Newbery and Newbery Honor Award Winners - Page: 2

Virginia Hamilton was the first African-American to receive this honor in 1975 for her book "M.C. Higgins, the Great.

M.C. Higgins, the Great is the story of Mayo Cornelius and his family. Mayo loves his home in Sarah's Mountain. Before him are the rolling hills and shady valleys. Behind him lie the wounds of strip mining, a spoil heap oozing downward, endangering his home. M.C. dreams about escape for himself and his family.

M.C. discovers two strangers who have entered the hills and are making their way towards Sarah's Mountain. One is the dude, who M.C. imagines will make his mother a singing star and help them all get away from the menacing spoil heap. The other is Lurhetta, a young wanderer, whose example teaches M.C. that both choice and action lie within his power.

In this book, Virginia Hamilton has created a world that is strange haunting and utterly believable. She has created characters that are memorable as well.

In 1977, Mildred Taylor's book, Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry was awarded the Newbery Medal.

This book is the unforgettable saga of racial tensions in the turbulent South that has become a modern classic. Last year was its twentieth anniversary of its winning the Newbery Medal. Set in Mississippi, at the height of the Depression, it is a story of physical survival and the survival of the human spirit. Cassie Logan, the main character, watches as her family faces the challenge of holding on to their land.

Also in 1976, the book The Hundred Penny Box, by Sharon Bell Mathis, was selected as a Newbery Honor book.

This book is the story of a boy named Michael and his family, that included his great-great-aunt Dew. Aunt Dew was 100 years old. She kept a box filled with pennies, one for each birthday. Michael loved to sit at her feet and count out the pennies while Aunt Dew told the story behind each one. Michael's mother wanted to throw out the old box and buy a new one for Aunt Dew. Michael knew he had to try and save the hundred penny box that contained all the stories of her life.

In 1989, Walter Dean Myers' book Scorpions was selected as a Newbery Honor Book.

Scorpions is the story of Jamal Hicks. Jamal is having a hard time in school, what with Dwayne always pushing him to fight and the principal, Mr. Davidson, always on his case. He also has a tough time at home too, worrying about how hard Mama works and trying to get money for an appeal for Randy, his older brother, who is in jail for holding up a deli. He also has a hard time on the street with the Scorpions.

Randy was the leader of the Scorpions, and he wants Jamal to take his place until he gets out of jail. The Scorpions, especially Angel and Indian, don't like the idea very much. The only one who likes the idea is Mack, the crazy weird kid on dope, who is Randy's best friend.

The only one who understands is Tito, Jamal's best friend. It is Tito who shares long walks from Harlem to the boat basin, who argues about which of them will have the bigger boat when they are rich. It is Tito who joins the Scorpions when Jamal takes over in spite of his fear, so he can look out for his friend. Then Angel and Indian challenge Jamal's position as leader of the Scorpions.

Myers creats real and sympathetic characters in this poignant story. Their lives change drastically and tragically when they acquire a gun.

1993 was the year The Dark Thirty: Southern Tales of the Supernatural, by Patricia McKissack, came out.

There are 10 spine-tingling tales from ghost stories to eerie narratives in this book. McKissack invites the readers to gather in the "dark-thirty" — the eerie half hour when dusk darkens to night. The historical links are especially potent. Tales from the days of slavery from escape stories to tales of the KKK. This is a selection that teaches as well as entertains.

1996 saw Christopher Paul Curtis's book The Watson's Go To Birmingham, 1963 selected as a Newbery Honor Book.

Christopher Paul Curtis was born in Flint, Mich., and spent his first 13 years after high school working on the assembly line at the Fisher Body Plant.

Curtis's wife, Kaysandra, encouraged him to pursue his writing career. Soon after, the publication The Watson's Go To Birmingham . . . won two of the most prestigious awards in children's literature: a Newbery Honor and a Coretta Scott King Honor. His book was also awarded Best Book of 1995 by the New York Times Book Review, The Horn Book and Publisher's Weekly.

Curtis's inspiration for writing is his love of words and the power they seem to have to be able to change things.

Please read all these wonderful books by these gifted and talented African-American writers. We are all richer for their inspiring contributions to the world of children's literature.

Next month's columns will be a tribute to women who have made lasting contributions to the world of children's literature.