We won’t keep you … there are a lot of fascinating, I-want-to-read-that books on the list. Including a novel in verse!! One thing we will also want to point out is that several reviewers recommended listening to the audio editions … and not just fiction! Summaries excerpted from Goodreads. Click the book cover to go to see more details. Middle-Grade …
#CYBILS2023 The Ones That Got Away: Middle-Grade Edition
Remember when we said our judges read more than 1,240 books for the 2023 CYBILS Awards? Well, more than 350 of those books were written for the middle-grade audience. As you might expect, there were some books that judges crossed their fingers and toes for in hopes *that book* making the finalist list – that weren’t on those lists. HOWEVER. …
The IN be-TWEEN | #CYBILS2023 Reviews 01.10.24
Wednesday. That day in the middle between weekends!! See where we’re going here? The perfect day to share books for tweens, aka the middle-grade audience. The weekly collection will include selections from the Middle-Grade Fiction, Middle-Grade Nonfiction, Elementary/Middle-Grade Graphic Novel, and Elementary/Middle-Grade Speculative Fiction, and Poetry categories. Book summaries from Goodreads. Click the book cover to view the full summary …
CYBILS 2023 Nonfiction Finalists
ELEMENTARY Glitter Everywhere!: Where it Came From, Where It’s Found & Where It’s GoingChris Barton, Chris, illustrated by Chaaya PrabhatCharlesbridgeNominated by: Gary Anderson Strong opinions about glitter are common, but whether you love it or hate it, this book is a fascinating look at the history and science of all things sparkly! Readers will learn what iridescence is, how it …
CYBILS 2023 Graphic Novel Finalists
ELEMENTARY/MIDDLE-GRADE A First Time for EverythingDan SantatFirst Second BooksNominated by: Maria Marshall In this humorous and heart-warming middle-grade graphic memoir, Dan Santat recounts the life-changing “firsts” of his middle school life: first time being ridiculed, first party, first school trip to Europe, first Fanta, and of course, first love. It is impossible not to get swept into Dan’s story, and …
CYBILS 2023 Speculative Fiction Finalists
ELEMENTARY/MIDDLE GRADE FINALISTS Conjure IslandEden RoyceWalden Pond PressNominated by: Amber Delphinia Baker is happy with her life, living with her grandmother and her dad who is deployed, moving often from military base to military base, but when her grandmother falls ill, Del finds herself in a place she never thought she’d be – at a magic school run by her …
SpecFic Saturday | #CYBILS2023 Book Reviews 12.30.2023
Alrighty friends and bookworms! We are here. The last collection of book reviews for 2023. We’re shifting gears and polishing up the finalist lists, which will be announced Monday, 1 January 2024 at 9:00 am Pacific Time | 12:00 pm Eastern Time. So let’s dive in! Summary excerpts come from Goodreads. Click the cover to add this book to your …
Nonfiction Tuesday | #CYBILS2023 Book Reviews 12.26.2023
Tell us. What do these three things have in common: extraterrestrials, a Jewish musician, and a conspirator to kill the President of the United States. You guessed it! Each of them is the subject of a 2023 CYBILS Awards nonfiction nominee! Debbie’s Song is a picture book biography for an elementary audience. Both Is There Anybody Out There? and Hanged! …
Middle-Grade Monday | #CYBILS2023 Book Reviews 12.25.2023
Thanks to the magic of scheduling, we can share reviews AND spend time with family and friends. That’s our kind of multi-tasking. Navigating tweendom is neither straightforward, predictable, nor easy. Yet the “process”of trying to figure out who you are is universal, whether it’s 1905 or 2023. In the historical fiction novel A Sky Full of Song, Soshana is a …
SpecFic Saturday | #CYBILS2023 Reviews 12.23.2023
What do the disappearance of a grandfather and vanishing letters have in common? They are at the heart of two captivating speculative fiction stories that take readers deep into page-turning stories of family ties, secrets, and the power of love. ELEMENTARY/MIDDLE-GRADE SPECULATIVE FICTION Mark @ Mark My Words – This book focuses on the haunted Finch House and the author …