Which Jean Craighead George novel won the 1973 Newbery Medal?

Which Jean Craighead George novel won the 1973 Newbery Medal? The answer is Julie of the Wolves.

The novel follows Miyax, an Inupiat girl who becomes lost on the Alaskan tundra. To survive, she studies a wolf pack and gradually earns the animals’ trust. Jean Craighead George combines adventure with close observations of Arctic ecology, animal behavior, and the pressures faced by Indigenous communities navigating a changing world.

The story is also about identity. Miyax has been caught between traditional life and modern expectations, and her time on the tundra becomes both a physical ordeal and a period of self-discovery. The wolves are not presented as tame pets; Miyax survives by observing their social behavior and respecting their boundaries.

Readers sometimes confuse this winner with My Side of the Mountain or On the Far Side of the Mountain, which also feature nature, wilderness, and survival. Those books belong to another series. Julie of the Wolves alone won the 1973 Newbery Medal.