REVIEW 16 Words: William Carlos Williams and “The Red Wheelbarrow”

Today’s review comes from first round Poetry judge, Anastasia Suen, whose blog features a kidlit book of the day, among other offerings! She recently interviewed Lisa Rogers, the author of Elementary/Middle Grade Non-fiction nominee 16 Words: William Carlos Williams and “The Red Wheelbarrow” (Amazon, Indiebound).  I thought this snippet was interesting:  Through a great deal of research and interviews with …

REVIEW: The Faithful Spy

Today’s featured review was posted on YA Books Central a few months ago by category organizer and Junior/Senior High Nonfiction judge Karen Yingling, a middle school librarian who also blogs at Ms. Yingling Reads. Ms. Yingling reviewed Senior High Nonfiction finalist The Faithful Spy: Dietrich Bonhoeffer and the Plot to Kill Hitler by John Hendrix: The Faithful Spy is very …

REVIEW: The True Tale of a Giantess

Today’s featured finalist review is from the Elementary Nonfiction category: The True Tale of a Giantess: The Story of Anna Swan written by Anne Renaud and illustrated by Marie Lafrance. The author of the review is Round 1 judge Ellen Zschunke, an elementary school librarian and Cybils returnee who blogs at On The Shelf 4 Kids. When she reviewed this …

REVIEW: The Grand Escape

Cybils veteran Karen Yingling of Ms. Yingling Reads is our featured blogger for today–besides being a middle school librarian and book reviewer for School Library Journal, she’s also been a category organizer for Cybils and is a Round 2 judge for Junior/Senior High Nonfiction. Recently, she reviewed Senior High Nonfiction finalist The Grand Escape: The Greatest Prison Breakout of the …

REVIEW: The Hyena Scientist

Our featured review for today looks at Middle Grade Nonfiction finalist The Hyena Scientist (Scientists in the Field Series) by Sy Montgomery and Nic Bishop. Nic Bishop’s books are definitely a perennial favorite around here, and in her review on the Growing With Science blog, Round 1 judge Roberta Gibson explains why this title ended up as a finalist: Rather …

REVIEW: March Forward, Girl

After a bit of a hiatus earlier this week, our featured blog reviews are back with Junior High Nonfiction nominee March Forward, Girl: From Young Warrior to Little Rock Nine, a memoir written by civil rights activist Melba Pattillo Beals and illustrated by Frank Morrison. One of our Round 1 judges, Rebecca G. Aguilar, reviewed this book on her blog, …

REVIEW: Eliza: The Story of Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton

Alexander Hamilton may have gotten all the buzz lately, but just wait until you read about his wife, Eliza. Elementary Nonfiction nominee Eliza: The Story of Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton by Margaret McNamara and illustrated by Esme Shapiro is today’s featured title, recently reviewed by Round 1 judge Jennifer Dieleman on her blog Picture Books 4 Learning: Margaret has written a …

REVIEW: Votes for Women!: American Suffragists and the Battle for the Ballot

Our featured blog review for today was written by Round 1 Junior/Senior High Nonfiction judge Heidi Grange, an elementary school librarian and longtime Cybils participant who blogs at Geo Librarian. With elections in the news this month, it seems appropriate to look at Senior High Nonfiction nominee Votes for Women!: American Suffragists and the Battle for the Ballot by Winifred …

REVIEW: Stories for Boys Who Dare to Be Different

Our fantastic Cybils publicity guru and Round 2 judge Terry Doherty wrote today’s featured blog review. Terry is the Executive Director (and, of course, a blogger) at The Reading Tub, an outstanding resource for children’s literacy, with tons of literacy info as well as reviews of books for kids of all ages. She reviewed Middle Grade Nonfiction nominee Stories for …