Pretty Interesting Mix

So the Carnegie Medal in the UK is kind of like the Newbery over here: big honkin' hairy deal, highlighting some of the best in kidlit. So when they put out their list of the best books of the past 70 years, it's one heck of a mix. Here's it is, with itty-bitty summaries.

Carnegie of Carnegies shortlist

* SKELLIG David Almond (won in 1998)

A tale of a creature beneath the garage

* JUNK Melvin Burgess (1996)

The lives of young heroin users

* STORM Kevin Crossley-Holland (1985)

Girl discovers the secrets of a marsh

* A GATHERING LIGHT Jennifer Donnelly (2003)

Novel about a real murder

* THE OWL SERVICE Alan Garner (1967)

A terrifying legend re-emerges

* THE FAMILY FROM ONE END STREET Eve Garnett (1937)

Portrait of a working-class family

* THE BORROWERS Mary Norton (1952)

Tiny people live beneath the floor

* TOM'S MIDNIGHT GARDEN Philippa Pearce (1958)

Adventures in a magical garden

* NORTHERN LIGHTS Philip Pullman (1995)

First of the trilogy His Dark Materials

* THE MACHINE-GUNNERS Robert Westall (1981)

Second World War novel

To read the whole article, click on over to the Independent's website. Thanks to Chicken Spaghetti for the link.