Na Na Na Na....Hey Hey Hey...Goodbye

Time to say goodbye to the 1930s Newbery Medal and Honor books.  It wasn't TOO bad.  Better than the 1920s, I'll say. But I won't lie....I'm definitely looking forward to all the books from here on out.  I finally finished Pecos Bill and Bright Island, both 1938 Honor books. Glad I read them, but now it's time to move on.  Let's look at the 1930s list:

1930 Medal: Hitty: Her First Hundred Years (reviewed in 2012)

1931 Medal: The Cat Who Went to Heaven (reviewed in 2012)

1932 Medal: Waterless Mountain (reviewed in 2012)

1932 Honor: Calico Bush (reviewed in 2013)

1933 Medal: Young Fu of the Upper Yangtze (reviewed in 2013)

1934 Medal: Invincible Louisa (reviewed in 2008)

1934 Honor: The ABC Bunny (not reviewed, but I've read it several times; Wanda Gag needs to be rediscovered)

(I'll have to interlibrary loan the 1935 winner, Dobry. Don't hold your breath. I have a million things I want to read before I do that.)

1936 Medal: Caddie Woodlawn (have read many times, so didn't reread)

1936 Honor: The Good Master (reviewed in 2013)

1937 Medal: Roller Skates (I really thought I reviewed this at some point, but I guess not. I read it several years ago; it's a delightful old-fashioned book. If you like books like All of a Kind Family and books set in that time period, you'll love it.)

1938 Medal: The White Stag (reviewed in 2008)

1938 Honor: Pecos Bill (read in 2013)

1938 Honor: Bright Island (read in 2013)

1938 Honor: On the Banks of Plum Creek (read many times, so didn't review)

1939 Medal: Thimble Summer (read in 2010)

1939 Honor: Mr. Popper's Penguins (have read several times)


Unlike the 1920s group, there are several books here that I genuinely enjoyed; I was also able to skip several books because I was already familiar with them (unlike the 1920s). As for the ones that I read for the first time, Thimble Summer and Roller Skates were highlights. The Cat Who Went to Heaven was an intriguing read, especially considering the time in which it was written. As you can see, the late 1930s produced several books that are now thought to be classics.  We see this happen more frequently with the 1940s group: My Father's Dragon (1949 Honor), Johnny Tremain (1944 Medal), The Hundred Dresses (1945 Honor), and several books by Laura Ingalls Wilder. 


I'm a bit behind in my 2013 (and honestly, 2012)  reads, so the Newbery project will be put on hold until I catch up.  I've already made some progress in this group (there are a handful of long-forgotten Honor books that will be skipped), so my first read will be the 1944 Medal winner, Johnny Tremain. No, I've never read it.  After that, it's Rufus M (1944 Honor book), The Hidden Treasure of Glaston (1947 Honor), The Twenty-One Balloons (1948 Medal; nope, haven't read that yet, either), Seabird (1949 Honor), and Daughter of the Mountains (1949 Honor).  And then....the 1950s. That's when things start to get real.  Looking forward to it.