Tricia Stohr-Hunt wears many hats–she teaches in the Education Department at the University of Richmond in Richmond, VA; she is an advocate for integrating children's literature into the teaching of a wide variety of subjects; and she's an avid reader of books for young readers through middle grades. Tricia is a member of the Cybils nominating panel for Non-Fiction Picture …
Meet the Panelists: YA Fiction Roundtable, Part I
That's right, we're back with another revealing roundtable with our 2008 Cybils nominating panelists–this time we find out what makes the YA Fiction panelists tick. Since they've got a lot to tell you, we're dividing it up into two posts: one today and one on Tuesday. (Tune in to the blog tomorrow for another book review.) Props to YA Fiction …
REVIEW
Cinder Rabbit by Lynn Hazen
Terry Doherty, one of our panelists for the Easy Readers category, is the Executive Director of The Reading Tub, a volunteer-driven, non-profit organization dedicated to promoting reading and literacy, written by parents, professors, and children's literature enthusiasts. Her goal is help make great kids' books accessible and encourage reading, and her book reviews do just that. Over the summer, Terry …
Meet the Panelists: Fantasy/Sci-Fi Roundtable
If you had a chance to read the first installment of Meet the Panelists, you'll remember that this is your opportunity to get to know the various judges and nominating panelists just a bit better–a peek behind the scenes and into the minds of the decision-makers behind the Cybils process. Today, courtesy of Fantasy and Science Fiction category organizer Tasha …
REVIEW
The Year of the Rat by Grace Lin
On Sherry Early's Semicolon blog you'll find booklists, reviews, and a host of other resources on everything from picture books to homeschooling and everything in between. However, you might know Sherry best from her ongoing feature, the Saturday Reviews–a roundup of book reviews from around the kidlitosphere and beyond. Recently, Sherry–one of our nominating panelists for Middle Grade Fiction–reviewed Grace …
REVIEW
Bog Child
"I kept meaning to start a librarian blog," says YA nominating panelist Abby Johnson, of Abby (the) Librarian. "[A]nd then one day…I did. I started it as a way to join this great community of kid-lit loving librarians, teachers, authors, students, parents, etc." In addition to sharing information and insights about children’s library programs, she also posts book reviews that …
REVIEW
Cesar Takes a Break
Travis Jonker, who blogs at 100 Scope Notes, is one of this year’s panelists for Fiction Picture Books. An elementary school librarian for the past three years, he posts children’s literature news and reviews, including old favorites as well as great new books; brief interviews with authors called "5 Questions;" and links of interest to children’s literature fans. In his …
REVIEW
The Other Side of the Island by Allegra Goodman
Our Literacy Evangelist for the 2008 Cybils is well known around the kidlitosphere for her wonderfully comprehensive, informative, and intelligent blog about books for kids and young adults, Jen Robinson’s Book Page. Her book reviews are always thoughtful and thorough, and so we’re proud to kick off this year’s nominee reviews with her enthusiastic coverage of The Other Side of …
Meet the Panelists: MG Fiction Roundtable
One of the most innovative aspects of the Cybils–something that differentiates it from other children’s and YA book awards–is the fact that it’s a grassroots effort to find the best in kids’ books. Our nominations are drawn from the internet public, and our nominating and judging panelists comprise a broad cross-section of bloggers with a common interest in recognizing quality …
The Return of Cybils Linkage: Sharing the Love, Round 3
We are so grateful to everyone in the kidlitosphere, the literary and publishing worlds, and beyond for helping us publicize the Cybils and for getting the nominations flowing in. In the past couple of weeks, our Technorati ranking has jumped from 100 to 167–thanks to all of you! Loree Griffin Burns, 2006 Cybils panelist and 2007 Cybils finalist for her …