One of our favorite parts of the Cybils announcements is seeing all the excitement. We thought we’d share some of the tweets and posts we saw over the past couple of days. There was so much excitement, in fact, that one post can’t hold it all. Let us know if we missed yours! Unexpected award shortlisting is unexpected! And delightful! What a …
The 2015 Finalists
Given our colorful logo at the top of this page, I keep thinking it’s been ten years since Cybils rolled out its very first roster of finalists. It’s actually been nine – but this is our 10th contest, inclusive. My 8th grade Algebra I teacher, Mr. Cloutier, is somewhere shaking his head in my direction at my stubborn innumeracy. I’m …
Easy Reader/Early Chapter Books for the Holidays
Do you have a fledgling or newly independent reader in your family? Cybils has recognized many great easy readers and early chapter books that would make great holiday gifts for beginning readers. Check out some of my favorites below: Easy Readers The Penny series by Kevin Henkes Penny is a young mouse with loving parents and adorable baby …
Fiction Picture Books for the Holidays
There are so many wonderful reasons to gift books for the holidays. Picture book gifts come with a bonus: they are meant to be shared. Whether its a quiet story before bedtime or a raucous adventure with dinosaurs, the experience creates joy for everyone involved. This selection of Cybils finalists are sure to be read (and shared!) over and …
Young Adult Speculative Fiction for the Holidays
Growing up in my family, there were always books under the Christmas tree, and some of my most treasured gifts throughout my life have been books. I clearly remember the year I got a collection of Sherlock Holmes stories for Christmas. I believe I also received a bicycle that same year, and after appropriately admiring it, I ignored it as …
Non-Fiction for the Holidays
Gifting nonfiction is a little trickier than fiction, in my opinion. You can bestow the most amazing book on sharks ever written on your dearest niece, but if it turns out she’s into caterpillars and views sharks with disdain. Well…. However, never let it be said that I backed down from a reader’s advisory challenge and here are a few …
Cybils for the Holidays
Here at the Cybils, we are always in favor of giving books for the holidays. We believe that you can’t give anyone, but especially a kid, anything better. And so, in that spirit, our panel coordinators will, over the next few weeks, give out some of their suggestions (in each of their respective categories) as to the best Cybils books …
Indie Next Revisit & Rediscover and the Cybils
I was going through my feed reader the other day, and I noticed a press release from the American Bookseller’s Association announcing their new Revisit & Rediscover initiative, highlighting older (called backlist in the industry) titles. They describe it as this: Each quarter, the Kids’ Indie Next List will highlight three backlist titles each, plus bookseller blurbs, for picture book, middle …
Review: Mr. Pants: Trick or Feet!
Tomorrow’s Halloween, so you kind of knew today’s review would be Halloween-themed, right? The one that jumped out at us was Graphic Novels nominee Mr. Pants: Trick or Feet!, by Scott McCormick, reviewed by Gary, a first round Graphics judge who blogs at What’s Not Wrong?. He writes: Mr. Pants: Trick or Feet! is a wacky Halloween-themed adventure featuring the cockeyed cat Mr. …
REVIEW: Another Kind of Hurricane
The recent news about Hurricane Patricia has got me thinking about the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. Ten years out, there were several good books published about that event this year including Middle Grade Fiction nominee Another Kind of Hurricane by Tamara Ellis Smith. Our review comes from first round Middle Grade Fiction judge Debbie, who blogs as The Booksearch. She …