Happy Poetry month! In honor of our first-ever Novels in Verse award this year, I thought we’d highlight all the novels in verse that have been finalists over the past 10 years of the award. There are a lot of amazing books here; I hope you find a new one to read this month! Wave by Diana Farid, illustrated by …

I know it’s a little early to be thinking about gardens most places,but my tulips, daffodils, and hyacinths are coming up, meaning other flowers, fruits, and vegetables are not far behind. So, i thought, this close to the Spring Equinox, why not celebrate gardens and growing things? Enjoy! Hello, World! Garden Time by Jill McDonald Doubleday Books for Young Readers …

I realized, at some point last fall, that because of the way the Cybils falls, we miss commemorating Hispanic Heritage month, pretty much every year. I decided to make up for that, and celebrate some of our fantastic Latinx books, this month. It’s not a true “backlist” since I’m only pulling from books in the 2022 nominations. Hopefully, as time …

And for the last week of Black History Month, all the Young Adult books! There have been so many good books to celebrate this month; I hope you’ve found at least one new book to pick up and either enjoy on your own or share with a child in your life! African Town by Charles Waters and Irene Latham G.P. …

I honestly thought I could fit all the Black Experience books this year into two posts. but when I hit nearly 30 after just the middle-grade books, I realized it was going to be three posts! This is why this is showing up on a rare Monday, and the last of which will be next week, so it all fits …

Happy Black History Month! To celebrate, we’re collecting all the books about the Black experience from our finalists and nominations this year. There are a LOT of books, so we’re starting with the younger set: board books, fiction picture books, Elementary nonfiction, Easy Readers, Early Chapter books, and poetry collections. We’ll catch the rest in two weeks after our winners’ …

One of the things I noticed while going through the lists of nominations looking for mental health books last week, was there were a lot more books featuring characters who are differently abled then I expected. Then I remembered that “Disability Visibility” is a High School Nonfiction finalist, and this week’s list is born. Hopefully, every book I’ve chosen is …

One of the themes I’ve noticed in kids’ books this year has been more of a willingness to talk about mental health issues. I’m taking a broad definition here: I’ve seen books on anxiety and OCD and depression, but also ones about ADHD and emotional awareness. I’m glad that these issues are being written about in books for kids, and …

About mid-January, when I’ve recovered from the holidays and there’s nothing left but dark and cold in my part of the world, I start longing for the warmth and sunshine and ocean waves. What better way to get us there than through books that are exploring all things ocean? Good Eating: The Short Life of Krill by Matt Lilley, Illustrated …