Medal Works These Honored Books Are Well-Suited For Your Youngster
Film enthusiasts wait eagerly for the Academy Awards. Journalists watch with interest the announcements of the Pulitzer Prizes. For people who are passionate about children’s literature, it’s the prestigious Newbery and Caldecott medals, announced this month by the American Library Association.
“Out of the Dust,” by Karen Hesse is the winner of the 1998 Newbery, which honors outstanding writing published in the United States during the previous year. The 1998 Caldecott Medal, for illustration, goes to Paul O. Zelinsky for his retelling of “Rapunzel.”
There is often much second-guessing on these awards. But this year most reviewers seem to agree on the worthiness of these two books, and the runners up: three Caldecott Honor books and three Newbery Honor books.
“Out of the Dust,” by Karen Hesse
Years of Oklahoma drought and dust have heaped hardship on Billie Jo and her parents. Her mama is skinny, pregnant and defeated. Her daddy still believes in rain and his wheat farming. Billie Jo comforts herself with her piano playing and dreams of life beyond the dust bowl. Then comes the worst. Billie Jo’s mama and newborn brother are killed in a fire, and Billie Jo’s hands are severely burned. She blames her father for the accident, and for a time both lose their motivation to keep going. Each chapter in this eloquent story is a free-verse poem written in Billie Jo’s voice. The plot moves as swiftly as the wind that brings the ever-present dust. It bears reading twice: once for the story, and a second time to savor the writing. Small details tell vividly what life was like in the Dust Bowl. Mama had Billie Jo set the table with the plates and cups face down. Just as the food is served they are turned over, leaving clear outlines in the dust.
A caution: Though filled with life and hope at the end as Billie Jo and her father reconnect with each other, the middle of the book might be too bleak for younger children. The fire and the mother’s slow, painful death are frightening. I want my sixth grader to read it, but not my third grader. (Scholastic, 227 pgs., ages 10 and up, $15.95.)
“Rapunzel,” by Paul O. Zelinsky
Gorgeous, lavish and sumptuous are words that have been used to describe Zelinsky’s version of the classic fairy tale about the beautiful young woman locked in a tower by a sorceress. She can only be reached when she lets down her long golden hair. In his research, Zelinsky found that in addition to the famous German version by the Brothers Grimm, the tale has roots in Italy and France. He chose to set his retelling in Italy, painted in the style of the Renaissance. The landscapes are lovely. The sorceress’ villa and Rapunzel’s tower are rich with color and detail. The costumes provide their own history lesson. The faces of the characters are full of feeling and life. Zelinsky has been a Caldecott Honor winner four times. His other books include “Hansel and Gretel,” “Rumpelstiltskin” and “Swamp Angel,” the hilarious tall tale by Anne Issacs. (Dutton, 44 pgs., all ages, $16.95)
Newbery Honor Books
“Wringer,” by Jerry Spinelli - This is a hard-hitting moral tale for upper elementary students. Palmer’s town holds an annual pigeon-shooting contest. Thousands of pigeons are released from boxes and shot for fun, to be sold later for fertilizer. Ten-year-old boys are given the dubious privilege of wringing the necks of the birds that are only wounded. Palmer did not want to be a wringer. “That was one of the first things he had learned about himself.”
His dad was a champion pigeon shooter and the gang of boys he aspires to join can’t wait to be wringers. Palmer turns 9 as the story opens and is, at first, delighted to be accepted by the scroungy boys who take pleasure in tormenting others. Eventually, Palmer becomes painfully torn between two worlds when he acquires a pet pigeon, re-establishes a wonderful friendship with Margaret, the girl next door, and learns some surprising lessons about his parents. The writing is wonderful, the story is exciting and the characters wonderfully drawn. (HarperCollins, ages 9 and up, 229 pgs., $14.95)
“Lily’s Crossing,” by Patricia Reilly Giff - In the summer of 1944, the war overseas hit home for Lily, who’s getting ready to spend the summer in her family’s beach house in Rockaway.
Her widowed father, an engineer, feels morally compelled to go help win the war and Lily is left with her grandma. The neighbors in Rockaway have taken in a 12-year-old boy whose family fled Hungary. After a rough start, she and Albert become close friends, sharing the experience of being separated from loved ones. A good story about friendship and loss, with well-developed characters.
Lily isn’t always likable - she’s grumpy to her grandma and she lies. That makes her more interesting. A great thing about this book, and “Wringer” is the wonderful boy-girl friendships. So many books for intermediate readers seem to appeal to either boys or girls. Both will enjoy these. (Delacorte, ages 8 and up, 180 pgs.)
“Ella Enchanted” by Gail Carson Levine - Readers will be enchanted by this highly original novelization of Cinderella. At birth, Ella is cursed with the “gift” of obedience by a foolish fairy. When she is presented with a direct order - from anyone - she must obey, whether she is told to fetch a cup of tea or jump off a cliff.
Ella’s mother realizes early on the dangers of the “gift,” and she is Ella’s staunch protector as well as her beloved companion. When her mother dies, a heartbroken Ella is left with her preoccupied and insensitive merchant father, who eventually meets a wealthy widow with two obnoxious daughters.
Don’t assume you know the rest. The story twists and turns as Ella looks for a way to be rid of the fairy’s gift. This is a tale filled with interesting characters: fairies, ogres, giants, wicked stepsisters and, of course, a charming and sensitive prince. Most interesting of all is Ella herself, who is smart, brave, moral and funny. (HarperCollins, ages 8 and up, 232 pgs., $14.95)
“Tangerine,” by Edward Bloor - Paul Fisher is legally blind. Despite his Coke-bottle glasses, he’s a great soccer player. His parents hardly notice, though, because all their attention is focused on his older brother Erik, the football star. Paul knows something is wrong with Erik. His brother is not a good person. His parents seem blind to that fact.
After the family moves to Tangerine, a town in Florida, strange things happen. Lightning strikes. Underground fires burn for years. A sinkhole swallows a school. And Paul starts to have disturbing memories about how his eyes were damaged.
This is an absorbing psychological drama that explores family, morality, obsession with sports and class differences. (Harcourt, Brace, ages 12 and up, 294 pgs., $17)
Caldecott Honor Books
“There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly,” by Simms Taback - We’ve been singing this song for years. Now here’s the definitive picture book to serve as accompaniment. Vividly colored, hilarious pictures have a die-cut hole on each page to show us the current contents of the old lady’s stomach. Lots of small jokes are sprinkled throughout the pages, such as this “Nat. Enquirer” headline: “Lady Wolfs Down Dog.” Oddly and delightfully, many types of birds, dogs and flies are pictured and identified, somewhat accurately. (Viking, 32 pgs., all ages, $14.99)
“The Gardener,” by Sarah Stewart; Illustrations by David Small - When her dad loses his job during the Depression, Lydia Grace Finch goes to stay with her gruff Uncle Jim in the big city. Blessed with an optimistic disposition and a gift for gardening, Lydia Grace looks at the big gray city and the empty window boxes at her uncle’s bakery and sees places and people that need cheering up. Soon her flowers are everywhere. The text is written in the form of letters home so we get to see what’s going on in Lydia Grace’s mind. Small’s pictures show us her world in lively detail. Slight, red-headed Lydia Grace is such a contrast to her chubby, unsmiling uncle. The last picture, in which they’re hugging goodbye at the train station, is a tear jerker. (Farrar Straus Giroux, 32 pgs., all ages, $15)
“Harlem,” by Walter Dean Myers; illustrated by Christopher Myers - For many years Harlem represented the promise of a better life, “a place where a man didn’t have to know his place, simply because he was black.”
Walter Dean Myers’ poem portrays Harlem art, literature, and music. His words compare the hope-filled history of Harlem as a “trip on the A train.” The pictures by Christopher Myers, recently out of art school, are impressive. He uses painted paper, photographs and print in energetic collages that match the spirit of the place. (Scholastic, 32 pgs., ages 8 and up, $16.95)