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FOURTH GRADE INVENTORY 2013-2014

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Awards

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1 / Abel’s Island / Steig / 1976 / During a picnic, a rainstorm sweeps Abel away from his wife to a deserted island in the middle of a river. Abel must now learn to survive alone in the wild. He has shelter and food, but finding a way off the island and back home might be an impossible challenge. / Animal tale / Newberry Honor
Booklist *
SLJ * / 920 / 21 / 0/1 / 117
2 / The Apprenticeship of Lucas Whitaker / DeFelice / 1996 / After his family dies of consumption in 1849, twelve-year-old Lucas becomes a doctor’s apprentice. / Historical fiction / ALA Notable
SLJ Best Book / 830 / 14 / 149
3 / Arthur, For the Very First Time / MacLachlan / 1980 / Arthur spends a summer with his unconventional aunt and uncle and begins to look at life, his family, and himself differently. / Humor / ALA *
Newberry author / 660 / 10 / 117
4 / Black Star, Bright Dawn / O’Dell / 1988 / Bright Dawn must face the challenge of the Iditarod dog sled race alone when her father is injured. / Adventure/
Cultural fiction / Newberry author / 670 / 14 / 103
5 / Bridge to Terabithia / Paterson / 1977 / The life of a 10-year-old boy in rural Virginia expands when he becomes friends with a newcomer who subsequently meets an untimely death trying to reach their hideaway, Terabithia, during a storm. / Realistic fiction / Newberry Medal
ALA Notable
SLJ Best Book / 810 / 27 / 128
6 / By the Great Horn Spoon! / S. Fleischman / 1963 / In this rollicking adventure set during the California Gold Rush, Jack's aunt is forced to sell her beloved mansion to meet her debts. She is still unable to raise enough money to pay her creditors, and 12-year-old Jack goes to California in search of gold to help her. Joined by his trusty butler, Praiseworthy, Jack finds adventure and trouble at every turn. / Historical fiction / Newberry author / 730 / 14 / 193
7 / Call It Courage / Sperry / 1940 / Relates how Mafatu, a young Polynesian boy, whose name means Stout Heart, overcomes his terrible fear of the sea and proves his courage to himself and his people. / Adventure/
Cultural fiction / Newberry Medal / 830 / 17 / 0/1 / 116
8 / The Castle in the Attic / Winthrop / 1985 / A gift of a toy castle, complete with silver knight, introduces William to a magical adventure. / Fantasy / 750 / 18 / 0/3 / 179
9 / The Cay / T. Taylor / 1969 / All his life Phillip had looked down upon black-skinned people. Now, suddenly, he was a refugee from a fatal shipwreck, and dependent on an extraordinary West Indian named Timothy. / Realistic fiction / Kirkus*
SLJ* / 860 / 22 / 144
10 / Ella Enchanted / Levine / 1997 / In this novel based on the story of Cinderella, Ella struggles against the childhood curse that forces her to obey any order given to her. / Fantasy / Newberry Honor
SLJ* / 670 / 14 / 232
11 / The Eyes of the Amaryllis / Babbitt / 1977 / 11-year-old Jenny goes to stay with her widowed grandmother, learns that her grandmother has been waiting for 30 years for a sign from her sea-captain husband, who died when his ship went down. From her grandmother and a mysterious man who wanders the beach, Jenny learns a lot about the power of love. / Ghost story / ALA Notable
Booklist* / 840 / 16 / 0/1 / 128
12 / The Farthest-Away Mountain / Banks / 1976 / A girl embarks on a dangerous adventure to fulfill her three desires: to visit the farthest-away mountain, to meet a gargoyle, and to find a prince for a husband. / Fairy tale / 840 / 18 / 151
13 / Flip-Flop Girl / Paterson / 1994 / Uprooted following the death of their father, 9-year-old Vinnie and her 5-year-old brother, Mason, cope in different ways – one in silence – but both with the help of Lupe, the flip-flop girl. / Realistic fiction / ALA Notable
SLJ* / 720 / 12 / 120

14

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From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler

/ Konigsburg / 1967 / Having run away with her younger brother to live in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 12-year-old Claudia strives to keep things in order in their new home and to become a changed person and a heroine to herself. / Realistic fiction / Newbery Medal
ALA Notable
SLJ * / 700 / 24 / 0/1 / 162
15 / The Ghost in the Tokaido Inn / Hoobler / 1999 / While attempting to solve the mystery of a stolen jewel, Sekei, a 14-year-old merchant’s son who longs to be a samurai, joins a group of Kabuki actors in 18th century Japan. / Mystery/
Historical/
Cultural fiction / Edgar Award Finalist
SLJ * / 740 / 24 / 213

16

/ Goodbye, Vietnam / Whelan / 1992 / When Mai's family discovers that Vietnam government soldiers will soon apprehend her father and grandmother, the family slips away in the night. They trudge through the swamps of the Mekong Delta toward the sea. The gut-wrenching trip to Hong Kong is just another step toward a new life, which the family eventually finds. / Adventure/ Historical fiction / ALA pick / 810 / 10 / 135
17 / The Great Gilly Hopkins / Paterson / 1978 / An 11-year-old foster child tries to cope with her longings and fears as she schemes against everyone who tries to be friendly. / Realistic fiction / National Book Award
Newberry Honor / 800 / 16 / 148
18 / Heart of a Samurai / Preus / 2010 / In 1841, rescued by an American whaler after a terrible shipwreck leaves him and his 4 companions castaways on a remote island, 14-year-old Manjiro, who dreams of becoming a Samurai, learns new laws and customs as he becomes the first Japanese person to set foot in the United States. / Historical fiction / Newberry Honor / 760 / 8 / 274
19 / The Indian in the Cupboard / Banks / 1980 / A 9-year-old boy receives a plastic Indian, a cupboard, and a little key for his birthday and finds himself involved in adventure when the Indian comes to life in the cupboard and befriends him. / Fantasy / NYT Best Book / 780 / 19 / 181
20 / Inside Out and Back Again / Lai / 2011 / Through a series of poems, a young girl chronicles the life-changing year of 1975, when she, her mother, and her brothers, leave Vietnam and resettle in Alabama. / Historical fiction/Poetry / Newberry Honor
National Book Award Winner / 800 / 8 / 260
21 / Into the Dream / Sleator / 1979 / When 2 youngsters realize that they are having the same frightening dream, they begin searching for an explanation for this mysterious coincidence. / Fantasy/
Suspense / 720 / 24 / 137
22 / Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key / Gantos / 1998 / To the constant disappointment of his mother and his teachers, Joey has trouble paying attention or controlling his mood swings when his prescription medications wear off and he starts getting worked up and acting weird. / Realistic fiction / National Book Award Finalist
ALA Notable / 970 / 18 / 154
23 / The Landry News / Clements / 1999 / A fifth-grader starts a newspaper with an editorial that prompts her burnt-out classroom teacher to really begin teaching again, but he is later threatened with disciplinary action as a result. / Realistic fiction / ABA pick
SLJ * / 950 / 20 / 131
24 / Losers, Inc. / Mills / 1997 / Although he knows that his efforts to impress a beautiful student teacher and outdo his perfect older brother jeopardize his status in the losers’ club that he and his best friend have started, 12-year-old Ethan realizes that he no longer wants to be a loser. / Realistic fiction / 720 / 7 / 150
25 / Megan’s Island / Roberts / 1988 / First 11-year-old Megan is astonished when her mother insists on taking her and her younger brother up to the lake cottage a week before school is out; then they find mysterious strangers following them. / Mystery / Edgar Award / 780 / 17 / 0/3 / 187
26 / The Midnight Fox / Byars / 1968 / Tom dislikes spending the summer on his aunt’s farm until he discovers a black fox in the forest and tracks her to her den. / Realistic fiction / Newberry author / 970 / 14 / 159
27 / Morning Girl / Dorris / 1992 / Morning Girl, who loves the day, and Star Boy, who loves the night, take turns describing their life on an island in pre-Columbian America; in Morning Girl’s last narrative, she witnesses the arrival of the first Europeans to their world. / Historical/
Cultural fiction / AB pick
SLJ *
O’Dell Award / 980 / 17 / 74
28 / Nekomah Creek / Crew / 1991 / 9-year-old Robby loves his noisy and somewhat unconventional family, but unwanted attention from a counselor and a bully at school make him self-conscious about just how unconventional his family might look to outsiders. / Realistic fiction / Kirkus®
ALA Notable / 670 / 14 / 191
29 / Number the Stars / Lowry / 1989 / In 1943, during the German occupation of Denmark, 10-year-old Annemarie learns how to be brave and courageous when she helps shelter her Jewish friend from the Nazis. / Historical fiction / Newberry Medal / 670 / 24 / 132
30 / On My Honor / Bauer / 1986 / When his best friend drowns while they are both swimming in a treacherous river that they had promised never to go near, Joel is devastated and terrified at having to tell both sets of parents the terrible consequences of their disobedience. / Realistic fiction / Newberry Honor
Booklist *
Kirkus ® / 750 / 20 / 0/1 / 90
31 / One Crazy Summer / Williams-Garcia / 2010 / In the summer of 1968, after traveling from Booklyn to Oakland, California to spend a month with the mother they barely know, 11 year-old Delphine and her two younger sisters arrive to a cold welcome as they discover that their mother, a dedicated poet and printer, is resentful of the intrusion of their visit and wants them to attend a nearby Black Panther summer camp. / Historical fiction / Newberry Honor
O’Dell Award
Coretta Scott King Award / 750 / 12 / 215
32 / Rabbit Hill / Lawson / 1944 / New folks are coming to live in the Big House. The animals of Rabbit Hill wonder if they will plant a garden and thus be good providers. / Animal tale / Newberry Medal / 1050 / 22 / 0/1 / 128
33 / Ragweed / Avi / 1999 / Ragweed, a young country mouse, leaves his family and travels to the big city, where he finds excitement and danger and sees cats for the first time. / Animal tale / Newberry author
PW* / 690 / 17 / 178
34 / Running Out of Time / Haddix / 1995 / When a diphtheria epidemic hits her 1840 village, 13-year-old Jessie discovers it is actually a 1996 tourist site under unseen observation by heartless scientists, and it’s up to Jessie to escape the village and save the lives of the dying children. / Mystery/
Science fiction / ALA Best Book
SLJ * / 730 / 18 / 184
35 / Sammy Keyes and the Hotel Thief / Van Draanen / 1998 / Sammy Keyes is perusing the neighborhood through binoculars when she spots something fishy at the Heavenly Hotel. She's sure she's just seen a robbery, now she just has to prove it. / Mystery/
Suspense / Edgar Award / 840 / 19 / 163
36 / Sasquatch / Smith / 1998 / 13-year-old Dylan follows his father into the woods on the slopes of Mt. St. Helens, which is on the brink of another eruption, in an attempt to protect the resident Sasquatch from ruthless hunters. / Suspense/
Fantasy / ALA top 10 pick / 680 / 14 / 188
37 / Shiloh / Naylor / 1991 / When he finds a lost beagle in the hills behind his West Virginia home, Marty tries to hide it from his family and the dog’s real owner, a mean-spirited man known to shoot deer out of season and to mistreat his dogs. / Realistic fiction / Newberry Medal / 890 / 24 / 0/4 / 144
38 / Snow Treasure / McSwigan / 1942 / A daring adventure based on a true story about a group of Norwegian children who smuggled nine million dollars in gold past Nazi sentries during World War II. / Adventure/
Historical fiction / 690 / 12 / 156
39 / The Tale of Despereaux / DiCamillo / 2003 / The adventures of Despereaux Tilling, a small mouse of unusual talents, the princess that he loves, the servant girl who longs to be a princess, and a devious rat determined to bring them all to ruin. / Fairy tale/Animal tale / Newberry Medal / 670 / 6 / 269
40 / Terror at the Zoo / Kehret / 1992 / 12-year-old Ellen and her younger brother Corey are excited about their overnight camp-out at the zoo, until they discover that they are locked inside with a desperate escaped convict. / Mystery / 680 / 16 / 131
41 / The View from the Cherry Tree / Roberts / 1975 / Rob admits having seen a murder, but no one believes him – except the murderer. / Mystery / 770 / 8 / 181
42 / A Walk in Wolf Wood / Stewart / 1980 / Two children picnicking with their parents in Wolf Wood are sent back into the world of the fourteenth century to rescue a kindly werewolf from a terrible fate. / Fantasy / 840 / 16 / 188
43 / Where the Mountain Meets the Moon / Lin / 2009 / Minli, an adventurous girl from a poor village, buys a magical goldfish, and then joins a dragon who cannot fly on a quest to find the Old Man of the Moon in hopes of bringing life to Fruitless Mountain and freshness to Jade River. / Fairy tale / Newberry Honor
Booklist*
SLJ* / 810 / 6 / 278
44 / The Wish Giver / Brittain / 1983 / When a strange little man comes to the Coven Tree Church Social promising he can give people exactly what they ask for, three young believers in magic each make a wish come true in the most unexpected way. / Fantasy / Newberry Honor
ALA Notable
SLJ Best Book / 720 / 14 / 181
45 / The Word Eater / Amato / 2000 / Lerner Chanse, a new student at Cleveland Park Middle School, finds a worm that magically makes things disappear, and she hopes it will help her fit in, or get revenge, at her hated school. / Fantasy / 590 / 18 / 151
Key to Awards

* = starred review

® = pointered review

ALA = American Library Association

SLJ = School Library Journal

AB = American Bookseller

9/10/2013 Fourth Grade Inventory