Book picks similar to
All Alone by Claire Huchet Bishop


newbery
newbery-honor
historical-fiction
newbery-honors

The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate


Jacqueline Kelly - 2009
    With a little help from her notoriously cantankerous grandfather, an avid naturalist, she figures out that the green grasshoppers are easier to see against the yellow grass, so they are eaten before they can get any larger.As Callie explores the natural world around her, she develops a close relationship with her grandfather, navigates the dangers of living with six brothers, and comes up against just what it means to be a girl at the turn of the century.Debut author Jacqueline Kelly deftly brings Callie and her family to life, capturing a year of growing up with unique sensitivity and a wry wit.

A Single Shard


Linda Sue Park - 2001
    He has become fascinated with the potter’s craft; he wants nothing more than to watch master potter Min at work, and he dreams of making a pot of his own someday. When Min takes Tree-ear on as his helper, Tree-ear is elated–until he finds obstacles in his path: the backbreaking labor of digging and hauling clay, Min’s irascible temper, and his own ignorance. But Tree-ear is determined to prove himself–even if it means taking a long, solitary journey on foot to present Min’s work in the hope of a royal commission . . . even if it means arriving at the royal court with nothing to show but a single celadon shard.

The Gammage Cup


Carol Kendall - 1959
    Long ago, the hero Gammage led them in war against the horrible Hairless Ones. But now -- Bravery? Forgotten. Courage? No more. Heroes? The stuff of storybooks.Yet sometimes heroes turn up when they are least expected....Muggles, Gummy the poet, and Walter the Earl are not like the other Minnipins. They dress differently, speak their minds, and -- when Walter the Earl finds a package of old scrolls and swords -- dare to disagree with the Minnipin leaders. For their troubles, they are banished from their village.But Walter the Earl found the weapons for a reason: The Hairless Ones have returned. And this time there is no Gammage to protect the Minnipins. This time there are only Muggles and her friends, outlaws who must rescue the very people who have cast them out.

Seabird


Holling Clancy Holling - 1948
    A 1949 Newbery Honor Book The history of America at sea is presented through the travels of Seabird, a carved ivory gull.

Ginger Pye


Eleanor Estes - 1951
    The disappearance of a new puppy named Ginger and the appearance of a mysterious man in a mustard yellow hat bring excitement into the lives of the Pye children.

Young Fu of the Upper Yangtze


Elizabeth Foreman Lewis - 1932
    He knows nothing of city life. But the city, with its wonders and dangers, fascinates the thirteen-year-old boy, and he sets out to make the best of what it has to offer him. First published in 1932, Young Fu of the Upper Yangtze was one of the earliest Newbery Medal winners. Although China has changed since that time, Young Fu's experiences, like making friends, are timeless.

Caddie Woodlawn


Carol Ryrie Brink - 1935
    She'd rather hunt than sew and plow than bake, and tries to beat her brother's dares every chance she gets. Caddie is friends with Indians, who scare most of the neighbors -- neighbors who, like her mother and sisters, don't understand her at all. Caddie is brave, and her story is special because it's based on the life and memories of Carol Ryrie Brink's grandmother, the real Caddie Woodlawn. Her spirit and sense of fun have made this book a classic that readers have taken to their hearts for more than seventy years.

Roller Skates


Ruth Sawyer - 1936
    But when Lucinda Wyman's parents go overseas on a trip to Italy and leave her behind in the care of Miss Peters and Miss Nettie in New York City, she suddenly gets all the freedom she wants! Lucinda zips around New York on her roller skates, meeting tons of new friends and having new adventures every day. But Lucinda has no idea what new experiences the city will show her.... Some of which will change her life forever.

Thistle and Thyme: Tales and Legends from Scotland


Sorche Nic Leodhas - 1962
    There are tales of monks and saints, fairies and witches, kings, nobles, and ordinary people doing extraordinary things. Some stories were never written down, shared instead through retellings that turned storytelling into an art form.In "Thistle and Thyme," Sorche Nic Leodhas brings together ten folktales that were passed down through the generations as part of Scotland's vibrant oral tradition. In this volume, stories about the changeling and the stolen child, the bride who was cursed to silence by a water kelpie, and the beekeeper who found a rabbit under a spell are just a handful of the thousands of local myths that make up Scotland's colorful history.

Carry On, Mr. Bowditch


Jean Lee Latham - 1955
    Nathaniel Bowditch grew up in a sailor’s world—Salem in the early days, when tall-masted ships from foreign ports crowded the wharves. But Nat didn’t promise to have the makings of a sailor; he was too physically small. Nat may have been slight of build, but no one guessed that he had the persistence and determination to master sea navigation in the days when men sailed only by “log, lead, and lookout.” Nat’s long hours of study and observation, collected in his famous work, The American Practical Navigator (also known as the “Sailors’ Bible”), stunned the sailing community and made him a New England hero.

Moon Over Manifest


Clare Vanderpool - 2010
    I closed my eyes to the dusty countryside and imagined the sign I’d seen only in Gideon’s stories: Manifest—A Town with a rich past and a bright future.Abilene Tucker feels abandoned. Her father has put her on a train, sending her off to live with an old friend for the summer while he works a railroad job. Armed only with a few possessions and her list of universals, Abilene jumps off the train in Manifest, Kansas, aiming to learn about the boy her father once was.Having heard stories about Manifest, Abilene is disappointed to find that it’s just a dried-up, worn-out old town. But her disappointment quickly turns to excitement when she discovers a hidden cigar box full of mementos, including some old letters that mention a spy known as the Rattler. These mysterious letters send Abilene and her new friends, Lettie and Ruthanne, on an honest-to-goodness spy hunt, even though they are warned to “Leave Well Enough Alone.”Abilene throws all caution aside when she heads down the mysterious Path to Perdition to pay a debt to the reclusive Miss Sadie, a diviner who only tells stories from the past. It seems that Manifest’s history is full of colorful and shadowy characters—and long-held secrets. The more Abilene hears, the more determined she is to learn just what role her father played in that history. And as Manifest’s secrets are laid bare one by one, Abilene begins to weave her own story into the fabric of the town.

A String in the Harp


Nancy Bond - 1976
    Set in both present-day and ancient Wales, this Newbery Honor title has become a contemporary classic.

Red Sails to Capri


Ann Weil - 1952
    It was the biggest and most beautiful ship fourteen-year-old Michele had ever seen. Sailing on the ship were three men who would come to stay at Michele's parents' inn. The men said they were searching - one for beauty, one for adventure, and one for "something difficult to explain." What they brought with them was a mystery and adventure that would change Michele's life - and all of Capri - forever.

Julie of the Wolves


Jean Craighead George - 1972
    She runs away toward San Francisco, toward her pen pal, who calls her Julie. But soon Miyax is lost in the Alaskan wilderness, without food, without even a compass. Slowly she is accepted by a pack of Arctic wolves, and she comes to love them as though they were her brothers. With their help, and drawing on her father’s training, she struggles day by day to survive. In the process, she is forced to rethink her past, and to define for herself the traditional riches of Eskimo life: intelligence, fearlessness, and love.

What Jamie Saw


Carolyn Coman - 1991
    It is a story of survival -- how nine-year-old Jamie, his mother, and his baby sister Nin leave an abusive situation, move to a small trailer in the woods, and slowly learn how to trust the people around them -- and each other.