The Good Master is a children's novel written and illustrated by Kate Seredy

Kate Seredy

Kate Seredy was a Hungarian-born writer and illustrator of children's books, written in the English language.-Life:...

, set in the Hungarian countryside before World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

. It is a Newbery Honor book of 1936.

The Good Master was written after May Massee

May Massee

May Massee was a children's book editor. Massee became the head of Doubleday's first juvenile department in 1922. Upon leaving Doubleday, she started Viking Press's first juvenile department in 1932...

, an editor for Viking Press

Viking Press

Viking Press is an American publishing company owned by the Penguin Group, which has owned the company since 1975. It was founded in New York City on March 1, 1925, by Harold K. Guinzburg and George S. Oppenheim...

, suggested that the successful illustrator Kate Seredy should write a story about her childhood in Hungary

Hungary

Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...

. The bulky manuscript, written in longhand in a recently-learned language, was accepted and published immediately. It has been frequently republished and is often described as a classic.

Plot summary

Kate and Jancsi go on to share many exciting adventures on his father's ranch in Hungary—riding the horses, going to a Country Fair, celebrating Easter and Christmas.

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

The Singing Tree

The Singing Tree is a children's novel by Kate Seredy, the sequel to The Good Master. Set on a farm in Hungary during World War I, it continues the story of Kate and Jancsi four years after the end of the first book. As well as running the farm while the menfolk are away at war, they have...

, 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

Newbery Medal

The John Newbery Medal is a literary award given by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association . The award is given to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children. The award has been given since 1922. ...

 in 1936 and was subsequently awarded the Newbery Honor. It was a Junior Literary Guild

Junior Literary Guild

The Junior Literary Guild was the name of a commercial book club devoted to juvenile literature that has become the contemporary Junior Library Guild. It was created in 1929 as one of the enterprises of the Literary Guild, which was an adult book club created in 1927 by Samuel W. Craig and Harold...

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 readers. It appears among the Top 100 books of the twentieth century for younger readers chosen by the State Library of Tasmania.