Kidlit bloggers from the good old days of, well, a couple of years ago, will remember when our own Betsy Bird hit it big on the blog scene. She moved on up to School Library Journal with A Fuse #8 Production, ensuring that new scores of readers would be treated not only to beloved recurring features such as Video Sunday …
Elections and Kids — Open Thread
Whether we elect the first African-American president or the first female vice president, today's a rather historic day, wouldn't you say? So let's take a break from Cybils judging and gab a bit about America's big day at the polls. What'd you tell your kids about it? In my household, my son told ME — in no uncertain terms. He …
Meet the Panelists: YA Fiction Roundtable, Part II
If you joined us last Thursday for Part I of our YA Fiction panelist roundtable, you're no doubt eager to hear what else the nominating panelists have to say (and probably wishing you could be a fly on the wall for their discussions of nominated titles!). YA Fiction category organizer Jackie Parker (Interactive Reader) chimes in with three more revealing …
A Note to the Nominees
Congratulations to the publishers, authors, and illustrators of all the nominated books! We're doing our best to notify the publishers of all nominated books, but in some cases we are unable to find contact information, or our contact information is invalid. If you are a publisher, and would like to provide review copies but you haven't heard from us, please …
REVIEW
A La Carte by Tanita S. Davis
Since 2006, Becky Laney has been blogging about middle grade and young adult books at Becky's Book Reviews, which has become a fixture of the kidlitosphere. A prolific blogger, Becky also has a blog devoted to books for the nine-and-under set, Young Readers, and Becky's Challenges, where she hosts a plethora of fabulous reading challenges ranging from books about food …
REVIEW
America at War: Poems Selected by Lee Bennett Hopkins
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 …