SUBSCRIBE
SUBSCRIBE
SLJ Blog Network +
  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal: A Mock Newbery Blog
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About/Contact
  • *Best New Books*
    • Annual Best Lists
  • Reviews
    • One Star Review
    • Nonfiction
    • Toon Reviews
  • Articles
    • Authors
    • Link Du Jour
  • Covers
    • Covering the Newbery
    • Cover Curiosity
    • Unfortunate Covers
  • News
    • Books on Film
    • Morning Notes
  • Newsletter

September 4, 2013 by Travis Jonker

So You Want to Win the Newbery? (Part II)

September 4, 2013 by Travis Jonker   8 comments

Yesterday in Part I, we looked at which month has produced the most Newbery winners. Today is all about critical acclaim.

(Many thanks to Elizabeth Fama, John Cochrane, and Jen Baker who inspired me with this post at Someday My Printz Will Come.)

SCROLL TO KEEP READING THIS POST

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

As fans of the Newbery know, not all medal winners arrive to unanimous praise from the major children’s literature review journals (Booklist, Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books, Horn Book, Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly, School Library Journal) .

So over the last 10 years, what’s the average number of starred reviews for Newbery winners? Here’s the breakdown.

(Click to enlarge)

*Update: It looks like my source was off with Horn Book stars (thanks to Jonathan for the catch), numbers have been adjusted*

If you add it all up, 3.5 starred reviews is the average. No Newbery winner in the last 10 years has received a starred review from all six of the reviewers listed, but three came close (When You Reach Me, Good Masters! Sweet Ladies!, and Criss Cross with five each). Kirkus Reviews had the best “batting average”, awarding stars to 90% of the books that went on to win the Newbery in the last decade.

Anything jump out to you?

Filed under: Articles

SHARE:

Read or Leave Comments

About Travis Jonker

Travis Jonker is an elementary school librarian in Michigan. He writes reviews (and the occasional article or two) for School Library Journal and is a member of the 2014 Caldecott committee. You can email Travis at scopenotes@gmail.com, or follow him on Twitter: @100scopenotes.

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

February 2023

Notes on January 2023

by Travis Jonker

January 2023

Your 2023 Caldecott Comment Card

by Travis Jonker

January 2023

Who's Published the Most Newbery Winners in the Last 25 Years?

by Travis Jonker

January 2023

2023 Caldecott Medal Predictions

by Travis Jonker

January 2023

The Ten Most Eye-Opening Caldecott Books of All Time

by Travis Jonker

ADVERTISEMENT

SLJ Blog Network

100 Scope Notes

Sydney Taylor Blog Tour: THE TOWER OF LIFE by Chana Stiefel and Susan Gal

by Travis Jonker

A Fuse #8 Production

Fuse 8 n’ Kate: Who’s In Rabbit’s House by Verna Aardema, ill. Leo and Diane Dillon

by Betsy Bird

Good Comics for Kids

Kiss Number 8 | Review

by Johanna

Heavy Medal

What’s Coming in 2023, A Feedback Poll, and Goodbye for Now…

by Steven Engelfried

Teen Librarian Toolbox

Holiday House and Pixel + Ink Showcase: New titles from the first half of 2023

by Amanda MacGregor

The Classroom Bookshelf

The Classroom Bookshelf is Moving

by Erika Thulin Dawes

The Yarn

A Book 25 Years in the Making: Marla Frazee Visits The Yarn

by Travis Jonker

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Articles on SLJ

Truth Teller, A. S. King | The Year in SLJ Covers

Luminous Review, Twitter Exodus, and a Thoughtful Airport Encounter | Readers Respond

Changing the Narrative | The Year in SLJ Covers

Ellen Oh, Linda Sue Park, and Ami Polonsky Speak Out Against Censorship at Florida School Board Meeting

The hOle Story: Kids’ Books Come to Life on a Giant Scale at a New Kansas City Venue

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Jonathan Hunt says

    September 4, 2013 at 9:14 am

    I think some of these numbers are off. I had THE ONE AND ONLY IVAN with 3, HIGHER POWER with 1, KIRA KIRA with 2, and DESPERAUX with 4,

    • Travis Jonker says

      September 4, 2013 at 9:35 am

      Hi Jonathan – thanks for chiming in – I want to get these numbers right. I’m using Follett Titlewave and it’s showing the numbers I listed. Is there another source you’re pulling from?

  2. Benji Martin says

    September 4, 2013 at 10:12 am

    Are you saying we should switch our SLJ subscriptions to Horn Book? 😉 Just kidding. Everyone knows that we should be reading both.

  3. Rachael Stein says

    September 6, 2013 at 2:54 pm

    Kudos to you for doing this! I tried a few months ago, and got my numbers so tangled I gave up.

  4. Vicki Kouchnerkavich says

    September 12, 2013 at 4:41 pm

    So how does winning the Newbery compare to winning the Heisman trophy? Winning the Heisman does not guarantee you success in your field in the future.

  5. Benji says

    September 12, 2013 at 10:17 pm

    That’s an interesting comparison Vicki. In my opinion it all comes down to how you define success. I think the individual book will probably have success for a long time to come. The other day, I had a hankering to read Julie of the Wolves. I knew that since it had won the Newbery, I could wonder into almost any public library and find it. Even books as atrocious as Story of Mankind and The Dark Frigate are in nearly every collection. The Newbery at least assures long term sales- if only to libraries.

    The author though, could be a one and done. Like a Tim Tebow type. Most though, will probably continue to publish decent books for a long time. Publishers respect the medal, and writing talent stays around much longer in life than football talent .

    Plus, there’s a big talent gap between college and the NFL. I don’t think authors deal with anything like that.

  6. Allison Williams says

    September 14, 2013 at 10:48 am

    Seeing the lack of stars for The Higher Power of Lucky, that only confirms my initial rejection of this book for my collection. Of course, once the furor arose about the mention of dog body parts, the pressure was on to include the book as a rejection of Puritan censorship.

  7. cheap hair clipper says

    October 14, 2014 at 1:45 pm

    It is obvious that Wahl is the authority on hair clippers and hair grooming
    tools. Richard Luck is a writer who specializes in outdoor power tools.
    I would have expected it to turn on for at least a moment or so, even partially charged.

ADVERTISEMENT

Archives

  • Author/Illustrator Blogs

    • Erin Stead Illustration
    • Hey, Rabbit!
    • James Preller's Blog
    • MATTHEWCORDELLBLOGS
    • Mo Willems Doodles
    • The Scop
  • Book Blogs I Like

    • A Book and a Hug
    • A Fuse #8 Production
    • A Kids Book a Day
    • A Year of Reading
    • Abby (the) Librarian
    • Awful Library Books
    • Becky’s Book Reviews
    • Better Book Titles
    • Book-A-Day Almanac
    • Bookends
    • books4yourkids.com
    • bookshelves of doom
    • Bottom Shelf Books
    • Calling Caldecott
    • Caustic Cover Critic
    • Chad C. Beckerman
    • Charlotte’s Library
    • Cheryl Rainfield
    • Chicken Spaghetti
    • CHILDREN’S ILLUSTRATION
    • Collecting Children’s Books
    • Cybils
    • EarlyWord
    • educating alice
    • Finding Wonderland
    • For Those About to Mock
    • Good Comics for Kids
    • Good Show Sir
    • GottaBook
    • Great Kid Books
    • Heavy Medal: A Mock Newbery Blog
    • Hi Miss Julie!
    • Jen Robinson’s Book Page
    • Kidsmomo
    • Maria T. Middleton Design
    • Nerdy Book Club
    • Neverending Search
    • Nine Kinds of Pie
    • One Book, Two Books, Old Books, New Books
    • Out of the Box
    • Oz and Ends
    • PlanetEsme
    • Read Roger
    • Reading Rants!
    • Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast
    • sharpread
    • ShelfTalker
    • so tomorrow
    • The Children's Book Review
    • The Miss Rumphius Effect
    • Uncovered Cover Art
    • Waking Brain Cells
    • Watch. Connect. Read.
  • Library Blogs

    • ALSC Blog
    • Blue Skunk Blog
    • librarian.net
    • LISNews
    • Stephen's Lighthouse
    • Tame The Web: Libraries and Technology
    • Tame The Web: Libraries and Technology
    • Unshelved
  • Follow This Blog

    Enter your email address below to receive notifications of new blog posts by email.

    This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

    This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

    Primary Sidebar

    • News & Features
    • Reviews+
    • Technology
    • School Libraries
    • Public Libraries
    • Age Level
    • Ideas
    • Blogs
    • Classroom
    • Diversity
    • People
    • Job Zone

    Reviews+

    • Book Lists
    • Best Books
    • Media
    • Reference
    • Series Made Simple
    • Tech
    • Review for SLJ
    • Review Submissions

    SLJ Blog Network

    • 100 Scope Notes
    • A Fuse #8 Production
    • Good Comics for Kids
    • Heavy Medal
    • Neverending Search
    • Teen Librarian Toolbox
    • The Classroom Bookshelf
    • The Yarn

    Resources

    • 2022 Youth Media Awards
    • The Newbery at 100: SLJ Celebrates the 100th Anniversary of the Award
    • Special Report | School Libraries 2021
    • Summer Reading 2021
    • Series Made Simple Spring 2021
    • SLJ Diverse Books Survey
    • Summer Programming Survey
    • Research
    • White Papers / Case Studies
    • School Librarian of the Year
    • Mathical Book Prize Collection Development Awards
    • Librarian/Teacher Collaboration Award

    Events & PD

    • In-Person Events
    • Online Courses
    • Virtual Events
    • Webcasts
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Subscribe
    • Media Inquiries
    • Newsletter Sign Up
    • Content Submissions
    • Data Privacy
    • Terms of Use
    • Terms of Sale
    • FAQs
    • Diversity Policy
    • Careers at MSI


    COPYRIGHT © 2023


    COPYRIGHT © 2023