#CybilsAwards Backlist Book List: Middle-Grade Fiction Reads

diverse fiction tweens teens

Is there anything better than relaxing in your favorite reading spot, lost in a book? Exactly! If you follow us on Twitter, you know that we often tweet about books that are soon or just newly released. BUT! Before you put the hold on that shiny new book – and wait your turn in line! – why not enjoy some …

Nominations Notes and Wish Lists!

Public nominations are still open through October 15th–thanks to everyone who has nominated so far!! If you haven’t nominated books yet and are having trouble thinking of something that hasn’t already been nominated, then here are a few nominations wish lists of worthy titles collected by our organizers and panelists: MG/YA Nonfiction titles, from Round 1 panelist Kelly Jensen at …

List Fun: Ghost Stories for All Ages

Whether or not you believe in ghosts, stories that feature these ethereal characters are a creepy delight for readers of all ages. These ten books, selected from past Cybils nominees/finalists/winners, highlight the best tales about ghosts. Some of the ghosts are friends, others are foes; some stories are pretty funny while others are downright terrifying. There’s something for every reader! …

List Fun: Math-Related Picture Books

Curated from past Cybils nominees and finalists, these ten picture books introduce a wide range of math-related concepts: from basic counting to using numbers to solve real-life problems. –Amy Johnson, Sunlit Pages Animal 123 by Britta Teckentrup (2012 Fiction Picture Books Nominee)Britta Teckentrup’s beautifully textured illustrations are a perfect introduction to numbers and the concept of adding one more. Using …

List Fun: Favorite Series for Beginning Readers

Some series are so beloved they are recognized by Cybils in some form every single year! Every eligible book published to date in the series listed below has been nominated for Cybils in the Easy Readers/Early Chapter Books category. –Katie Fitzgerald, Story Time SecretsEasy Readers/Early Chapter Books category organizer Bink and Gollie by Kate DiCamillo and Alison McGhee This series …

List Fun: 10 Cybils Finalists/Winners that Also Received ALA Awards

I happen to love awards. All the awards. I like following the hype and buzz and then seeing if my favorite (or one I’ve at least seen or read) wins. So, I suppose, it’s no surprise that one of my favorite things to do every year is compare the Cybils outcome and see how they fared against the “big” awards, …

List Fun: Listening to the Cybils

School is almost out – time to make your summer reading lists. Whether you have a preference for audio books or you want to see what all the fuss is about I’ve got you covered! When I was a round one judge for the 2013 Cybils I was thankful that audio books were an acceptable way to “read” the nominees, …

List Fun: Easy Readers for Toddlers

  Contrary to popular belief, easy readers are not just for emerging readers. Easy readers are a great source of fun characters, simple storylines and engaging illustrations for toddlers as well. Many early level easy reader books feature the same enlarged font and simple sentence structures as picture books. The difference with easy readers is that most follow a slightly …

List Fun: YA Graphic Novels with Diverse Characters

My very first time as a Cybils judge was in 2006, as a part of the Graphic Novels round 1 panel. I’ve participated every year since then (not always in Graphic Novels, but often), and one of my favorite aspects of Cybils judging is having the opportunity to read such an immense variety of books with intriguing, diverse characters and …

List Fun: Cybils Books with Latino Flair

I’m very passionate about diversity in YA and children’s literature. As a former bilingual teacher, I found a huge discrepancy on what was out there during the 1990s/2000s especially stories with Latin@ protagonists. This was the driving force behind me writing Earrings of Ixtumea which has a Latina protagonist being thrust into a parallel world where she has to confront the …