NEWBERY                          

The annual award of the Newbery Medal for children’s books has taken place since 1922.   It was established by Frederic G. Melcher and the American Library Association (ALA). Today, the Association for Library Service to Children (a division of the ALA ) selects what book (by an author from the U.S. ) will receive the award each year. The award was named after the 18th Century English book seller John Newbery.    According to the ALA , “The purpose of the Newbery Medal is
‘[t]o encourage original creative work in the field of books for children.   To emphasize to the public that contributions to the literature for children deserve similar recognition to poetry, plays, or novels. To give those librarians, who make it their life’s work to serve children’s reading interests, an opportunity to encourage good reading in this field.”

CLASSICS                                    

Tom Sawyer, The Secret Garden, War of the Worlds, A Tale of Two Cities, The Phantom of the Opera, Pride and Prejudice, etc.   People recognize these as classics because they are an integral part of our learning and understanding of people and society. They are stories with complex plots that portray dynamic and static characters. As readers, we may associate with the characters and we may have strong emotional and intellectual reactions to them.   We return to these stories time and time again because upon each new reading, we find new meanings and symbols that were once hidden to us. As we develop our reading skills and our knowledge of life, these books also change.   Our understanding of life influences and affects the way we read a novel like Uncle Tom’s Cabin or Moby Dick.