The Good Master

infobox Book |
name = The Good Master
title_orig =
translator =


image_caption =
author = Kate Seredy
illustrator = Kate Seredy
cover_artist =
country = United States
language = English
series =
genre = Children's novel
publisher = Viking Books
pub_date = 1935
english_pub_date =
media_type = Print (Hardcover)
pages =
isbn = ISBN
preceded_by =
followed_by = The Singing Tree

"The Good Master" (1935) is a children's novel written and illustrated by Kate Seredy, set in the Hungarian countryside before World War I. [ [http://www.longitudebooks.com/find/d/400762/pc/Magnificent%20Cities%20of%20Central%20and%20Eastern%20Europe/printable/1 Longitude summary] ] It is a Newbery Honor book of 1936.

"The Good Master" was written after May Massee, an editor for Viking Press, suggested that the successful illustrator Kate Seredy should write a story about her childhood in Hungary. The bulky manuscript, written in longhand in a recently-learned language, was accepted and published immediately. [ [http://www.lib.usm.edu/~degrum/html/research/findaids/seredy.htm Biographical sketch from the de Grummond Collection of Kate Seredy Papers] ] It has been frequently republished and is often described as a classic.

Plot summary

"My cousin Kate from Budapest is coming to live with us. She's delicate and has had the measles!" shouted Jancsi to a friend as he and his father were driving to the station to meet her.

Jancsi had imagined Kate as a sort of fragile, fair-haired princess, but the little girl who stepped off the train had plan black hair, a smudgy face, and skinny legs. From the moment Kate arrived, things happened. She was afraid of nothing and full of ideas. When Kate looked most angelic, you could be sure she was thinking up some mischief.Kate and Jancsi's adventures on his father's ranch in Hungary-- riding the horses, going to a Country Fair, celebrating Easter and Christmas-- are most exciting and gay, for Kate always does the unexpected thing.

Kate's Uncle Marton is "the good master", a kind and respected pillar of the community. The book vividly evokes the folk customs and way of life of old Hungary.

"The Singing Tree", also a Newbery Honor book, is a sequel to "The Good Master" and describes the changes brought by war.

Reception

"The Good Master" was a specially cited runner-up for the Newbery Medal in 1936 and was subsequently awarded the Newbery Honor. [ [http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=PtjKpgdZS00C&pg=PA54&lpg=PA54&dq=%22the+good+master%22+%22kate+seredy%22+%22newbery+honor%22&source=web&ots=hPBQMgdQdi&sig=rLE4V_Pbw85YjYbFs16FV3bZoco&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=2&ct=result Winning Authors:Profiles of the Newbery] ] It was a Junior Literary Guild selection, having been chosen by the Editorial Board Consisting of Helen Ferris, Angelo Patri, Mrs. Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Mrs. Sidonie Gruenberg as an outstanding publication of the month for younger readersFact|date=March 2008. It appears among the Top 100 books of the twentieth century for younger readers chosen by the State Library of Tasmania. [ [http://www.statelibrary.tas.gov.au/whatdo/reading/beinspired/top-100/children State Library of Tasmania Top 100] ]

References