Anne the Editor here. Cybils must’ve had a record number of books that defied easy categorizing this year. How many graphics were needed before a novel became a graphic novel? At what point does a dramatization of a true story cross over to fiction? But none stumped us more than a collection of 19 monologues and 2 dialogs set in …

Perhaps because of the release of the movie, we had not one, but TWO graphic novel retellings of Beowulf nominated for a Cybil Award this year: Beowulf: Monster Slayer by Paul D. Storrie and Ron Randall (Graphic Universe/Lerner Publishing) and Beowulf by Gareth Hinds (Candlewick Press). In her comparison review of the two titles, Mary Lee Hahn of A Year …

Camille blogs at Book Moot, answering the perennial question, "Where are the GOOD books?" Book Moot has been around since 2004, and is one of the most authoritative blogs in the Kidlitosphere. Camille writes about a little bit of everything, from classics that she has never read to her experiences in booktalking to her policy of asking kids for their …

Hi. Kelly, here. Director of the Cybils, editor of The Edge of the Forest, and blogger over at Big A little a. Sadly, I’m not on any panel this year. I chose instead to work behind the scenes and I miss the animated discussions of a nominating panel. Sigh. Still, I’ve been lucky enough to read many of the Cybils-nominated …

What can we say about Tadmack (Tanita S. Davis) that will do justice to her awesomeness? Let’s see…Her first novel is coming out soon. She’s wicked smart and shares her reviews and views with us over at Reading YA: Readers’ Rants and Finding Wonderland. (She co-blogs with the equally cool Sarah Stevenson, our Graphic Novels organizer.) And, according to insider …

Writer J.L. Bell is a true fan of fantasy, and not just L. Frank Baum. Though he’s the editor of Oziana, creative magazine of the International Wizard of Oz Club, he’s also an Assistant Regional Advisor in the Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators–and he’s a blogger to boot, taking part in this year’s judging panel for Graphic Novels. …

At Farm School, Becky writes about "family, books, food, classical home education, books, journeys, music, books, thoughts, movies, and books." She shares details of her family’s life on a farm in Canada, and her experiences in reading with and homeschooling her three elementary school-age children. Becky also writes well-researched posts about topics like adding poetry to your life, the importance …

Cheryl Rainfield, a member of the Fiction Picture Book nominating panel, is always looking for the good in children’s books. Cheryl keeps two sets of booklists on her site–one devoted to picture books and the other to Young Adult books–and one book blog.  She’s a reviewing machine! Recently she considered Cybils-nominated picture book Penguin, by Polly Dunbar, and here’s her …

Traci, who blogs at Fields of Gold, is one of the youngest bloggers working for the Cybils. At just fifteen years old, Traci likes acting, singing, dancing, and reading. Good thing she likes to read. She’s serving on the nominating panel for one of our biggest categories–Fantasy/Science Fiction.  Recently Traci read Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos, by R.L. LaFevers, …

K.T. Horning is a librarian and a children’s & young adult literature specialist. She blogs about LGBTQ books for kids and teens at Worth the Trip. She publishes detailed, thoughtful book reviews, and maintains links to external resources of particular interest to her target audience. K.T. is a member of the middle grade and young adult non-fiction nominating committe. In …