A Year Down Yonder is a book about a fifteen-year-old girl who goes to spend a year with her grandmother in a small town during the Depression. Mary Alice, who has a true dislike of living with her scheming Grandma Dowdle, eventually has a change of heart toward her grandmother.

Author: Richard Peck
 
 

In the book Because of Winn Dixie a ten-year-old girl named India Buloni finds a stray dog in the produce section. It leads her from friend to friend in a small town in Florida. Each friend helps her put together a meaning of family.

Author: Kate DiCamillo
 
 

The Welcome Stairway Diner is the setting for Hope Was Here. Hope and her aunt, who work at the diner, encounter an astounding variety of customers and issues they didn't& risqué;t expect.

Author: Joan Bauer
 
 

Joey Pigza Loses Control describes the life of a boy who goes to spend the summer with the father he really doesn’t know. Joey believes they can both be successes until both their lives go out of control. Can Joey get control of his life again?

Author: Jack Gantos
 
 

 In The Wanderer a thirteen-year-old girl named Sophie is on a voyage in the Atlantic with her extended family. The author allows us to learn about Sophie’s past and to wonder about the ship’s crew.

Author: Sharon Creech
 
 

 More Good Books of 2001
 
 

Taggerung means "chosen beast" to the Juskarath, a vermin clan, who have been waiting for him to lead them to great victory. Now their seer has predicted they may find the Taggerung by the river. Instead, they find an otterbabe, which they accept as the Taggerung. As he grows, he realizes there must be another place for him.

Author: Brian Jacques
 
 

Miracle’s Boys is a Coretta Scott King Award winner about three boys who lose their parents and must fend for themselves. They are overwhelmed with grief. Maybe if they work together as brothers, they can survive.

Author: Jacqueline Woodson
 
 

 Only Passing Through: The Story of Sojourner Truth is a biography of the former slave named Isabella. When she was 46, she had a dream that told her to travel the country and tell others what it was like to be a slave.

Author: Anne F. Rockwell Illustrator: Gregory Christie
 
 

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