M.C. Higgins, the Great

A coming-of-age novel about Mayo Cornelius Higgins, a 13-year-old African American boy living in the Ohio hills. M.C. dreams of escaping the strip-mining that threatens his family's mountain home while grappling with family loyalty, identity, and hope. This groundbreaking work won the 1975 Newbery Medal, the National Book Award, and the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, making Hamilton the first author to win all three for the same book.