Though today’s featured review is a nominee from the YA Nonfiction category, our spotlighted blogger is none other than Karen Yingling, category organizer for Middle Grade Fiction. Her blog, Ms. Yingling Reads, highlights great books for middle schoolers, especially boys. Karen is a middle school librarian as well as a reviewer for School Library Journal and YA Books Central, so …
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 …
REVIEW: All the Bright Places
Jenn Hubb, who blogs at Lost in a Great Book, is a self-described proud geek, lifelong book lover, and teacher-librarian in Ontario, Canada, as well as a Round 1 judge for YA Fiction this year. Earlier in the year she reviewed YA Fiction nominee All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven, which has been ambitiously described as “The Fault in …
REVIEW: Paper Hearts
Clementine Bojangles, aka Madeline Rudawski, is a Cybils returnee and Round 1 judge this year for YA Fiction, but on her blog Hey, Library Girl! she reviews a wide variety of books for young readers, and she writes about movies and pop culture, too. Last month she reviewed Paper Hearts by Meg Wiviott, a novel in verse that tells the …
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 …
REVIEW: Blackbird Fly
Our featured review for today comes from the blog Tween You & Me, and Middle Grade Fiction Round 1 judge Pamela Groseclose. She’s a Youth Services Associate for a library in Missouri, and she’s got the library in her veins: her parents met in a library and went on their first date shortly after they were kicked out for being …
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 …
REVIEW: Manga Classics: The Scarlet Letter
Today we’re featuring a review by Round 1 Graphic Novels judge Nicola Mansfield, who keeps her primary blog at Back to Books but also writes about comics and graphic novels on It’s All Comic to Me. She also hosts the blog Graphic Novels Challenge. Earlier this fall, she brought her expertise to bear on teen GN nominee Manga Classics: The …
REVIEW: Blue on Blue
Today’s featured review comes from Round 1 Fiction Picture Books judge Sandy Brehl, who blogs at Unpacking the POWER of Picture Books. She’s an Education Outreach presenter and writer, so her blog has a number of well-thought-out book lists on topics like Math Picture Books and Graphic Novels. She also posts reviews to Goodreads, and that’s where she reviewed today’s …
REVIEW: Dayshaun’s Gift
Charlotte Taylor is one of our indispensable category organizers at the Cybils–she’s in charge of Elementary and Middle Grade Speculative Fiction, as well as being one of the Round 1 judges this year. Her blog, Charlotte’s Library, is devoted primarily to reviews of sci-fi and fantasy for children and teens, and on Timeslip Tuesdays she specifically looks at time travel …