The Massachusetts

Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

 Children's Book Award was established as a program to encourage children to read. The children themselves vote for the book they think deserves to be named the book of the year.

The award was started in 1975 by Dr. Helen Constant. The award program was developed because children in intermediate grades seemed to lose interest in reading after learning how to read. The award is sponsored by Salem State College

Salem State College

Salem State University is a four-year public institution of higher learning located in Salem, Massachusetts. Salem State University, established in 1854 as Salem Normal School, is located approximately fifteen miles north of Boston, Massachusetts. Salem State enrolls over 10,000 undergraduate and...

 in Salem, Massachusetts

Salem, Massachusetts

Salem is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 40,407 at the 2000 census. It and Lawrence are the county seats of Essex County...

.

Each year, participating teachers, librarians, and publishers nominate titles for the program. A selection committee chooses 25 titles to appear on the Master List. Criteria for the Master List include literary quality, variety of genres, representation of diverse cultural groups, and reader appeal. Fourth, fifth and sixth graders who have read five books from the Master List vote for their favorite book. The author of the winning book receives a plaque to commemorate the award.

Winners

Year	Title	Author	Grades
2011	11 Birthdays	Wendy Mass Wendy Mass Wendy Mass , is an award-winning author of young-adult novels and children's books. Her most successful book was A Mango-Shaped Space which won the American Library Association Schneider Family Book Award for Middle School in 2004...
2010	Found Found (novel) Found is a young adult science fiction novel written by Margaret Peterson Haddix. It is the first book in The Missing series. It was published April 22, 2008.-Plot summary:...	Margaret Peterson Haddix
2009	The Mysterious Benedict Society The Mysterious Benedict Society The Mysterious Benedict Society is a novel written by Trenton Lee Stewart and illustrated by Carson Ellis, first published in 2007.-Plot summary:...	Trenton Lee Stewart Trenton Lee Stewart Trenton Lee Stewart is an American author best known for the Mysterious Benedict Society series. Stewart is a graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop...
2008	The Lightning Thief The Lightning Thief The Lightning Thief is a 2005 fantasy-adventure novel based on Greek mythology, the first young adult novel written by Rick Riordan. It is the first novel in the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series, which charts the adventures of modern-day twelve-year-old Percy Jackson as he discovers he is a...	Rick Riordan Rick Riordan Richard Russell "Rick" Riordan, Jr. is an American author best known for writing the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series. He also wrote the Tres Navarre mystery series for adults and helped to edit Demigods and Monsters, a collection of essays on the topic of his Percy Jackson series...
2007	The Tale of Despereaux The Tale of Despereaux The Tale of Despereaux, also known as The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread is a 2004 Newbery Medal winning fantasy book written by Kate DiCamillo. The main plot follows the adventures of a mouse named Despereaux, who sets out on his quest...	Kate DiCamillo Kate DiCamillo Katrina Elizabeth "Kate" DiCamillo is an American children's author. She is known for the Newbery Medal-winning book The Tale of Despereaux, the Newbery Honor book Because of Winn-Dixie, and the Mercy Watson series, plus numerous other award-winning and honored books.-Early life:Born in...
2006	Molly Moon's Incredible Book of Hypnotism Molly Moon's Incredible Book of Hypnotism Molly Moon's Incredible Book of Hypnotism is the first book in the Molly Moon series written by Georgia Byng.-Plot:Molly Moon, an orphan that is living at Hardwick House Orphanage in Briersville, England, is living a "boring and plain" life with her best friend Rocky Scarlet . She is usually...	Georgia Byng Georgia Byng Lady Georgia Mary Caroline Byng, , is a British author of children's books and a former actress. Her first writing was for a comic strip, and her first published book was The Sock Monsters. Byng's best known work is Molly Moon's Incredible Book of Hypnotism and its sequels, about a girl who finds a...
2005	The Thief Lord The Thief Lord The Thief Lord is a children's novel written by Cornelia Funke. It was published in Germany in 2000 and translated into English by Oliver Latsch in 2002 for The Chicken House, a division of Scholastic publishing company...	Cornelia Funke Cornelia Funke Cornelia Funke is a multiple award-winning German author of children's fiction. She was born on 10 December 1958, in Dorsten, North Rhine-Westphalia. Funke is best known for her Inkworld trilogy, with the English translation of the third book, Inkdeath, released on 6 October 2008. Many of her...
2004	Jackie & Me Jackie & Me Jackie & Me, published in 1999, is the second novel in the Baseball Card Adventures series by Dan Gutman, the sequel to Honus & Me.-Plot summary:...	Dan Gutman Dan Gutman Dan Gutman is an American author from New Jersey. A prolific writer, Gutman has written 80 books, both fictional and non-fictional, under publishers including Penguin Books, Macmillan, Scholastic Press, and HarperCollins...
2003	Artemis Fowl	Eoin Colfer Eoin Colfer Eoin Colfer is an Irish author. He is most famous as the author of the Artemis Fowl series, but he has also written other successful books. His novels have been compared to the works of J. K. Rowling...
2002	Because of Winn-Dixie Because of Winn-Dixie Because of Winn-Dixie is a children's novel by Kate DiCamillo published in 2000 and winner of a Newbery Honor distinction the following year. It also won the 2000 Josette Frank Award, and 2003 Mark Twain Award...	Kate DiCamillo Kate DiCamillo Katrina Elizabeth "Kate" DiCamillo is an American children's author. She is known for the Newbery Medal-winning book The Tale of Despereaux, the Newbery Honor book Because of Winn-Dixie, and the Mercy Watson series, plus numerous other award-winning and honored books.-Early life:Born in...
2001	Holes Holes (novel) Holes is a Newbery Medal-winning novel by Louis Sachar. It was adapted into a screenplay for the 2003 film by Walt Disney Pictures. In 2006, Sachar published Small Steps, a companion novel featuring one of the characters from Holes.-Plot:...	Louis Sachar Louis Sachar Louis Sachar is an American author of children's books who is best known for the Sideways Stories From Wayside School book series and the 1998 novel Holes, for which Sachar won a National Book Award and the Newbery Medal...
2000	Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone is the first novel in the Harry Potter series written by J. K. Rowling and featuring Harry Potter, a young wizard...	J. K. Rowling J. K. Rowling Joanne "Jo" Rowling, OBE , better known as J. K. Rowling, is the British author of the Harry Potter fantasy series...
1999	Frindle Frindle Frindle is a 1996 children's novel written by American author Andrew Clements and illustrated by Brian Selznick.Frindle is Clements's first novel. All his previous works had been picture books...	Andrew Clements Andrew Clements Andrew Clements is an American author of children's books. Clements grew up in Camden, New Jersey and Springfield, Illinois, United States,. As a child, he enjoyed summers at a lakeside cabin in Maine where he spent his days swimming and fishing and his evenings reading books...
1998	Crash Crash (1996 novel) Crash is a 1996 young adult novel by Jerry Spinelli. This coming-of-age story follows 7th grader John "Crash" Coogan's gradual progression from cocky football jock to mature, sensitive friend, brother and son.-Plot summary:...	Jerry Spinelli Jerry Spinelli Jerry Spinelli is an author of children's novels on adolescence and early adulthood. He is best known for the novels Maniac Magee and Wringer....
1997	Wayside School Gets A Little Stranger Wayside School Gets A Little Stranger Wayside School Gets A Little Stranger is a 1995 children's book by American author Louis Sachar, and the third book in his Sideways Stories From Wayside School series.- Plot :...	Louis Sachar Louis Sachar Louis Sachar is an American author of children's books who is best known for the Sideways Stories From Wayside School book series and the 1998 novel Holes, for which Sachar won a National Book Award and the Newbery Medal...
1996	The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle is a young adult historical fiction novel by the American author Avi that was published in 1990. It takes place during the transatlantic crossing of a ship from England to America in the 19th century. The book chronicles the evolution of the title character...	Avi Edward Irving Wortis Edward Irving Wortis , better known by the pen name Avi, is an American author of young adult and children's literature. He is a winner of both the Newbery Honor and Newbery Medal.- Biography :...
1995	Hatchet Hatchet (novel) Hatchet is a 1987 three-time Newbery Honor-winning wilderness survival novel written by Gary Paulsen. It is the first novel in the Hatchet series and is followed by four sequels....	Gary Paulsen Gary Paulsen Gary James Paulsen is an American writer who writes many young adult coming of age stories about the wilderness. He is the author of more than 200 books , 200 magazine articles and short stories, and several plays, all primarily for young adults and teens.-Biography:Gary Paulsen was born in...
1994	Shiloh	Phyllis Reynolds Naylor Phyllis Reynolds Naylor Phyllis Reynolds Naylor is an American author best known for her children and young adult fiction books. Naylor is best known for her children's-novel trilogy Shiloh , Shiloh Season and Saving Shiloh, all made into movies...
1993	Maniac Magee Maniac Magee Maniac Magee is a young adult fiction novel written by American author Jerry Spinelli and published in 1990. Exploring themes of racism and homelessness, it follows the story of an orphaned boy looking for a home in the fictional Pennsylvania town of Two Mills...	Jerry Spinelli Jerry Spinelli Jerry Spinelli is an author of children's novels on adolescence and early adulthood. He is best known for the novels Maniac Magee and Wringer....
1992	Matilda Matilda (novel) Matilda is a children's novel by British author Roald Dahl. It was published in 1988 by Jonathan Cape in London, with illustrations by Quentin Blake. The story is about Matilda Wormwood, an extraordinary child with ordinary and rather unpleasant parents, who are contemptuous of their daughter's...	Roald Dahl Roald Dahl Roald Dahl was a British novelist, short story writer, fighter pilot and screenwriter.Born in Wales to Norwegian parents, he served in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War, in which he became a flying ace and intelligence agent, rising to the rank of Wing Commander...
1991	There's a Boy in the Girls' Bathroom There's a Boy in the Girls' Bathroom There's a Boy in the Girls' Bathroom is a novel from the author Louis Sachar. It was published by Yearling Books in 1987.The book centers around Bradley Chalkers, a troubled fifth grade boy who has serious behavior problems as he often lies and bullies classmates, as well as performing poorly in...	Louis Sachar Louis Sachar Louis Sachar is an American author of children's books who is best known for the Sideways Stories From Wayside School book series and the 1998 novel Holes, for which Sachar won a National Book Award and the Newbery Medal...
1990	No award was given; Dr. Constant was on sabbatical
1989	The Chocolate Touch The Chocolate Touch The Chocolate Touch is a children's book by Patrick Skene Catling, first published in the USA in 1952. The story is patterned after the myth of King Midas, whose magic turned everything he touched into gold.-Summary:...	Patrick Skene Catling
1988	The Indian in the Cupboard The Indian in the Cupboard The Indian in the Cupboard is a children's book by British author Lynne Reid Banks, and illustrated by Brock Cole. It was first published in 1980, and has received numerous awards, as well as being made into a film in 1995....	Lynne Reid Banks Lynne Reid Banks Lynne Reid Banks is a British author of books for children and adults.She has written forty books, including the best-selling children's novel The Indian in the Cupboard, which has sold over 10 million copies and has been successfully adapted to film. Her first novel, The L-Shaped Room, published...
1987	Where the Red Fern Grows Where the Red Fern Grows Where the Red Fern Grows is a children's novel written by Wilson Rawls about a boy who buys and trains two Redbone Coonhound hunting dogs. This book is a popular choice for early middle school reading classes, with a reading level appropriate to grades 4 and up.-Plot summary:Before leaving work one...	Wilson Rawls Wilson Rawls Wilson Rawls, born Woodrow Wilson Rawls, was an American writer best known for his books Where the Red Fern Grows and Summer of the Monkeys.- Childhood :...
1986	Dear Mr. Henshaw Dear Mr. Henshaw Dear Mr. Henshaw is a juvenile epistolary novel by Beverly Cleary which was awarded the Newbery Medal in 1984.-Plot summary:Dear Mr. Henshaw begins with the book's main character, Leigh Botts, writing a letter, as part of a second grade classroom assignment, to his favorite author, Boyd Henshaw. Mr...	Beverly Cleary Beverly Cleary Beverly Cleary is an American author. Educated at colleges in California and Washington, she worked as a librarian before writing children's books. Cleary has written more than 30 books for young adults and children. Some of her best-known characters are Henry Huggins, Ribsy, Beatrice Quimby, her...
1985	Nothing's Fair in the Fifth Grade	Barthe DeClements
1984	Charlotte's Web Charlotte's Web Charlotte's Web is an award-winning children's novel by acclaimed American author E. B. White, about a pig named Wilbur who is saved from being slaughtered by an intelligent spider named Charlotte. The book was first published in 1952, with illustrations by Garth Williams.The novel tells the story...	E.B. White
1983	Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing is a children's novel written by Judy Blume in 1972. It is the first of the "Fudge books". It was followed by Superfudge, Fudge-A-Mania and, most recently, Double Fudge...	Judy Blume Judy Blume Judy Blume is an American author. She has written many novels for children and young adults which have exceeded sales of 80 million and been translated into 31 languages...	4th-6th
1983	Stranger with My Face Stranger with My Face Stranger With My Face is a young adult horror novel by Lois Duncan, first published in 1981. It was adapted into a television film of the same name...	Lois Duncan Lois Duncan Duncan is best known for her novels of suspense for teenagers. Some of her works have been adapted for the screen, the most famous example being the 1997 film I Know What You Did Last Summer, adapted from her novel of the same title...	7th-9th
1982	James and the Giant Peach James and the Giant Peach James and the Giant Peach is a popular children's novel written in 1961 by British author Roald Dahl. The original first edition published by Alfred Knopf featured illustrations by Nancy Ekholm Burkert. However, there have been various reillustrated versions of it over the years, done by Michael...	Roald Dahl Roald Dahl Roald Dahl was a British novelist, short story writer, fighter pilot and screenwriter.Born in Wales to Norwegian parents, he served in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War, in which he became a flying ace and intelligence agent, rising to the rank of Wing Commander...	4th-6th
1982	Killing Mr. Griffin Killing Mr. Griffin Killing Mr. Griffin is a novel for young adults by Lois Duncan.It is about a group of teenage students at Del Norte High School who plan to kidnap their strict English teacher, Mr. Griffin. The book was adapted to film in 1997, sharing the same title as the book, starring Jay Thomas, Mario Lopez,...	Lois Duncan Lois Duncan Duncan is best known for her novels of suspense for teenagers. Some of her works have been adapted for the screen, the most famous example being the 1997 film I Know What You Did Last Summer, adapted from her novel of the same title...	7th-9th
1981	The Great Gilly Hopkins The Great Gilly Hopkins -Plot summary:Gilly Hopkins is going to yet another foster home in Thompson Park, Maryland, with her social worker, Miss Ellis. At 11 years of age, she has spent the better part of her life being bounced from one set of foster parents to the next...	Katherine Paterson Katherine Paterson Katherine Paterson is an American author of children's novels. She wrote Bridge to Terabithia and has received several of the major international awards for children's literature.- Early life:...	4th-6th
1981	A Summer to Die A Summer to Die A Summer to Die was Lois Lowry's first novel, chronicling a year in the lives of Meg and Molly Chalmers. It was also her first children's book.-Synopsis:Meg, the younger of the two sisters, is the story's narrator and primary protagonist...	Lois Lowry Lois Lowry Lois Lowry is an American author of children's literature. She began her career as a photographer and a freelance journalist during the early 1970s...	7th-9th
1980	Chocolate Fever Chocolate Fever Chocolate Fever is a juvenile fiction story that was authored by Robert Kimmel Smith. The story was published in 1972.-Plot summary:Henry Green likes to eat lots of chocolate. In some cases, he adds chocolate or chocolate flavoring to other foods such as mashed potatoes. One day, Henry comes down...	Robert Kimmel Smith Robert Kimmel Smith Robert Kimmel Smith is an award-winning American children's author.Between 1957 and 1965, he was a copywriter at an ad agency, and was a partner and creative director at Smith and Toback from 1967 to 1970. In 1970 he became a full-time writer; his first children's book, Chocolate Fever, was...	4th-6th
1980	Summer of My German Soldier Summer of My German Soldier Summer of My German Soldier is a book by Bette Greene first published in 1973.The story is told in first person narrative by a twelve-year-old Jewish girl named Patty Bergen living in Jenkinsville, Arkansas during World War II. The story focuses on the friendship between Patty and an escaped German...	Bette Greene Bette Greene Bette Greene is the author of several books for children and young adults, including Summer of My German Soldier, The Drowning of Stephan Jones, and the Newbery Honor book Philip Hall Likes Me, I Reckon Maybe...	7th-9th
1979	The Cricket in Times Square	George Selden	4th-6th
1979	The Cat Ate My Gymsuit The Cat Ate My Gymsuit The Cat Ate My Gymsuit is a young adult novel written by Paula Danziger.-Plot:The story follows Marcy Lewis, an amply-contoured thirteen-year-old freshman girl who hates her looks. She has a verbally abusive father and it seems her parents, Martin and Lily, are always fighting...	Paula Danziger Paula Danziger Paula Danziger was a U.S. and e.u. children's author. She grew up in Metuchen, NJ. She lived in New York City and in Bearsville, NY...	7th-9th
1978	Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH is a 1971 children's book by Robert C. O'Brien. Illustrated by Zena Bernstein, it won the 1972 Newbery Medal. A film adaptation, The Secret of NIMH, was released in 1982....	Robert C. O'Brien Robert C. O'Brien Robert Leslie Conly was an American author and journalist for National Geographic Magazine.-Early life:...	4th-6th
1978	That Was Then, This Is Now That Was Then, This Is Now That Was Then, This Is Now is a coming-of-age young adult novel by S. E. Hinton. It follows the relationship between two brothers who find their relationship rapidly changing. It was later made into a film starring Emilio Estevez.- Plot :...	S. E. Hinton S. E. Hinton Susan Eloise Hinton is an American author best known for her young adult novel The Outsiders.While still in her teens, Hinton became a household name as the author of The Outsiders, her first and most popular novel, set in Oklahoma in the 1960s. She began writing it in 1965...	7th-9th
1977	Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing is a children's novel written by Judy Blume in 1972. It is the first of the "Fudge books". It was followed by Superfudge, Fudge-A-Mania and, most recently, Double Fudge...	Judy Blume Judy Blume Judy Blume is an American author. She has written many novels for children and young adults which have exceeded sales of 80 million and been translated into 31 languages...
1976	How to Eat Fried Worms How to Eat Fried Worms How to Eat Fried Worms is the title of a children's book written by Thomas Rockwell, first published in 1973. It was later turned into a CBS Storybreak episode in the mid-1980s, and a movie of the same name in 2006...	Thomas Rockwell Thomas Rockwell Thomas Rhodes Rockwell is the author of a number of books for young readers. He was the recipient of the Mark Twain Award, the California Young Reader Medal, and the Sequoyah Book Award for How to Eat Fried Worms, which was made into a TV movie in 1985 and was filmed as a theatrical release in 2006...