Mock Newbery Book Club- Discussion Guidelines

Use the list below to help you prepare for our book club meeting. 

We will use this list to discuss books at our book club meeting.

Characters:

• Who is the main character?
• What makes the character unique or special?
• What is the character’s problem in the story?
• Who are other important characters in the story?

Setting:

• Where does the story take place?
• How is the location important to the story?
• When does the story take place? 

Plot:

• What are some important events?

• Be sure not to give away too much information about the events (especially the ending) in case other book club members want to read the book next month.

Author’s style:

• What techniques does the author use? (Examples: Use of repetition, use of similes, short sentences, writing in poetic form, etc…)
• Who is the narrator of the story?

Presentation:

• How is the book organized? What the writing clear and made sense? Was it accurate? 

Theme:

• What is the theme or message of the story? (Examples of themes are courage, love, prejudice, war, honesty, death, friendship, etc…)

Is it a “distinguished” or excellent book?

• What makes this book distinguished or excellent?
• Do you think it should win a Newbery Medal? Why or why not?

Reading list #1

Reading list #2

Lafayette and the American Revolution by Russell Freedman

A chronicle of the life of General Gilbert de Lafayette, a Frenchman who came to the aid in the American Revolution.

Publisher: Holiday House, 2010, 88 pp.

Candymakers by Wendy Mass

From the Publisher: "Four children have been chosen to compete in a national competition to find the tastiest confection in the country. Who will invent a candy more delicious than the Oozing Crunchorama or the Neon Lightning Chew?  Logan, the Candymaker's son, who can detect the color of chocolate by touch alone? Miles, the boy who is allergic to merry-go-rounds and the color pink? Daisy, the cheerful girl who can lift a fifty-pound lump of taffy like it's a feather? Or Philip, the suit-and-tie wearing boy who's always scribbling in a secret notebook?"

Publisher: Little, Brown, 2010, 453 pp.

Betti on the High Wire by Lisa Railsback

From the Publisher: "Ten-year-old Babo and the other "leftover kids" live on an abandoned circus camp in a war-torn country. Babo believes her circus-star parents will come back for her any day now, so she is not one bit happy when an American couple adopts her. She hates her new name (Betti) and is confused by everything in America. She's determined to run away. But as Betti slowly begins to trust her new family and even makes a friend, she decides maybe she can stay just one more day."

Publisher: Penguin, 2010, 288 pp.

Heart of a Samurai by Margi Preus

From the Publisher: "In 1841, a Japanese fishing vessel sinks. Its crew is forced to swim to a small, unknown island, where they are rescued by a passing American ship. Japan’s borders remain closed to all Western nations, so the crew sets off to America, learning English on the way.  Manjiro, a fourteen-year-old boy, is curious and eager to learn everything he can about this new culture. Eventually the captain adopts Manjiro and takes him to his home in New England. The boy lives for some time in New England, and then heads to San Francisco to pan for gold. After many years, he makes it back to Japan, only to be imprisoned as an outsider. With his hard-won knowledge of the West, Manjiro is in a unique position to persuade the shogun to ease open the boundaries around Japan; he may even achieve his unlikely dream of becoming a samurai."

Publisher: Abrams, 2010, 320 pp.

Danger Box by Blue Balliett

From the Publisher: "A boy in a small town who has a different way of seeing.

A mischievous girl who won't stay in one place.
A mysterious notebook .
A fire.
A stranger.
A death.
These are some of the things you'll find within The Danger Box."


Publisher: Scholastic, 2010, 320 pp.

A Nest for Celeste by Henry Cole

From the Publisher: "Beneath the crackled and faded painting of a horse, underneath the worn and dusty floorboards of the dining room, lives Celeste, a mouse who spends her days weaving baskets, until one day she is thrust into the world above. Here Celeste encounters danger—and love—unlike any she's ever imagined. She dodges a hungry cat and witnesses the brutality of hunting for the first time. She makes friends with a singing thrush named Cornelius, a talkative osprey named Lafayette, and Joseph, Audubon's young apprentice. All the while, Celeste is looking for a new home. Is her home in the toe of a worn boot? Nestled in Joseph's pocket? Or in the dollhouse in the attic, complete with mouse-size furniture perfect for Celeste? In the end, Celeste discovers that home is really the place deep inside her heart, where friendships live."

Publisher: HarperCollins, 2010, 342 pp.