# The Newbery Book Club **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** books-writing-myths\ **Created:** [February 12, 2017, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674 "2017-02-12T19:41:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2017, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/41 "2017-03-06T06:41:55Z")
Here’s what I posted in Dendarii Dame’s All-Time Favorite Newbery thread: I’ve read 47 of the Newbery winners–I teach Children’s Lit on the college level, but the reason I teach it is that I love, adore reading children’s books and even before teaching Children’s Lit I had already read 16 of the winners. I’m female, grew up in several countries around the world and have lived in the NY area for the past 30 years. I was a precocious reader and the first Newbery medalist I read was “The Voyages of Dr. Doolitle”, at age 7. Some of the books I’ve read since the “book club” started: Flora and Ulysses: I really preferred Kate DiCamillo’s earlier work, Because of Winn-Dixie and Tale of Despereaux. The whimsical, quirky element in Flora and Ulysses seems overdone to me–it was present in Tale of Despereaux but I felt it fit in much better there. I can see why some people might love Flora and Ulysses (it did win the Newbery after all) but I also understand why others might strongly dislike it. I’m kind of in between myself–I didn’t hate it but I didn’t find that much in it to like. Moon over Manifest–I found it on Overdrive and really enjoyed it, and when I found that another of this author’s books was also available on Overdrive (Navigating Early) I read it as well. Moon over Manifest reminded me a little of the family quest plot in Holes, as well as the Depression setting and social justice issues in Bud, Not Buddy. Maniac Magee: Uneven but parts of it were really touching–I don’t remember when I’d last cried so much when reading a children’s book. I especially liked Maniac’s relationship with Earl Grayson. Dear Mr. Henshaw: I remember trying to read the Ramona books some years ago and not being able to get into them, so I approached this one with a little trepidation and found myself more absorbed than I expected. However I wonder whether it’s a book that adults might think that kids should like–I don’t really know what kids would think of the focus on writing to an author and learning how to develop an authentic voice. Missing May: I picked this up at the library and realized that I actually have it tucked away somewhere on my shelves. I think I must have picked it up at a garage sale years ago and never got to reading it because I was put off by the cover illustration being odd. [Missing May - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missing_May) Yes, I know, “don’t judge a book by its cover” but in this case I thought that the cover was actually an accurate reflection. It’s odd, sad and sweet and short (more like a novella or even an extended short story) and at the end I found myself asking, was that all? I also picked up Strawberry Girl, which I read at least 10-15 years ago and remembered enjoying, but as jsgoddess notes above, the accent / regionalisms spelled out are a bit off-putting at first. Has anyone read “Innocence”, a short story by Rose Wilder Lane, daughter of Laura Ingalls Wilder? It’s based on the family’s stay in Florida in the 1890s and it reminds me of a darker, more adult version of the world of Strawberry Girl. I think I read a print version; unfortunately it’s behind a paywall here: [http://harpers.org/archive/1922/04/innocence/](http://harpers.org/archive/1922/04/innocence/) Next on my list, also picked up from the library shelves, are two older ones, The Twenty-One Balloons and The Wheel on the School, and Dead End in Norvelt–hubby looked at the blurb on the back and said “‘Laugh-out-loud Gothic comedy?’ Is that your kind of book?” I have to admit it’s not, so we’ll see how that goes 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2017, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/42 "2017-03-07T03:17:22Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > I finished **Bud, Not Buddy**. > … > Note: Even liking it, it is nowhere near as good as The Westing Game or The Giver. Not in the same league at all. Heh. I would exactly reverse BnB and Westing Game: the latter was a fun intellectual puzzle (made more fun when people explained it to me in very small words), but I never gave a crap about the characters, and it never made me laugh. **Bud Not Buddy** moved me both to tears and to raucous laughter; I still giggle thinking of him in the car at 2 am. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2017, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/43 "2017-03-08T15:42:31Z")
Started **The One and Only Ivan** , by Katherine Applegate. It’s very good so far, much better written than the other two Newberr medalists I’ve read recently, **Moon Over Manifest** and **Crispin: Cross of Lead.** It seems much more original, and I care about the characters more. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2017, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/44 "2017-03-09T15:54:30Z")
Finished **The One and Only Ivan**. It’s outstanding, and I’m very glad I decided to finish reading the rest of the Newbery Medalists, because otherwise I never would have read it. Just started **The Higher Power of Lucky** , but Susan Patron. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2017, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/45 "2017-03-09T16:10:24Z")
> [@Dendarii\_Dame](#): > > Finished **The One and Only Ivan**. It’s outstanding, and I’m very glad I decided to finish reading the rest of the Newbery Medalists, because otherwise I never would have read it. It is very, very good, but it sort of violates one of my rules about children’s books: [spoiler]The Dog Dies! Okay, the elephant, but same principle: the thing where you get children to fall in love with an animal and then kill it off just feels too Very Special Episode to me.[/spoiler] Nevertheless, I have a fellow teacher who reads it to her class every year, and they adore it, so I think this is more my personal problem :). ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2017, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/46 "2017-03-10T23:18:48Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > It is very, very good, but it sort of violates one of my rules about children’s books: > > [spoiler]The Dog Dies! > > Okay, the elephant, but same principle: the thing where you get children to fall in love with an animal and then kill it off just feels too Very Special Episode to me.[/spoiler] > > Nevertheless, I have a fellow teacher who reads it to her class every year, and they adore it, so I think this is more my personal problem :). I just finished reading _The One and Only Ivan_ (available on Overdrive, yay!) and highly recommend it. The point of view, theme and even the spoiler that Left Hand mentions above reminded me a little of one of my childhood faves, an abridged version of Anna Sewell’s _Black Beauty_ (which BTW is available, unabridged, on Project Gutenberg [Black Beauty, by Anna Sewell English Quaker (1820-1878)](http://www.gutenberg.org/files/271/271-h/271-h.htm)) ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2017, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/47 "2017-03-11T01:11:15Z")
Johnny Tremain (1944), by Esther Forbes. I wasn’t enamored from the start, but it grew on me. I didn’t like Johnny at all when it began. I don’t think we were supposed to (at least I hope not), but he changed and the book changed and I changed and we were all hopey changey. **Recommendation:** I think this one is worth reading as an adult. It’s not treacly, has really solid and distinct characters, and captures the confusion and fear and bravery and idealism and foolhardiness of that moment in history in a really plausible way for me. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2017, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/48 "2017-03-12T19:24:50Z")
Just finished **The Higher Power of Lucky** , by Susan Patron. I recommend it. Next up is whatever one I haven’t read yet that I can find at the library next. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2017, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/49 "2017-03-14T15:08:38Z")
Started **The Crossover** by Kwame Alexander, which is pretty good so far. It’s in verse (some blank, some rhyme) which works for the main character, who narrates. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2017, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/50 "2017-03-15T22:46:59Z")
Just finished **The Crossover.** It’s excellent. The plot really feels like something that could realistically happen just as written, and I cared about the characters. ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2017, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/51 "2017-03-19T05:47:57Z")
I finished three this week. Two were by the only parent/child Newbery winners, Sid Fleischman’s _The Whipping Boy_ and Paul Fleischman’s _Joyful Noise_. Both father and son are whimsical and fun. I read the first few chapters of _The Whipping Boy_ 5-7 years ago when my son was reading it and somehow I liked it more then than I did now–maybe because I found the opening of the book more interesting than the ending. I didn’t really find the character of Prince Brat that credible as the book went on. On the other hand my son liked it back then, so maybe it appeals more to its target audience than to adults. Some of the poems in _Joyful Noise_ lend themselves well to the “poems for two voices” concept, but in others (where there’s only one speaker) it didn’t seem to fit. Overall, though, it was an enjoyable collection. _Rifles for Watie_ was uneven in terms of narrative flow, but it was excellently detailed and researched, and after a while I really got into the story. It gave me the impression that the author wanted to put in as many as possible of the interesting characters and incidents that he’d uncovered while researching, but he really had enough material for more than one novel. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2017, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/52 "2017-03-20T20:36:02Z")
Just started **Dead End in Norvelt** , by Jack Gantos. It’s supposed to be a mix of fact (autobiographical) and fiction about his youth. I’m only two pages in and already I want to know which is which. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2017, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/53 "2017-03-21T15:59:24Z")
_Miracles on Maple Hill_ (1957), by Virginia Sorensen and illustrated by Beth Krush. Cute look at a family post-WWII in rural Pennsylvania (outside of Pittsburgh). Very sweet, but I think it avoids being saccharine because the characters are pretty well-defined. It touches on some big issues, especially the circle of life and the main character’s father having survived being a POW in WWII. Marly, the protagonist, is a bit of a twit at times, but in pretty realistic, understandable ways. **Recommendation:** I’d recommend reading it. It won’t change your life, and I’d say it’s nowhere near the top tier of Newbery winners, but there is a gentleness here and a sense of acceptance that I found pretty charming as an adult. ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2017, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/54 "2017-03-22T06:51:14Z")
I read _Miracles on Maple Hill_ around 10 years ago, remember it well and second the recommendation. Meanwhile I’m having a rough time with _Onion John_ which I expected to like since I enjoyed _…And Now Miguel_ by the same author, Joseph Krumgold, the first person to win two Newbery medals. I didn’t see _Miguel_ mentioned at all on the other Newbery thread and put in a plug for it–it’s sweet, funny and also profound in its own way. OTOH _Onion John_ just annoys me–trying to be funny and profound but missing the mark and falling flat as far as I’m concerned. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2017, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/55 "2017-03-27T00:11:31Z")
Just finished Dead End in Norvelt, by Jack Gantos. Not bad, but it didn’t seem like a classic to me. Town filled with quirky characters, hero (with the same name as the author, who grew up in the real Norvelt) who learns a lesson, a few loose ends left hanging, etc. Next up: Kira Kira by Cynthia Kadohata ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2017, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/56 "2017-03-27T02:15:09Z")
> [@Dendarii\_Dame](#): > > Just finished Dead End in Norvelt, by Jack Gantos. Not bad, but it didn’t seem like a classic to me. Town filled with quirky characters, hero (with the same name as the author, who grew up in the real Norvelt) who learns a lesson, a few loose ends left hanging, etc. Agreed–it’s one of my least favorite Newberies I’ve ever read. ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2017, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/57 "2017-03-27T03:04:20Z")
Thanks for the _Dead End in Norvelt_ reviews–now I know not to expect too much. I borrowed the book from the library 3 weeks ago and haven’t opened it yet since the blurb put me off. I finally finished _Onion John_ a couple of days ago. Like _…And Now Miguel_ it’s a coming of age story, about fathers, sons, finding oneself and one’s place in the world. It’s a bit better than I thought (I almost gave upon it halfway through) and in a way I can see why the committee chose it but OTOH I also see why it hasn’t attained classic status either. And one of the books it defeated is a favorite in our family, _My Side of the Mountain._ Interestingly, the character Onion John is based on a real person. > **[They Killed Him with Kindness. Literally.](http://collectingchildrensbooks.blogspot.com/2009/03/they-killed-him-with-kindness-literally.html)** > > Trying to find the stories behind old books can be frustrating. In today’s world, authors are as close as a click of a mouse. They blog and... ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2017, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/58 "2017-03-27T03:18:48Z")
I missed the edit window to add, about the Onion John link, the article contains spoilers! This afternoon I found at a thrift shop two that I hadn’t read, for 20 cents each:_Ginger Pye_ and _Roller Skates._ I raced through _Roller Skates_ and liked it a lot–a spirited, imaginative, misunderstood 10 year old girl, not really appreciated by her family, struggling with social conventions of the 1890s. In some ways it reminded me of _Little Women_ and _Anne of Green Gables_. I would have liked it even more when I was a kid myself. At the same time it’s a bit uneven (just who is the narrator in the 1st chapter? The adult Lucinda remembering her childhood? If so it’s not really clear) and I see why it isn’t more of a classic. ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2017, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/59 "2017-03-27T14:50:37Z")
I read _Bud, Not Buddy_ recently, largely on the recommendation of people in this thread (notably **LHoD** ). Enjoyed it! Several of the characters and situations are compelling, but the best thing about it is definitely the narrator, whose characterization was just very real: on the one hand, resourceful and as he says, “just about grown up”; on the other, naive and still (of course) easily frightened and rattled. Vampire bats! My favorite line was when he goes to the restaurant and is served a dessert called “On the House.” One issue I had: I did think he was accepted a little too quickly and wholeheartedly by the band members. I started _Dead End in Norvelt_, a book that was completely off my radar till now–unlike _Bud, Not Buddy_ I couldn’t have told you it was a prizewinner or indeed that it even existed. I don’t know if I’ll finish it. It seems to be meandering along fairly slowly without much actually going on, which is okay if you’ve got compelling characters, a really interesting setting, or a terrific writing style–but none of that is happening for me at least. The author seems in particular to be reaching too hard for quirk in his characters at the expense of depth–not my favorite combination. Oh well! ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2017, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674/60 "2017-03-27T15:10:16Z")
> [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](#): > > I read _Bud, Not Buddy_ recently, largely on the recommendation of people in this thread (notably **LHoD** ). Enjoyed it! Several of the characters and situations are compelling, but the best thing about it is definitely the narrator, whose characterization was just very real: on the one hand, resourceful and as he says, “just about grown up”; on the other, naive and still (of course) easily frightened and rattled. Vampire bats! > > My favorite line was when he goes to the restaurant and is served a dessert called “On the House.” > > One issue I had: > > I did think he was accepted a little too quickly and wholeheartedly by the band members. Glad you liked it! My favorite scene, possibly the best scene in all literature, involves Bud driving off in the car in the middle of the night. As for your spoiler, I get what you’re saying. Here are my thoughts about that: [spoiler]From the first chapter Bud presents as an incredibly kindhearted and polite child: even when he’s going off to a foster home, he takes the time to comfort a smaller child before he goes. Adults throughout the book notice and remark on his manners. He’s also very observant, probably as a survival mechanism. When he’s eating the paincakes, he watches others to see how big his bites should be and how much food to take. Kid is a total social chameleon. Combine that with the fact that the band is reasonably well-off in the middle of the Great Depression, and they realize that Bud has had a helluva time while they’re doing well, and I think they just kind of fall in love with this tough, smart, polite kid.[/spoiler] > [@](#): > > I started _Dead End in Norvelt_, a book that was completely off my radar till now–unlike _Bud, Not Buddy_ I couldn’t have told you it was a prizewinner or indeed that it even existed. I don’t know if I’ll finish it. It seems to be meandering along fairly slowly without much actually going on, which is okay if you’ve got compelling characters, a really interesting setting, or a terrific writing style–but none of that is happening for me at least. The author seems in particular to be reaching too hard for quirk in his characters at the expense of depth–not my favorite combination. Oh well! That’s kind of how I felt. The humor of the book fell flat for me, and I couldn’t figure out whether it’s because it’s like midwest humor that’s different from mine (I hate Prairie Home Companion also), or whether it’s just poorly-written humor. It’s kind of interesting to compare it to Bud, Not Buddy, where you also have a quirky, overimaginative main character, but where it cracks me up pretty consistently. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-newbery-book-club/779674.md?page=4)