with his teacher, Mrs. Baker, while the rest of the class has religious instruction. Mrs. Baker doesn't like Holling--he's sure of it. Why else would she make him read the plays of William Shakespeare outside class? But everyone has bigger things to worry about, like Vietnam. His father wants Holling and his sister to be on their best behavior: the success of his business depends on it. But how can Holling stay out of trouble when he has so much to contend with? A bully demanding cream puffs; angry rats; and a baseball hero signing autographs the very same night Holling has to appear in a play in yellow tights! As fate sneaks up on him again and again, Holling finds Motivation--the Big M--in the most unexpected places and musters up the courage to embrace his destiny, in spite of himself.