Happy November! Today’s featured nominee is from our relatively recent Board Books category, and it looks adorably funny. The book is Circle, Triangle, Elephant: A Book of Shapes and Surprises by Kenji Oikawa and Mayuko Takeuchi. The reviewer is Round 1 judge Tiffa Foster of The Picture Book Review–she’s a onetime university professor and current stay-at-home mom who enjoys sharing …
REVIEW: Lockwood & Co., Book Five: The Empty Grave
In honor of Halloween tomorrow, here’s a review of a spooky spec fic nominee for the Elementary/Middle Grade SF category. Lockwood & Co., Book Five: The Empty Grave, by Jonathan Stroud, is the latest installment in the series, and is sure to please fans of the Lockwood books. Our Middle Grade Fiction category chair, middle school librarian Karen Yingling, reviewed …
REVIEW: Chef Roy Choi and the Street Food Remix
Attention parents with foodies in the family: you might want to check out today’s nominee from the Elementary/Middle Grade Nonfiction category. Our blog review of the day looks at Chef Roy Choi and the Street Food Remix, written by Jacqueline Briggs Martin and June Jo Lee and illustrated by Man One. The book was reviewed over the summer by Round …
REVIEW: King & Kayla and the Case of the Secret Code
Welcome to our very first review of the Cybils 2017 blog season! We’re starting at the top of the category list with a nominee for Easy Readers: King & Kayla and the Case of the Secret Code, written by Dori Hillestad Butler and illustrated by Nancy Meyers. This mystery starring a dog and his girl is part of a series, …
REVIEW: Shadow Magic
This year’s winning title in the category of Elementary/Middle Grade Speculative Fiction is Shadow Magic by Joshua Khan, a tale of outlaws, sorcery, adventure…and a giant bat. Round 1 judge Brandy Painter reviewed this one back in the fall on her blog Random Musings of a Bibliophile: “The world Khan created for the book is incredibly interesting and the way …
REVIEW: Cityblock
Board Books was our other pilot category this year, in response to popular demand. The winning entry in the Board Books category was Cityblock (Alphablock) by Christopher Franceschelli and illustrated by Peskimo. It’s part of the same successful series as Dinoblock and Countablock. Round 1 Fiction Picture Books/Board Books judge Kate Unger reviewed this one as part of a big …
REVIEW: The Inquisitor’s Tale
We’ve got a review of one of our winning titles for you today: the inaugural winner in our brand-new Audiobooks category. The book is The Inquisitor’s Tale: Or, the Three Magical Children and Their Holy Dog by Adam Gidwitz, a funny and fantastical medieval adventure. Audiobooks Round 2 judge and Cybils blog co-editor Melissa Fox reviewed this one just last …
REVIEW: When the Moon Was Ours
Today we’re featuring a review of YA Speculative Fiction finalist title When the Moon Was Ours by Anna-Marie McLemore. The review comes from Original Content, the long-running blog of Round 2 Speculative Fiction judge Gail Gauthier: “When the Moon Was Ours is elegantly written with lush language that’s carried through the whole work. In addition to being a Cybils finalist, …
REVIEWS: YA Graphic Novel Shortlist
Sometimes a roundup is good fun, and today we’re featuring a roundup of the YA Graphic Novels shortlist from Round 2 judge Kimberly Francisco. She put up nice, concise reviews of the YA shortlists on the blog Stacked, including this observation of finalist title Dare to Disappoint by Ozge Samanci: “Samanci’s graphic memoir tells of her childhood in Turkey in …
REVIEW: When Green Becomes Tomatoes
It’s Friday, so of course it’s time for poetry! The Poetry category brings us our featured finalist review today: When Green Becomes Tomatoes: Poems for All Seasons by Julie Fogliano and illustrated by Julie Morstad. Round 1 judge Sondra Eklund, who blogs at Sonderbooks, reviewed this title last year and wrote: “Here’s a lovely book that goes through the seasons …