Newbery Medal Winner “ Avi ” by Jennifer Hemsath

1. Newbery Medal Winner“Avi”by Jennifer Hemsath The End of the Beginning: Being the Adventures of a Small Snail (And an Even Smaller Ant)

2. Let’s Meet Our Author • Avi was born in New York, New York in 1937 • His real name is Edward Irving Wortis, but his twin sister began calling him “Avi” when they were very young • Avi wanted to design airplanes when he grew up, but began writing plays instead • Avi was born into a creative family of writers, artists, and musicians • Books have always been an important part of Avi’s life • “My life has always been with, around, and for books.”~ Avi • He didn’t begin to write books when he had kids of his own • Avi enjoys communicating with students who are lonely, frustrated, and isolated – he especially enjoys helping those with learning disabilities, because he understands them “Avi” Edward Irving Wortis

3. Avi has worked hard to become the writer that he is today • He admits that he was not always a very good student; he was not a very good writer • Avi failed all of his classes in high school, so his parents moved him to a small school • Avi received special tutoring and help with reading and writing • Avi suffers from dysgraphia, which causes reversal of letters and misspelled words • This made school difficult for Avi because his teachers thought that he just didn’t care about his work- but he did • It takes Avi about a year to write a book, as he must write over and over to correct his mistakes • He writes all kinds of books for different ages which we will explore It Doesn’t Come Easy

4. What does it take to win the Newbery Medal? • The author must be a citizen of the United States • The book will be reviewed by a committee • The book must be written for children • It must be a “most distinguished contribution to American literature for children published by an American publisher in the United States in English during the preceding year.” The Newbery Medal

5. We will be reading this adventure about Avon the snail and Edward the ant • Avon seeks adventure and Edward does not think anyone should go on an adventure alone • They wonder what they will see, how far they will go, and who they will meet • Edward likes to teach Avon as they proceed with their adventure • Avi writes in a way that will make us think a little harder about this adventure • We will see how far this small snail and even smaller ant go on their adventure • We will find out what they have learned about life The End of the BeginningWinner of the Newbery Medal

6. Questions to Ponder… • What does it mean to go on an adventure? • When you go on an adventure do you always know where you are going or how far it will take you? • What interesting creatures to you think that Avon and Edward will meet along the way/ • When it comes to the adventure, Edward will tell us, “It is better to look for nothing and find something than to look for something and find nothing.” • What does the difference between the words “suggestions” and “directions”? • Avon will share a poem with us in the story, “How I wonder why the air Is the same here as it was there.” • How do you think this poem will make sense in the story?

7. When asked where Avi gets his ideas for writing books, this is what he says: • “Everybody has ideas. What do you do with them?” • “I take my ideas and put them into stories.” • “What do you think you’ll do with your ideas?” • “Listen and watch the world around you.” • “Try to understand why things happen.” • “Understand why you believe things.” • “Write what you honestly feel.” • To watch an interview with Avi, go to the following site: http://bcove.me/7rhus62w Exploration of Avi’s Work:What it takes to Write

8. Avi writes historical fiction, fantasies, comedies, mysteries, ghost stories, adventure tales, and realistic fiction. • Avi received the Newbery Medal for his adventure tale, The End of the Beginning • He has written more than 70 books • Many of his books have received awards • Some of the books that he is known for are: Crispin: Cross of Lead Nothing but the Truth The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle The Man Who Was Poe Poppy Other Books by Avi