Memorial Day weekend is our unofficial leap into summer each year. Memorial Day itself is bittersweet, as we remember those who have died in service to our country and also celebrate their memories as fathers, sons, brothers, mothers, sisters, daughters, and sisters. To mark the occasion this year, we went into the CYBILS Awards database to find books that share …
Backlist BookList: Indian and Pakistani Stories for AAPI Month
Usually, when we think about AAPI Heritage Month, we think East Asia – Japan, China, Korea – but India is part of Asia as well, and I have noticed an uptick in Indian and Pakistani stories over the past few years. Everything on this list is taken from the most recent cycle. I thought this month would be a good …
#CybilsAwards Backlist Book List: Dance and Movement!
Tiny Dancer by Siena Cherson Siegel, illustrated by Mark Siegel Atheneum Books for Young Readers 2022 Graphic Novels Nominee Pirates Don’t Dance by Shawna J. C. Tenney Sleeping Bear Press 2022 Fiction Picture Books Nominee World of Reading: Mother Bruce Ballet Bruce by Ryan Higgins Disney-Hyperion 2022 Easy Reader Finalist Merci Suárez Can’t Dance by Meg Medina Candlewick Press 2021 …
#CybilsAwards Backlist Book List: Novels in Verse
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 …
Backlist Book List: Gardens
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 …
Backlist Book List: Latinx Voices
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 …
#Cybils2022: The Black Experience, Part 3
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. …
#Cybils2022 Book Lists: The Black Experience, Part 2
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 …
#Cybils2022 Book Lists: The Black Experience, Part 1
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’ …
#Cybils2022 Book Lists: Being Differently Abled
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 …