Newbery Honor Book: Pictures of Hollis Woods

This book is a book that will touch your heart, “Pictures of Hollis Woods”, by Patricia Reilly Giff. This is a very good book to read when you are feeling sad or depressed. It really brings out the inner “you “. Hollis had never known how it felt to be truly loved, until she met her foster parent Josie. The downside of Hollis and Josie having an incredible bond is that Josie is loosing her memory. If the secret service finds this out, Hollis has to be sent to another foster home. Since Hollis is known of being a girl that escapes from her homes, they are expecting her to run away. This time Hollis wasn’t the only one running away, Josie was too. I also like this book because, the unexpected happens. Hollis is a very clever girl that does what she wants. I think I relate to her because if there was someone I loved and I knew I was going to be separated from them, I would do anything I could think of to escape it. Even though most people would say Hollis is crazy for running away from her foster homes, I think she has the right to do what she wants. With her being a foster kid, she probably thinks different about her self then other kids. I believe that she deserves more attention, because she has gone through more dramatic phases throughout her life.

Some of Patricia Reilly Giff's other books include:
Lily's Crossing
Maggie's Door
Polk Street School Books
Fourth Grade Celebrity
Willow Run

Newbery Honor Award: The House of the Scorpion

This is a science fiction novel that is set in the future. The main character, Matt, is a young child who is a clone, though he doesn't know it at the beginning of this powerful novel. Set in the future in Dreamland, a drug empire that took over parts of today's Mexico, Matt still has the normal concerns and fears that other children have. He wants friends and the freedom to do what he wants. Being a clone of the powerful El Patron gives Matt safety that other clones, despised by his world, do not enjoy. Most clones are grown for horrible reasons and their intelligence is removed with a drug at birth. But he has been spared; he is highly intelligent and loves music. In the end, Matt is able to escape the town and its hardships. Nancy Farmer's characters are so believable you find yourself feeling compassion for a clone, and anger at those who treat him as anything less than human. Farmer cleverly uses figurative language and understatements to slowly build your curiosity and the suspense. You struggle along with Matt as he attempts to understand his purpose and what those who love him are trying desperately to convey to him.


Although this book has a science fictional flair to it, it appeals to a wider range of readers including those who enjoy suspense and mysteries. Within a classroom, this book could be used to stimulate discussions on present day controversies of cloning, stem cell research as well as nature vs. nurture, since Matt and El Patron had the same DNA however turned out to be very different people. I would recommend this book for older students in high school and college. Younger students would not benefit from reading this book.

Other books by Nancy Farmer include:
The Sea of Trolls
The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm
A Girl Named Disaster
The Clever Ali