Call for Newbery Suggestions from the First Half of 2020

In two months, we’ll start discussion of 2020’s finest children’s books and the qualities that might make them contenders for the 2021 Newbery Award. For now, we’ll continue to build our reading list of possible contenders. Please add your “Suggestions” in the comments below. Guidelines for Suggestions can be found in our March post; the list of suggested titles so far is here.
A couple of reminders:
- We limit Suggestions to books that have been published already, so if you’ve got an Advanced Reader Copy of a new book by Jacqueline Woodson (coming in September) or Megan Whalen Turner (due in October), hold off on suggesting those for now.
- It’s fine to add a book that has already been suggested. This helps us see some of the books that multiple readers are paying attention to. But also remember that the Suggestion list isn’t any sort of true indicator of Newbery favorites, but rather a useful reading list of books to be aware of in a year that’s still only halfway over.
- We’ll take July Suggestions through Sunday, July 12th.
Filed under: Heavy Medal Mock, Process

About Steven Engelfried
Steven Engelfried retired from full-time library work a couple years ago and now works as a part-time Youth Librarian at the West Linn Public Library in Oregon. He served on the 2010 Newbery committee, chaired the 2013 Newbery Committee, and also served on the 2002 Caldecott committee. You can reach him at sengelfried@yahoo.com.
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When You Trap a Tiger
Echo Mountain
We Dream of Space
What Lane by Torrey Maldonado
Clean Getaway by Nic Stone
Black Brother, Black Brother by Jewell Parker Rhodes
The Prettiest by Brigit Young
American as Paneer Pie by Supriya Kelkar
Not Your All-American Girl by Madelyn Rosenberg and Wendy Wan-Long Shang
Efren Divided by Ernesto Cisneros
The List of Things That Will Not Change by Rebecca Stead
Black Brother, Black Brother by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Into the Tall, Tall Grass by Loriel Ryon
Go with the Flow by Lily Williams and Karen Schneemann
One Last Shot by John David Anderson
One and Only Bob
1. Blackbird Girls, by Anne Blankman.
2. A Field Guide to Getting Lost, by Joy McCullough.
1. The One And Only Bob – Katherine Applegate
2. A Home For Goddesses and Dogs – Leslie Connor
Wish in the Dark by Christina Soontornvat
Show Me a Sign by Ann Clare LeZotte
Our Friend Hedgehog The Story of Us by Lauren Castillo
DRAGON HOOPS by Yang
Echo Mountain
Wayside School Beneath the Cloud of Doom
Sal and Gabi Fix the Universe
Echo Mountain by Lauren Wolk
Wink – by Rob Harrell
Things You Can’t Say- by Jen Bishop
Coo by Kaela Noel
Once Upon an Eid by S.K. Ali et al.
I also like 3 already listed: On the Horizon by Lois Lowry, The List of Things That Will Not Change by Rebecca Stead, and The One and Only Bob by Katherine Applegate.
3. A Game of Fox and Squirrels, by Jenn Reese.
King and the Dragonflies by Kacen Callender
Echo Mountain
When You Trap a Tiger
Show Me a Sign by Ann Clare LeZotte
Leaving Lymon
King and the Dragonflies
List of Things That Will Not Change
Here in the Real World
Echo Mountain by Lauren Wolk
Keep the Suggestions coming! We’ll continue taking them just through this weekend, so the deadline for July Suggestions is Sunday, July 12th (midnight PDT, if you really want to leave it till the last minute)…
We Dream of Space
Here in the real world.
Almost forgot my own:
Ways to Make Sunshine by Watson
Dragon Hoops by Yang
Efrén Divided by Cisneros