Sounder, Newbery Winner 1970

At first glance I thought Sounder was a dog story, after all the dog's name is the title (interestingly, Sounder is the only proper name in the book). However, as I read, I came to realize that the story was really about the boy, how he grew and eventually came to celebrate loss as a part of life.
This story reads like a memoir and perhaps it is loosely biographical, the author's note at the beginning says, "It is the black man's story, not mine. It was not from Aesop, the Old Testament, or Homer. It was history -- his history."
And this book reads more like history, it is this most solemn of the books I have read so far and, I feel, geared towards the oldest readers.
Without being particularly exciting, though-provoking, or sad it is hard to tell what makes this book work. But work it does, spinning a tale that is simply beautiful and beautiful in its simplicity. There are elements of a dog's loyalty to its master, but the true story here is how a young boy overcomes the life he was given through perseverance and love.