Moon Over Manifest won the Newbery Award in 2011.  This book combines a compelling mystery with wonderful characters. It is filled because with poignant stories of a small town of people pulling together in the face of hardship, friendship and a parent’s love for their child. Highly recommended for middle readers or as a read aloud for fourth or fifth grade.

Synopsis: Moon Over Manifest is the story about a 12 year old girl who lands in a small Kansas town called Manifest in 1936 after traveling as a drifter with her father for years. She wants to learn about her father’ time in Manifest, where he spent time as a boy. Her story in 1936 is cleverly woven together with the town’s history from 1918, which she hears through the stories of an old Hungarian woman, other towns’ people and newspaper articles.