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Smiling Shelves

Recent 2017 Newbery Reads

3/16/2017

6 Comments

 

The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill

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The Girl Who Drank the Moon was the 2017 Newbery Award winner. It's a magical, fantastical tale of a baby abandoned in the woods for a town's yearly sacrifice, the witch who finds and raises her, and the magic that flows out of her uncontrollably. This was an enjoyable book to read, and a unique world to inhabit for a while (Fyrian the Perfectly Tiny Dragon was my favorite.) While I was drawn in to the atmosphere of the story, I didn't find myself as invested in the plot and characters as I expected. This was a good read and an enjoyable story, but I'm not quite sure it was enough of a stand-out to win the Newbery Award..

​The Inquisitor's Tale: Or, The Three Magical Children and Their Holy Dog by Adam Gidwitz

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The Inquisitor's Tale​ was one of the 2017 Newbery Honor books. It is set in thirteenth century France, and it follows three children (and a dog) as they perform miracles and get in trouble with the Catholic church and the king. The structure is reminiscent of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, as each chapter is told by a different person who witnessed a different part of the children's adventures. I absolutely loved this book. It's creative and informative. It deals with religion in a profound and respectful way. And it's just a wonderfully good story to read. (If I were on the panel, this one would have gotten my vote for the Award.) The book has also been "illuminated," which adds a really interesting dimension to the story. Hatem Aly decorated the margins with sketches and illustrations that reflect and comment on what's going on in the story. Pick this one up if you're looking for something unique and unusual!

6 Comments
Christine @Buckling Bookshelves link
3/16/2017 02:07:35 pm

These are on my to-read-soon list for sure! I'm glad to hear you enjoyed them, even if the one didn't quite live up to expectations. A friend of mine who is a librarian listed The Inquisitor's Tale as one of her top 10 books of 2016 (across all ages/genres), so I'm really looking forward to that one in particular! I just started multiple library books (of course I did!) but I think after this batch, I'm going to take a page out of your book and focus on my own shelves -- on which both of these are currently resting!

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Julie @ Smiling Shelves link
3/19/2017 02:54:19 pm

The Inquisitor's Tale was awesome. This is one of those moments when I wish I was still teaching so that I could read it aloud to my class. I'm heading to the big library on Friday, so we'll see if I can walk out without any books for me for the second time ever. It's so hard! Enjoy reading your books, wherever they come from! :)

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Susan in TX
3/17/2017 01:38:33 pm

Wholeheartedly agree about The Newbery prize...don't know what they were thinking. But, now I'm eager to read The Inquisitor's Tale, and you've got me interested in the Schuerman titles you've mentioned as I'm a big Mitford fan.

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Julie @ Smiling Shelves link
3/19/2017 02:51:59 pm

If you like Mitford, you'll love those Katie Schuermann books. They were just delightful escapes!

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Kailana link
3/19/2017 08:48:24 am

I have The Girl Who Drank the Moon on audio. I will have to check it out soon.

Reply
Julie @ Smiling Shelves link
3/19/2017 02:51:25 pm

I think that one would be really good on audio. I hope you enjoy it!

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    My name is Julie, and I own a lot of books. As in, they are stacked on the floor because I've run out of room on the shelves. And those shelves? There are so many books on them that they smile -- not sag; smile. This blog will cover book reviews and all manner of other bookish things.

    You can contact me at julie@smilingshelves.com.

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