Heavy Medal Mock Newbery Finalist: BERRY SONG by Michaela Goade
Introduction by Heavy Medal Award Committee Member Gabrielle Stoller
Close your eyes for a moment. Think about a time you have gone berry picking. Or a time you have eaten some form of the delicious fruit. What do you see? What can you smell? What can you remember of the touch, the way it felt to have the berries in your hand? As I read BERRY SONG, I am transported to memories of climbing the mountains in Idaho, seeking out the elusive huckleberry. Making my presence known to all, including bears, that I am present. It is a gift to take something delicious from the land and turn it into something delicious from my kitchen. By enabling the reader to think and imagine so vividly, BERRY SONG becomes a Newbery contender due to its presentation of theme and delineation of setting.
Michaela Goade has previously won a Caldecott Medal for WE ARE WATER PROTECTORS; this time, the writing is all her own. It would be remiss not to highlight the illustrations of watercolors and mixed media. The greens and blues and reds truly embody the Alaskan landscape of Goade’s ancestors. However, the reader is also taken along on a lyrical expedition of the land, from water to land to forest, to all of the berries found. BERRY SONG pays homage to her Tlingit heritage, using native words and expressions throughout the book and BERRY SONG’s back matter. Gunalchéesh, giving thanks—this is the end result. Being thankful for what we have been given, being mindful of what we take, resolving to be good stewards for future generations. “We are a part of the land…as the land is a part of us.”
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BERRY SONG is a symphony of words. Newbery contenders often fall into this category which makes Michaela Goade’s offering a worthy option for recognition.
Heavy Medal Award Committee members and others are now invited to discuss this book further in the Comments section below. Please start with positive observations first; stick to positives until at least three comments have been posted or we reach 1:00 pm EST. Let the Mock Newbery discussion begin!
Filed under: Book Discussion, Heavy Medal Mock
About Steven Engelfried
Steven Engelfried was the Library Services Manager at the Wilsonville Public Library in Oregon until he retired in 2022 after 35 years as a full-time librarian. 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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Gabrielle-great write-up for a book that certainly creates a setting with the lyrical words. It is as you so aptly put it-a symphony of words! -i.e. “Slippery seaweed dancing in the tide.” For me, the theme of stewardship stands out as she repeatedly uses the refrain, “we take care of the land as the land takes care of us.” And as the grandmother passes on the lessons of caring for the Earth, the girl passes it on to her sister. It’s a tribute to Indigenous peoples who live in harmony with nature in a symbiotic relationship. The native Americans were indeed the first environmentalists and perhaps the message here is to invite us all to be better stewards and pass this along as the Indigenous peoples pass along how to take care of the Earth.
Gabrielle thanks for the introduction. I agree that this book is a symphony of words, “Salmonberry, Cloudberry, Blueberry, Nagoonberry…” kept me singing right along. Besides the text being lyrical it was also emotional showing the love of a grandmother passing Tlingit traditions down to her granddaughter. Along with the gorgeous illustrations this book peeked my curiosity to learn more about varieties of berries I do not know about. Beside the beautiful writing this book has a strong theme of showing gratitude for what the land provides and how we speak to the land and the land speaks to us. I appreciated reading about the spiritual aspects of the Tlingit people in the afterword.
What a beautiful book all around! I read this originally with eyes wide open, and then tried to hyper-focus on the text. This is one I wish I had taken the time to type out ,because I think that’s really helpful with picture books that are so gorgeous. The tripping off the tongue just kept me glued to the page. The author’s note was a treat as well!
Kate, I also loved the repeated line “we take care of the land as the land takes care of us.” Thematically BERRY SONG reminded me of THE FIRST BLADES OF SWEETGRASS; the gratitude for and careful stewardship of the land.
Aryssa, I agree it would be a helpful exercise to type the text out to read it separately from the illustrations, because the illustrations are so outstanding – I especially loved the endpapers.
I read this to a few elementary school classes, and they did not particularly respond to it. I’m curious if anyone else has had a different response with their elementary audience? Mine were more engaged with WE ARE WATER PROTECTORS.
I had the same experience with my students. They really got into We Are Water Protectors, but this one did not have the same reaction.
This is such a gorgeous book. I enjoyed the lyrical nature of the writing and how I was transported to the forest along with the characters. However, I think this book relies so heavily on the illustrations that without them, we lose the beauty of this book.
I agree with you about the illustrations, they are definitely needed.
I thought this book was absolutely beautiful. I agree with the fact that the texts is lyrical. While I loved. This book I just don’t see it getting Newbery as it’s strengths are the illistrations. I would not be disappointed if it got Newbery but see it more as a Caldecott. Out of the three picture books that made the list of 16 I think blue has the best chance at Newbery.