Hi everyone, this first week of March I’m giving you a booklist of award-winning reads you and tween will surely enjoy. A small note friends, a few reads portray major historical turning points so there will be content that will need guidance from a parent or guardian. Hope to see you below…
This first read is one that had been popping up on most of my searches for a while and after I read it I realised that I had watched the movie when I was younger!!
Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell (Puffin Books, 2016) was originally published in the 1960’s and earned the Newbery Medal in 1961. You could say this is a classic story. Taking readers deep within the Pacific Ocean, an island emerges, one where blue dolphins swim. You can see seabirds circle the skies and hear otters play. Karana’s tribe once lived on this island, but now she is completely alone and must fend for herself. As the years pass, Karana discovers strengths she never knew she had. When you think of Robinson Crusoe type survival stories, you assume that most of the chapter will have boring hut-building and hunting for food type scenes, but it wasn’t the case with this read. Young Karena witnesses death and destruction from the beginning, loses almost everyone she’s loved, makes friends with unlikely allies and all the while surviving on her home island all by herself. The language O’Dell uses takes me back to when I read stories like Anne of Green Gables or Treasure Island. His descriptions take you there and keep you hooked into every page. It was a little hard for me because I’d looked at the back and realised it was based on a true story and with each chapter I kept thinking how sad and lonely life must have been for that young woman. I loved how this read not only outlines the human spirit and its strengths, but how one can live in harmony with the animals around them in the world and take only what you need to survive for the environment. The notes and quizzes at the back were something I really enjoyed reading. From the About the author section, I found out how the author established the Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction to encourage children’s authors to focus on historical themes. The interesting part about Scott O’Dell I learned was that his birth name was Odell Gabriel Scott and ‘Scott O’Dell’ was what it became after an error, and since it was catchier he had it legally changed.
My side of the mountain by Jean Craighead George (Puffin Books, 2004) was originally published in 1959 and won the Newbery Honor Award in 1960. Another classic read of survival, this story takes up to the Catskill Mountains in upstate New York. our young protagonist, Sam Gribbley is terribly unhappy living in his family’s crowded New York City apartment. Carrying just the bare necessities – a penknife, a ball of cord, some flint and steel, and the clothes on his back – he runs away to the mountains. There Sam must rely on his own ingenuity and the resources of the great outdoors to survive – and he discovers a side of himself he never knew existed. This was such an amazing story on survival and independence. Those descriptions of the wild outdoors and dramatic landscapes that detailed Sam’s life on the mountain were just breathtaking. I found Sam’s character a strong-willed, smart, and conscientious boy who can think on his feet. The way he builds his life on the mountain is exquisitely crafted by this amazing author. After reading the fast-paced, multi-layered stories written today for boys by children’s authors now, this classic read tends to be quite slow in style and pace. This is the perfect gift for those readers in your life who like their independence!!
Leaving the past, we’re plunged into a maelstrom of a read in this next one as it tells the story of one girl’s survival during the momentous event that was Hurricane Katrina.
Ninth ward by Jewell Parker Rhodes (Little, Brown & Company, 2010) takes readers to a tight-knit community in New Orleans Ninth Ward where twelve-year-old Lanosha calls home. She doesn’t have a fancy house, or lots of friends, like the other kids on her street. But she does have Mama Ya-Ya, her fiercely loving caretaker, wise in the ways of the world and able to predict the future. So when Mama Ya-Ya’s visions show a powerful hurricane – Katrina – fast approaching, it’s up to Lanesha to call upon the hope and strength Mama Ya-Ya has given her to help them both survive the storm. Ninth Ward is a deeply emotional story about transformation and a celebration of resilience, friendship, and family – as only love can define it. This amazing story gained the Coretta Scott King Award for Author in 2011 and was nominated for a host of others including the Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children’s Book Award in 2011 and the Rebecca Caudill Young Reader’s Book Award in 2013. This powerful read took me right into the eye of that tragic turn of events in 2005. The descriptions, imagery, and storyline of this book were ones that left me scarred but opened up my eyes to the reality of what happened then. I found myself crying over the power of this story and the resilience and perseverance shown by the characters. Better for older readers please!
Well, there you have my short selection of survival reads for tweens. If you have read similar award-winners, I’d love to hear from you.
Stay safe and keep reading
Miss Mahee
Miss Mahee's Library of Reads 