2024 Heavy Medal Mock Newbery Book List
It was a less dramatic (and faster) phone call than usual, but we have a 2024 Heavy Medal Mock Newbery book list. From the 58 nominated titles, we narrowed it down to 16 (I tried for 20 but Steven wasn’t having it).
These are the titles we will discuss in-depth on Heavy Medal Dec. 27- Jan. 12.
Are you disappointed about any titles we left off our list? Us too. But have no fear, there is a blog post Friday discussing them. And they still have a chance of winning the actual Newbery medal.
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Also, a friendly reminder- you have until tomorrow Thursday Dec. 14th at 6 p.m. EST to volunteer for the Heavy Medal Award Committee and until Friday to cast your votes in our latest Debating Decades poll.
And with that, here in alphabetical order, are the 16 books on the 2024 Heavy Medal Mock Newbery Book List (HMBL).
AN AMERICAN STORY- Kwame Alexander
A FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING- Dan Santat
ALEBRIJES- Donna Barba Higuera
CHINESE MENU- Grace Lin
EB & FLOW- Kelly J. Baptist
THE EYES AND THE IMPOSSIBLE- Dave Eggers
GONE WOLF- Amber McBride
THE LABORS OF HERCULES BEAL- Gary D. Schmidt
THE LOST YEAR-Katherine Marsh
THE MANY ASSASSINATIONS OF SAMIR, THE SELLER OF DREAMS- Daniel Nayeri
MEXIKID- Pedro Martin
MY HEAD HAS A BELLYACHE- Chris Harris
THE MONA LISA VANISHES- Nicholas Day
THE SKULL- Jon Klassen
SIMON SORT OF SAYS- Erin Bow
A WALK IN THE WOODS- Nikki Grimes
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About Emily Mroczek-Bayci
Emily Mroczek (Bayci) is a freelance children’s librarian in the Chicago suburbs. She served on the 2019 Newbery committee. You can reach her at emilyrmroczek@gmail.com.
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Color me intrigued….oh this is quite the list!!!
Personally, An American Story and the Lost Year are two of my favorites. A First Time for Everything is awesome. The Skull is quite unique and I have no idea how I classify it.
The one I’m bummed by the most would be You are Here (but we have discussed that on here).
I think this is a great list! I’ve already read 9 of the 16, so I feel ready to discuss them, although of course there will be some rereads in there. I’m so happy to see Gone Wolf on here – I wasn’t expecting that! I recently finished The Eyes & The Impossible and was wowed by that book. The style is so interesting being from an animal’s point of view but trying to be realistic.
I read Gone Wolf too and I am excited to see the discussion with it versus the Good Year as two Pandemic related books.
Lost Year…
This feels like a well-rounded list that I am sure will lead to many lively discussions. I have 7 of the 16 left to read (all checked out from the library–Eb & Flow is my current purse book).
PARACHUTE KIDS and GOOD DIFFERENT were my only two nominees that didn’t make the final discussion, but I wouldn’t necessarily swap those for any of my picks that did make the list.
Tally, Good Different was a bummer for me as well. Such a great book (though I am a sucker for a good novel in verse)
This definitely looks like a list that could include the Newbery winner! I am sad that HOPE IN THE VALLEY didn’t make the cut. I feel like it has a great chance for the Newbery and is so well-crafted.
I think this is a good list! I’ve read six of the titles on this list!
Wonderful list!
Thanks to Steve and Emily for a great Mock Newbery 2024 list. They are all really different and special in their own way.
I have read 14 from this list and am excited that my 2023 top five are listed! GONE WOLF and CHINESE MENU will finish the list. Planning to re-read all of the books, with more critical annotations over the holiday break.
When I am not reading, I love to be moving outside. THE EYES AND THE IMPOSSIBLE and A WALK IN THE WOODS both had me wanting to explore. I have questions about THE SKULL. It is in the Caldecott category for me this year (3rd choice.) The story is really dark, I worried for the brave heroine and younger kids reading it. But the illustrations are great, and it is a creative twist on a old folktale.
History is my thing. THE LOST YEAR and AN AMERICAN STORY and MONA LISA VANISHES took me there. All super strong Newbery contenders. I predict a Caldecott for AN AMERICAN STORY (1st choice.) AIN’T BURNED ALL THE BRIGHT, was passed on by the If the Newbery committee and this has that Jason Reynolds, Kwame Alexander brilliance. IMPOSSIBLE ESCAPE missed the list. It was not my favorite of Sheinkin’s books, but the story was excellent.
SIMON and HERCULES BEAL. I get why SIMON is a contender, but HERCULES was incredible. I would be really curious to poll young readers- I think librarians would choose SIMON and kids would choose HERCULES.
Poetry was great in 2023. NEARER MY FREEDOM was my top pick for free verse but MY HEAD HAS A BELLYACHE delivered laughs. I really love this book and have read it many times. This is my top read-aloud of 2023.
GN memoirs leveled up the format in 2023. A FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING tops my list. SUNSHINE and FAMILY STYLE were also favorites and while they are not on the list, I will encourage my librarians to put them on the shelf and my classmates to check them out. MEXIKID was really good and although it did not top my list, it keeps popping up in Steven Engelfried’s comments. With his critical experience, it’s worth re-reading for me.
I will be disappointed if a GN doesn’t get a2024 Newbery medal or honoree position. They were exceptional in 2023 and the most growing, popular format with my classmates. I think that if you want to get kids excited about reading, it’s important to honor the books they prefer to read, making literature modern while applying the historical rubrics.
Quade, I think your last paragraph makes a great point! As a youth services librarian, I will admit that I don’t read a lot of graphic novels – and maybe some of the committee members don’t either. However, my 10-year-old LOVES graphic novels. She’s a great reader and reads plenty of middle grade too, but when she chooses her own books she is almost always going to go for GNs. If graphic novels win awards, it also makes them an easier sell to parents – lots of them are looking for “award-winning books” for their children to read, and they may not recognize the value of GNs (I try to tell them every chance I get but it can be hard to get them to believe me!).
For those HMAC members with extra reading time and contemplating the picture book apples-to-oranges question, I do suggest taking a look at THE FIREFLY SUMMER, which got one nomination, with respect to A WALK IN THE WOODS. They share a central conceit: a treasure hunt from a dead parent, but of course are completely different reading experiences. I do feel like the ideal, Newbery-level book falls somewhere between the two.
When will the Newbery award be announced by ALA?
When will the Newbery award be announced by ALA this year?
When will the Newbery award be announced by ALA for 2023 books?
Hi! Date: Monday, January 22, 2024, 8:00 AM (EST) you can watch a livestream here: https://www.ala.unikron.com/