The Sign of the Beaver
{{Short description|1983 children's novel by Elizabeth George Speare}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2021}}
{{Infobox book
| name = The Sign of the Beaver
| image = File: The Sign of the Beaver.jpg
| caption = First edition
| author = Elizabeth George Speare
| illustrator =
| cover_artist =
| country = United States
| language = English
| series =
| genre = Children's historical novel
| publisher = Houghton Mifflin
| release_date = February 1983
| media_type = Print (Hardback & Paperback) & Audio Book
| pages = 135
| isbn = 0-395-33890-5
| congress = PZ7.S7376 Si 1983
| oclc = 9219453
| preceded_by =
| followed_by =
}}
The Sign of the Beaver is a children's historical novel by American author Elizabeth George Speare, which has won numerous literary awards. It was published in February 1983, and has become one of her most famous works.
The idea for this book came from a factual story that Elizabeth George Speare discovered in Milo, Maine{{Cite web|last=Library Thing |title=The Survival Story |url=http://www.milohistorical.org/history/beaver.php |accessdate=January 26, 2014 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140202131519/http://www.milohistorical.org/history/beaver.php |archivedate=February 2, 2014 }} about a young boy who was left alone for a summer in the wilderness and was befriended by a Native American, named Attean, and his grandfather.{{Cite book|last = McCarthy| first = Tara|title = Literature Circle Guide: The Sign of the Beaver|publisher = Scholastic|year = 2002|location = New York, NY|page = 9| isbn = 0-439-35542-7}} The novel has been adapted into a television film titled Keeping the Promise.
Plot
The Sign of the Beaver tells the story of 13-year-old Matthew James "Matt" Hallowell, an 18th-century American settler. He and his father build a log cabin in the wilderness of Maine, then Matt is left alone to guard the cabin and his family's claim to the land while his father heads back to Quincy, Massachusetts to pick up his mother, his sister, and the new baby and bring them back to the cabin. Matt learns how to survive and deal with difficult situations, getting help from Attean, a Native American boy, and his family. When Matt fears his father will not return, Attean asks him to join the Beaver tribe and move north.
Awards
- 1983 Josette Frank Award (won as prize){{Cite web |last=Bank Street College of Education |title=The Children's Book Committee: Past Award Winners (1943-2007) |url=http://www.bankstreet.edu/bookcom/past_winners.html |accessdate=November 30, 2009 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20091202181222/http://www.bankstreet.edu/bookcom/past_winners.html |archivedate=December 2, 2009 }}
- 1984 Christopher Award (won as prize){{Cite web|last = Library Thing|title = Book awards: Christopher Award|url = http://www.librarything.com/bookaward/Christopher+Award|accessdate =November 30, 2009}}{{Cite web|title = Sign of the Beaver Lesson Plan|url = http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/collateral.jsp?id=36282|accessdate =November 30, 2009}}
- 1984 Booklist Editors' Choice (won){{Cite web|last = Random House|title = Teacher Guide: Sign of the Beaver|url = http://www.randomhouse.com/teachers/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780440479000&view=tg|accessdate =November 30, 2009}}
- 1984 Horn Book Fanfare (won){{Cite web|last=Horn Book Fanfare |title=Hornbook Fanfare's Best Books of the Year 1980s |url=http://www.hbook.com/resources/books/fanfare/fanfare_80s.asp |accessdate=November 30, 2009 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20091012005004/http://www.hbook.com/resources/books/fanfare/fanfare_80s.asp |archivedate=October 12, 2009 }}
- 1984 Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction (won as prize){{Cite web |last=Scott O'Dell |title=Winners of the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction |url=http://www.scottodell.com/odellaward.html |accessdate=November 30, 2009 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20091206131441/http://www.scottodell.com/odellaward.html |archivedate=December 6, 2009 }}
- 1984 ALA Notable Children's Book citation
- 1984 ALA Best Fiction for Young Adults citation
- 1983–1984 Young Hoosier Book Award (nominee) {{Cite web|title = Young Hoosier Book Award History|url = http://www.ilfonline.org/Programs/yhba/yhbahistory.htm|archive-url = https://archive.today/20120801174121/http://www.ilfonline.org/Programs/yhba/yhbahistory.htm|url-status = dead|archive-date = August 1, 2012|accessdate =November 30, 2009}}
- 1989 New York Times Best Book of the Year
References
{{Portal |Children's literature}}
{{Elizabeth George Speare}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sign Of The Beaver, The}}
Category: American children's novels
Category: American historical novels
Category: Children's historical novels
Category:Newbery Honor–winning works
Category: American novels adapted into films
Category: Novels set in the 1760s
Category: Houghton Mifflin books
Category:1983 children's books
Category: Books about Native Americans
Category:Children's books set in the 18th century
Category:Children's books set in Maine
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