Roller Skates is a book by Ruth Sawyer

Ruth Sawyer

Ruth Sawyer was the professional name of Ruth Sawyer Durand , an American children's writer.- Biography :She was raised in New York City with an affluent family...

 that won 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. ...

 for excellence in American children's literature

Children's literature

Children's literature is for readers and listeners up to about age twelve; it is often defined in four different ways: books written by children, books written for children, books chosen by children, or books chosen for children. It is often illustrated. The term is used in senses which sometimes...

 in 1937. It deals with the author's New York childhood.

Plot summary

The story takes place in New York City in the 1890s, during the year of 10-year-old Lucinda's "orphanage," as Lucinda calls the year in which her parents go to Italy, leaving her in the care of Miss Peters and Miss Nettie. This is a year of freedom for Lucinda, who explores the city on roller skates and makes friends wherever she goes. She reads Shakespeare with her uncle, puts on her own puppet

Puppet

A puppet is an inanimate object or representational figure animated or manipulated by an entertainer, who is called a puppeteer. It is used in puppetry, a play or a presentation that is a very ancient form of theatre....

 production of The Tempest

The Tempest

The Tempest is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1610–11, and thought by many critics to be the last play that Shakespeare wrote alone. It is set on a remote island, where Prospero, the exiled Duke of Milan, plots to restore his daughter Miranda to her rightful place,...

, creates a wonderful Christmas for a little girl from an impoverished family, helps a family protect their fruit stand from attacks by rowdy boys, and has picnics in a vacant lot, amongst other adventures.