Because graphic novels by their nature engage readers on multiple sensory levels. When a story is told through pictures, there is more on the page for readers to explore, and having “background music” can add to the reading experience exponentially. WHEN STARS ARE SCATTERED by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed illustrated by Victoria Jamieson and Iman Geddy Dial Books Finalist …
SONNY’S BRIDGE by Barry Wittenstein #CYBILS 📚🎶
SONNY’S BRIDGE:JAZZ LEGEND SONNY ROLLINS FINDS HIS GROOVE by Barry Wittensteinillustrated by Keith Mallett  Charlesbridge Publishing Finalist – Elementary/Middle-Grade Nonfiction2019 CYBILS Awards The Book Elementary/Middle-GradeBiography, Black History, Music, Nonfiction  Sonny’s Bridge is a tribute to the prolific jazz musician Sonny Rollins. Sonny was born in the vibrant times of jazz music. As a kid, Sonny played the saxophone and …
DEAR JUSTYCE by Nic Stone #CYBILS 📚🎶
Welcome to the inaugural CYBILS Awards Book Playlist. If you love listening to music as you read, these posts are for you! Each post pairs a curated Spotify playlist with one CYBILS Awards finalist or winner. If you have a playlist request, be sure to drop us a line at cybilsawards [at] gmail [dot] com. DEAR JUSTYCE: A NOVEL (Dear Martin …
New Feature: CYBILS Awards 📚🎶
We are excited to introduce our newest blog feature: Book Playlists! This idea has been on our drawing board for quite some time, and being able to start creating them is, well, music to our ears. Our goal is to publish a Book Playlist for a CYBILS Awards finalist or winner every 6-8 weeks. Each post will feature one book …
#BannedBookWeek Spotlight Post
We recently welcomed Riya Fernando to our Volunteer Team, and are so glad to have her on board. When she offered to create a book playlist for Banned Book Week built around THE HATE U GIVE by Angie Thomas (2017 YA Fiction Finalist), our answer was an emphatic “Absolutely!” Make sure to celebrate this week by reading your favorite books …
#CYBILS2022: An Invitation to Share
Dear Reader, First, thank you for all you do to connect young readers with books representing them and their worlds. Since you are here, you already know that celebrating and amplifying inclusive books for children and teens is near and dear to our hearts. With the 17th annual CYBILS Awards about to get underway, we want to ensure that our …
#Cybils2022 Idea Boards are here!
Last summer we launched the first-ever CYBILS Awards Idea Boards using padlet.com. Our goal: create a place where readers can share their favorite recent reads. Books they can’t stop talking about. Titles they want other readers to discover for themselves. Books they think might have some award-worthy potential. The Idea Boards turned out to be not just a place to …
What the #CybilsAwards Means to Me. Gary Anderson, In His Own Words
This post, written by Young Adult Fiction Chair, Gary Anderson, was first seen on What’s Not Wrong? Gary’s blog. We are reprinting with permission. Want to share why you love the Cybils Awards? Leave a comment on Gary’s post, here. The Cybils Awards, YA Lit, and Meby Gary Anderson If you pay attention to the world of literature for young …
Dear Author
Dear Author Friend, I’ve been sharing thoughts about serving as a CYBILS AWARDS Panelist volunteer in some recent letters to bloggers, librarians, and others who are deeply invested in quality books for young readers. I hope that some of those discussions are traveling among friends and colleagues in those groups. Thinking about those peer groups made me realize I was …
Dear Librarian
Dear Library Friend, I’m so was so excited to hear from you! When sharing thoughts about volunteering as a CYBILS AWARDS panelist with my Blogger Friend, I was hoping they might find their way to others. Library friends are the perfect target audience for these discussions since librarians are ALWAYS my best friends, my portal to the reading world that …