Newbery 1987

The Whipping Boy
Author: Sid Fleischman
Genre: Fantasy
Plot: Jemmy, the whipping boy, runs away with Prince Brat and has an adventure.
Verdict: Not "The Prince and the Pauper"
My rating: 3 stars


A Fine White Dust
Author: Cynthia Rylant
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Plot: Peter becomes attached to the traveling Preacher Man at the local revival.
Verdict: Kind of wishy washy
My rating: 2 stars


On My Honor
Author: Marion Dane Bauer
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Plot: Joel is unsure what to do when a tragedy happens.
Verdict: Short and sad
My rating: 3 stars
**Challenged**


Volcano: The Eruption and Healing of Mount St. Helens
Author: Patricia Lauber
Genre: Nonfiction
Plot: A description of the Mount St. Helens eruption and an account of the scientists documenting the ecology's recovery.
Verdict: Extremely interesting
My rating: 4 stars

At first glance, The Whipping Boy seems to be a sort of "The Prince and the Pauper" tale  Jemmy is plucked off the streets to be with the horrible Prince Brat.  However, Jemmy does not look a thing like the Prince and his only job is to be whipped whenever the prince does something wrong (which is horrible discipline because the prince learns absolutely nothing).  Then, Prince Brat runs away and Jemmy is kind of forced to go with him (or face severe punishment).  The book is extremely short but I can see why it won the Medal this year.

The next two books are both realistic fiction with some very deep themes.  A Fine White Dust is told by Peter, who is a Christian but his parents are not and his friend is a confirmed atheist.  One day, a revival comes to town and he is extremely attracted by the traveling Preacher Man, with whom he can talk about spiritual matters, something he has not been able to do.  However, a betrayal is in the works.  On My Honor is about two boys who go for a bike ride until one boy decides to go for a swim instead.  When tragedy strikes, the other boy is not sure what to do.  This book is on the ALA's challenged list for the 1990-1999 decade.

The last book is actually my favorite.  Volcano chronicles the famous and devastating eruption of Mount St. Helens.  Then, the rest of the book talks about the scientists who stayed on the mountain, which was preserved for scientific study, to watch how nature recovered.