Nutmeg Books

The Nutmeg Children's Book Award encourages children in grades 4-6 to read quality literature and to choose their favorite from a list of ten nominated titles.

Becoming Naomi Leon
Pam Munoz Ryan

Naomi and her brother are being raised by their great-grandmother in a trailer park. When her mother reappears after a seven year absence, Naomi struggles to keep her family together and discover her Mexican heritage.

The Boy Who Saved Baseball
John H. Ritter

Can an average boy, an ornery old baseball star, and one last game save Tom’s small, California town from destruction by a developer?

Brainboy and the Deathmaster
Tor Seidler

Darryl, video game whiz, is drawn into a high-tech program where kids compete to be the best video gamers. However, Darryl discovers the ultimate prize may be winning his survival and that of his friends.

Gifts From the Sea
Natalie Kinsey-Warnock

Quila receives an unexpected surprise when the sea washes a baby up on the shore outside her family’s Maine lighthouse.

Granny Torrelli Makes Soup
Sharon Creech

Mix a little bit of wisdom, a ton of love, and a pinch of friendship. That’s how Granny Torrelli and twelve-year-old Rosie cook a delicious soup that proves life tastes good.

Half and Half
Lensey Namioka

Fiona Cheng knows who she is, but her mixed heritage (Chinese and Scottish) can never be explained with just one word. Supported by her family, she demonstrates that her two halves add up to a perfect whole.

Kensuke's Kingdom
Michael Morpurgo

While sailing in the Pacific Ocean, eleven–year-old Michael falls overboard and ends up stranded on a nearly deserted island. He is befriended by an old Japanese man, the island’s other inhabitant, in this exciting tale of friendship and survival.

Macaroni Boy
Katherine Ayres

Living in Pittsburgh during the Great Depression, Mike investigates the cause of the sickness that is affecting so many in his community, including his own grandfather. To learn the truth he must enlist the help of the neighborhood bully who nicknames Mike “Macaroni Boy.”

Thunder From the Sea
Joan Hiatt Harlow

Harsh weather brings an orphan boy, Tom, and a stranded dog, Thunder, together on the island of Newfoundland. They struggle to find a family despite a blizzard, a tidal wave, and worst of all, Thunder’s former owner.

The Warriors
Joseph Bruchac

One of the best lacrosse players on his Iroquois reservation team, Jake is conflicted when his mother relocates him to a boarding school. Jake is praised for his athletic abilities, but feels like an outcast until he resolves a school crisis with a special game of lacrosse.