I'm sorry this snuck by me, but I just noticed it yesterday.  Erica Perl, who'll be judging in Fiction Picture Books, has a post up at Slate.com from Friday.  She takes on the naysayers picking on the Newbery Medal, defending its lofty, if sometimes quirky, choices.  Cybils was founded in part to get away from the idea that a great …

Our purpose is two-fold: Reward the children’s and young adult authors (and illustrators, let’s not forget them) whose books combine the highest literary merit and “kid appeal.” What’s that mean? If some la-di-dah awards can be compared to brussel sprouts, and other, more populist ones to gummy bears, we’re thinking more like organic chicken nuggets. We’re yummy and nutritious. Foster …

Three holiday cheers for our panelists, who're busily plowing through the 840+ nominated books on our 2008 list.  Sheila Ruth built a fabulous, behind-the-scenes database that shows 89% of the titles have gotten at least one read.  Since that number doesn't include the non-fiction picture book folks, it's probably closer to 100%, or just about.   I've promised publishers, authors and …

Hope everyone had a terrific Thanksgiving and you're happily getting ready for the holidays, whichever holiday(s) you happen to celebrate.  We hope you'll remember us here at Cybils when you do your shopping. Not that we need anything, of course.  But you can help Cybils get a small commission whenever you shop at Amazon and now at your favorite independent …

Coming soon to a fashionable blog near you … Tracy Grand at JacketFlap has once again provided a terrific widget for us all.  You'll see an example of it in the right sidebar (partway down).  If you want one, here's the linky-loo so you can create your own.  Pick genres and colors and the widget does the rest.  Gorgeous. I …

Whether we elect the first African-American president or the first female vice president, today's a rather historic day, wouldn't you say?  So let's take a break from Cybils judging and gab a bit about America's big day at the polls. What'd you tell your kids about it?  In my household, my son told ME — in no uncertain terms.  He …

Congratulations to the publishers, authors, and illustrators of all the nominated books! We're doing our best to notify the publishers of all nominated books, but in some cases we are unable to find contact information, or our contact information is invalid. If you are a publisher, and would like to provide review copies but you haven't heard from us, please …

A Bottle in the Gaza Sea written by Valerie Zenatti Bloomsbury USA A La Carte written by Tanita S. Davis Random House Children’s Books Absolute Brightness written by James Lecesne HarperCollins After Tupac and D Foster written by Jacqueline Woodson Putnam Alive and Well in Prague, New York written by Daphne Grab HarperCollins Amor and Summer Secrets written by Diana …

A Crossing of Zebras: Animal Packs in Poetry written by Marjorie Maddox illustrated by Philip Huber Boyds Mills Press Adventures of Isabel, The written by Ogden Nash illustrated by Bridget Taylor Jabberwocky/Sourcebooks America at War illustrated by Stephen Alcorn edited by Lee Bennett Hopkins Simon & Schuster Animal Poems of the Iguazu/Animalario del Iguazu written by Francisco X. Alarcon illustrated …

“Mrs. Riley Bought Five Itchy Aardvarks” and Other Painless Tricks for Memorizing Science Facts written by Brian P. Cleary illustrated by J. P. Sandy Millbrook Press A Boy Named Beckoning: The True Story of Dr. Carlos Montezuma, Native American Hero written and illustrated by Gina Capaldi Carolrhoda Books A Den is a Bed for Bear written and illustrated by Becky …