Good literature is entertaining, enlightening, and connects us to ourselves, to each other, and to other worlds.  But then there are books that come along every once in a while that are a step above the others.  That is why they win awards.  Walk Two Moons is such a book.  The plot and the characters are multi-layered. The book begins with 13-year-old Salamanca Tree Hiddle as she travels west with her Grams and Gramps to Lewiston, Idaho, the destination from which her mother did not return. While traveling she entertains her grandparents with stories of her friend, Phoebe.  Kirkus Reviews says, “The mystery of Phoebe's more conventional mother's disappearance and its effects on her family and eventual explanation unfold as the journey, with its own offbeat incidents, proceeds; meanwhile, in Sal's intricate narrative, the tragic events surrounding her mother's flight are also gradually revealed.”  The stories are huge mysteries waiting to be revealed.  Mixed in with the story of the mothers are the reality of the trip and the death of Grams.  Booklist says, “The novel is ambitious and successful on many fronts: the characters, even the adults, are fully realized; the story certainly keeps readers' interest; and the pacing is good throughout.”

Ms. Creech writes this book in the first person.  Sal does all the story telling.  It is as if the reader found her diary.  This story is for anyone who has lost anyone dear to them.  The last chapter explains so many of the feelings and stages of grief one goes through. It also reveals many of the regular growing pains of being a thirteen year old girl. School Library Journal says, “This pilgrimage wonderfully mirrors the journey of discovery that is adolescence, as Sal's search for the truth about her mother becomes a journey of discovery about much more.”

The 1995 Newbery Award Selection Committee said, "The book is packed with humor and affection and is an odyssey of unexpected twists and surprising conclusions."  It is a story of family, friends, and strangers coming together.  The title comes from a Native American proverb that says, “Don’t judge a man until you’ve walked two moons in his moccasins.”  

1995 Newbery Medal Winner                                                    

A 1995 ALA Notable Children's Book
School Library Journal Best Book of 1994
Winner of a 1994 Bulletin Blue Ribbon
A Notable Children's Trade Book in the Language Arts (NCTE)
Winner of the 1997 Heartland Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature
Notable Children's Books of 1995 (ALA)
1995 Notable Trade Books in the Language Arts (NCTE)
Children's Book Award for Longer Novels (Great Britain's Federation of Children's Books Groups)
Outstanding Books of 1994 for Middle School-Aged Teens (V)
Best Books 1994 (SLJ)
Bulletin Blue Ribbon Books 1994 (C)

Arnold, Mary. Review of Walk Two Moons in School Library Journal. Available from: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/0064405176/002-8640359-4732068?%5Fencoding=UTF8&n=283155. Accessed 28 November 2004.

Cooper, Ilene. Review of Walk Two Moons in Booklist. Available from: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/0064405176/002-8640359-4732068?%5Fencoding=UTF8&n=283155. Accessed 28 November 2004.

Review of Walk Two Moons in Kirkus Reviews. Available from: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/0064405176/002-8640359-4732068?%5Fencoding=UTF8&n=283155. Accessed 28 November 2004.