MORE POSTS
Eric brings up some good points in his comments to Nina’s post on ALMOST ASTRONAUTS, some of which I agree with and some of which I do not. I, too, wanted more information about how the men fared compared to the women (especially since it was such a point of emphasis), and I do […]
If you’ve been wondering exactly what a Mock Newbery is…I’ll point you back to Sharon’s post from last fall, So You Want to be a Mock Newbery Star? For a flashback of our Mock Newbery discussion last year, check out Anatomy of a Mock Newbery. Last year I’d hoped to lead people through the intricate recesses of […]
In the comments to a previous post, some eligibility questions were raised about a couple of titles. I’m not so sure a 2008 copyright date disqualifies ODD AND THE FROST GIANTS by Neil Gaiman. It’s highly unusual that a Newbery book would be published outside of America first, but as I read the criteria that does not necessarily disqualify […]
Jonathan and I have both mentioned it’s a strong year for nonfiction. Of the many titles that have been recommended for my "must read" list, I’ve just finished two that bear close comparison, and both are very strong titles under Newbery Criteria. Both rely on personal interviews with people who were young activists in the […]
I have WHEN YOU REACH ME and A SEASON OF GIFTS rated as the best fiction I’ve read so far, but I think it’s been a relatively weak year for fiction. The nonfiction, on the other hand, has been stellar–and I like about a half dozen titles. I’m also still thinking about some poetry, picture books, and graphic novels. Although […]
When I was in sixth grade, a class I didn’t much like, I’d sneak a moment of closing my eyes. Looking only at the backs of my eyelids, I’d tell myself that in this blink, I was actually being transported into another world…and just like in the Narnia stories, living an entire, full, exciting adult life…then […]
While the characters, setting, style, and theme are all distinguished elements of WHEN YOU REACH ME, I don’t know that any of them push the book past the other serious contenders into the realm of most distinguished. Rather, the book’s claim to most distinguished rests primarily on the plot which uses the conventions of genre fiction, namely mystery and […]
I’m going to let the comments on Jonathan’s Party Pooper post rattle on a little longer as I more fully gather my thoughts on When You Reach Me. Meanwhile– Last year, Sharon and I had a really difficult time identifying nonfiction titles that we thought would bear up in Newbery discussion. (We picked Fleischman’s The […]
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but . . . WHEN YOU REACH ME isn’t quite as good as you think it is. Oh, to be sure, it’s one of the best books of the year–arguably the best fiction, certainly. It just strikes me as an Honor book more than a Medal book. And it’s not […]
As Nina mentioned, it’s very easy to anticipate the new work of Newbery alumni–especially when it happens to be the work of a beloved author. Those sort of lofty expectations can be both a blessing and a curse, particularly because we often expect a Newbery alumnus to match and exceed their past work. Of course, such expectations […]
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