Lori Calabrese is not only a Round II judge for the Fiction Picture Books category, she's an author in her own right–of Oh! The Possibilities and the forthcoming The Bug that Plagued the Entire Third Grade. On her blog, she posts about children's books, writing, literacy, and more from the perspective of an author, mother, and–of course–a reader.
One of Lori's reviews was of Cybils FPB finalist The Curious Garden, written and illustrated by Peter Brown, who also wrote Flight of the Dodo and Chowder. It's inspired by the true story of a community park created on the site of an out-of-use elevated freight train track in Manhattan. Lori said in her post:
This whimsical tale encourages young readers that a greener world is possible–one garden at a time. It sends a wonderful message that even though something might seem "useless", if it’s tended to and cared for, it can bring new life to an entire community.
Click here for the full review.