Newbery Project Update

Today I'm giving you a quick update on the Newbery Award & Honoree titles I've read and listened to recently!

If you're new to TST and don't yet know about my Newbery Project, you can read about it here. My goal is to read all of the Newbery books -- including both award-winners and honorees, and to check them off the list as I go. You can see the list at any time by clicking the My Newbery Project tab on the TST homepage.

I had every intention of making great headway with these books over the summer but I ended up only reading four titles since my last update! In October, I'm hoping to pick out a few that fit my fall reading mood, such as Neil Gaiman's Coraline. If you head over to my Instagram page today, you can help me decide which Newbery book to read next! I've selected four titles for readers to choose from -- I would love to hear your vote!

Savvy by Ingrid Law // I read this early in the summer and loved it. It wasn't necessarily a unique premise -- a child waiting to reach the age when she'd inherit her own magical power -- but the cast of characters was so fun and the adventure kept me turning pages. I love the quirky world that Law has built, and I'm hoping to read the next two in the series soon!

Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage // Again, this cast of characters totally captured my heart. I absolutely loved this story. It features characters with real social issues such as abandonment, domestic abuse, etc. but doesn't make them the central issue in the book. In it, our main character is an amateur detective for her tiny hometown, the setting of which had me totally charmed. I would definitely recommend this to middle grade readers. My friend Sara, who writes about books over at Meaningful Madness, kindly sent me the next two in the series, so I can't wait to continue the adventures with this crew!

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman // If you're looking for a fun, spooky story to listen to with your kids this fall (or to listen to for yourself), I would highly recommend the audiobook version of The Graveyard Book. It's read by Gaiman himself and wonderfully done. One of the best audiobooks I've listened to, in fact. The story features a human boy who lives in a graveyard among the spirits who took him in as an infant. There are nefarious villains, themes of identity, and Gaiman does an excellent job of voicing the different characters.

Princess Academy by Shannon Hale // This was my least favorite book that I've read for my Newbery Project so far, which is disappointing because I had especially high hopes for it. I listened to it on audiobook and though it started off on an interesting note, the majority of it felt like the plot was dragging, the characters weren't very interesting, and the overall impression I got from it was that it felt a little desperate. More than once, I questioned how this book even ended up on the Newbery List. I've had a few readers tell me that Hale's other books are worth checking out, so I'll pick up another one eventually, but I'm not feeling too motivated after this experience.

Newbery Project Update

I'm the type of person who is always taking on a new challenge, whether it's fitness, food, or book-related, I love working towards new goals. Which is why I'm really loving My Newbery Project, as it's helping me to refocus my children's literature brain on quality books that stand the test of time. I thought I'd update you on the progress I've made so far in 2017.

From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg

I love the characters in this book -- Claudia's sass and Jamie's imagination spurred me quickly through the story. This would be a great one for an elementary book club discussion.

Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson

This has been my favorite so far. I listened to it on audio and Woodson narrates it herself. It's a novel in verse so it's a quick read, but I would absolutely recommend it for both children and adults.

The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill

I really struggled with the first half of this book. It felt scattered and I was so disoriented that I considered putting it down and calling it a loss. So I took a few days off from it and came back with a firm goal of getting to the end. I'm so glad I did, because the ending made this book for me. I thought to myself, Oh, now I get it. I can't see myself recommending this to many students to read independently, but the lessons embedded within are so very important that I would love to lead a student book club in reading this. Now that I've reached the end I think I'd like to re-read it, just to have a clearer picture of the threads that Barnhill was weaving from the very beginning.

The War that Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

We read this for the Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club, and I loved it. That didn't surprise me though, because I'd read Jefferson's Sons before it and adored that one as well. Some of the best historical fiction in middle grade comes from Brubaker Bradley. I can't wait for the sequel to this one, coming out this August.

On My Honor by Marion Dane Bauer

Not my favorite. This book dealt with tragedy in a way that felt shallow to me and in the end I felt really surprised that it even made it onto the honors list.

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I'm currently working on crafting the list of Newbery titles I'd like to tackle this summer, so if you have a favorite that you think I absolutely must read ASAP, leave a comment or send me a message!

My Newbery Project

One of my lifetime goals as a reader is to tackle the Newbery Medal Award Winners and Honor Books list. I recently went back through the archives of the American Library Association (ALA) to see how many of the books I've actually read. As it turns out, that number is not nearly as high as I thought.

I read quite a bit of children's literature, but when making this list to feature here on Top Shelf Text, I realized that I really haven't read many of these acclaimed books. As an educator and a children's literature fanatic, I want to be both a reader and an advocate of quality children's literature. Which means that I need to step up my game and get to it.

I'm posting the list of winners here (on the bar above, click My Newbery Project to find the page) for a quick reference guide for myself and for other readers who might want to follow along as I tackle this (rather long list). Because the full list of winners from 1922-Present features so. many. titles., I am starting with a shortened version featuring the award winners & honor books from the 1970's up to now. For each year 2017-1970, you'll find the title and author, and for those I've crossed off my to-read list, you'll also find the year in which I read the book.

Many of these books are ones that I read as a child, but in many cases I don't remember more than a few details about the books. I want to tackle the full list now as an adult, so that I can make better recommendations to both my students and readers of my blog. I won't be reviewing all of them, but I may post an occasional update with some thoughts as I continue to check off titles on the list.

How long will this project take me? Years. That's for sure. Will I ever check off every single title? I hope so, but who knows. Above my desk I have a framed print that says "The joy is in the journey," and that's the attitude I'm choosing to have when it comes to this project.

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Have you ever completed a reading challenge? Tell me about it!

Inspired: Katherine Applegate's Newbery Medal Speech

Happy Friday, and Happy Autumn!

With the start of the semester comes the start of new courses, and this fall I'm taking one course in particular that has me giddy. Last week my children's literature course started off with The One and Only Ivan. I wanted to make sure I shared a quote from the author's speech when she won the Newbery Medal for the book in 2013 because it had me smiling ear-to-ear when I came across it.

"...every time you find the right, the necessary, book for a child--a book about sadness overcome, unfairness battled, hearts mended--you perform the best kind of magic. It doesn't matter if it's about a gorilla or a nuclear physicist, a puppeteer, a motherless girl, or a clueless fish. If it's the right book, you've allowed a child to make a leap out of her own life, with all of its limitations and fears--and yes, sometimes sadness--into another, to imagine new possibilities for herself and for her world. Every time you book-talk a new title, every time you wander the stacks trying to find that elusive, well-thumbed series paperback, every time you give just the right book to just the right child, you're saying, 'You, my friend, have potential.' That is a gift. That is a miracle."

This spoke to me as I work to bring the joy of reading to all of the littles (and sometimes, the grown ups) in my life. If this is you, too, then be proud of your magic.   

You can watch the full speech on youtube here.

Caldecott & Newbery Awards {2014}

This is a very exciting time of year for teachers, librarians, and reading enthusiasts. On January 27th, the Caldecott and Newbery award winners were announced, along with a bevy of other awards that recognize great authors and illustrators in children's and young adult's literature. The authors and illustrators behind these books are the best of the best, and books with the golden and silver seals are revered by readers of all ages.

This year, the American Library Association offered a livestream of the award announcements. On the morning of, I sat at my computer watching the entire ceremony live, waiting for the moment when they would announce these two awards. Though you may have seen some of these books featured on shelves in local bookstores and libraries, I thought it would be fun to round up all of the honorees and winners here.

The Caldecott Award

"The Caldecott Medal was named in honor of nineteenth-century English illustrator Randolph Caldecott. It is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association, to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children." - From the ALA Website. You can read more about the organization and the award here.

2014 Honor Books

Mr. Wuffles by David Wiesner

Flora and the Flamingo by Molly Idle

Journey by Aaron Becker*

2014 Caldecott Award Winner

Locomotive by Brian Floca

The Newbery Award

"The Newbery Medal was named for eighteenth-century British bookseller John Newbery. It is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association, to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children." - From the ALA Website. You can learn more about this award here.

2014 Honor Books

Paper Boy by Vince Vawter*

One Came Home by Amy Timberlake

The Year of Billy Miller by Kevin Henkes

Doll Bones by Holly Black

2014 Newbery Award Winner

Flora and Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo

I haven't read most of these yet, but I am looking forward to putting them on my to-read list. As a future teacher, I hope to be able to add many of these award winners to my classroom shelves over the years. They are sure to inspire young readers and young writers!

*I usually don't like to link directly to online booksellers, but these books are not yet listed on Goodreads, so I've linked them to Amazon (though they can be easily found through other vendors, such as Barnes & Noble).