We did a non-fiction heavy list last week, so I thought we’d give fantasy some love. I’ve noticed a huge number of princess and fairy tale books as I’ve gone through the lists, and thought they’d be fun to highlight! Besides, who doesn’t love a good fairy tale retelling or a princess story? Goldilocks and the Three Engineersby Sue …
#CybilsAwards Book Lists: Non-Traditional Sports
Everyone knows books about the “traditional” sports: basketball, baseball, football, and soccer. But what about the sports that aren’t as big a deal to the general public. They are important to those who participate in them, and they can serve as backdrops for some pretty amazing stories. Why We Flyby Kimberly Jones and Gilly SegalSourcebooks Fire “Why We Fly …
#CybilsAwards Book Lists: Snow!
It is snowing and cold today, as I put this together, and as I was scrolling through the lists of nominated books, I noticed a handful of snowy and wintery books. It seemed a good day to feature them! The Snow Dancerby Addie Boswell, illustrated by Mercè LópezTwo Lions “I loved this story of making your own way and …
#CybilsAwards Book lists: The Ones That Got Away
Every year, our round-one panelists read lots of books, debate, whittle down, and pick what they think — collectively — is the best, most kid-friendly books of the nominations. However, since it’s a collective decision, it means individual judges’ personal favorites are bound to not make it to the finalist list. It’s just the way a collective decision goes. However, …
2021 Finalists: Young Adult Fiction
A Cuban Girl’s Guide to Tea and Tomorrow by Namey, Laura Taylor Atheneum Books for Young Readers Nominated by: Jen at Introverted Reader Lila Reyes always knew she’d become head baker at her family’s panadería, but then the Trifecta happened. The woman who taught her everything about cooking—her abuela—dies, her best friend upends their plans to move in together, …
2021 Finalists: Board Books and Fiction Picture books
Board Books Animals Go Vroom! by Cushman, Abi Viking Books for Young Readers Nominated by: Isabella K. Following in the footsteps of Richard Scarry, in ANIMALS GO VROOM!, Cushman illustrates a world in which animals drive cars, ride bikes, and navigate cities, all in their own unique animalistic ways. Cut-outs on solid-color pages provide a teaser for the following …
2021 Finalists: Young Adult Speculative Fiction
Bad Witch Burning by Lewis, Jessica Delacorte Press Books for Young Readers Nominated by: Kim Baccellia An entrancing story of magic and the danger it can bring. Katrell’s can’t make enough to support her mom by talking to the dead to pay the bills she turns to raising the dead. The unforeseen side effects of this decision change her life. …
The 2021 Cybils Finalists!
We get to this point every year, where we’re revealing the finalists, and every year we say the same thing: we are supremely grateful for our volunteers who read tons and tons of books over the past two and a half months. It sounds trite, but we really do mean it! Without the people reading and logging and discussing and …
2021 Finalists: Elementary and Middle Grade Speculative Fiction
by Ireland, Justina Balzer + Bray Nominated by: Darshana Khiani After a white mob kills her father and burns their home, Ophie and her mother leave the Jim Crow south of the 1920s for Pittsburgh and both find work at the huge home of a wealthy family. It is a house full of ghosts, and Ophie can see and communicate …
2021 Finalists: Elementary and Middle Grade Nonfiction
Elementary Nonfiction Bartali’s Bicycle: The True Story of Gino Bartali, Italy’s Secret Hero by Hoyt, Megan, illustrated by Bruno, Iacopo Quill Tree Books Nominated by: Julie Rowan-Zoch Gino Bartali won the Tour de France in 1938 and became an international hero, however he always insisted he was not a hero, simply a cyclist. However, in the years to come he …