Our hardworking publisher liaison is Sheila Ruth, who not only spends oodles of time making sure Cybils judges get the review copies they need, but also devotes even more time to being the Fantasy and Science Fiction category chair. You probably know she blogs at Wands and Worlds, but you might NOT know that she also owns a small press …
REVIEW
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
Full disclosure: today's featured review comes courtesy of my co-blogger over at Finding Wonderland, YA author Tanita Davis. We've been co-writers and co-conspirators over there since (gasp) 2005, and she writes the most in-depth and carefully considered reviews of mainly YA titles, particularly those with a SFF and/or multicultural bent. She was a Round 1 judge this year for YA …
REVIEW
Water Sings Blue by Kate Coombs
TeacherDance is the blog of Round 2 poetry judge Linda Baie–a teacher, mother, grandmother, and literacy coach in Denver, Colorado. She's our featured reviewer of the day, and she blogs about–of course–poetry, frequently participating in Poetry Friday. Fun fact: she provides a helpful list of her favorite read-aloud titles. In the fall, she reviewed Cybils Poetry finalist Water Sings Blue …
Cybils Finalists Flyer Now Available
Yep, we’ve got a flyer for you already! This printable PDF has an overview of the Cybils contest on the front side and a list of every single finalist in every category on the back, so you can easily share our results so far with fellow readers, librarians, and so on. Of course, we’ll be sharing an updated version of …
REVIEW
Bomb: The Race to Build–and Steal–the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon by Steve Sheinkin
Today's featured review comes from Stephanie Charlefour, Round 1 judge for MG/YA Nonfiction. She blogs at Love.Life.Read about books for children, teens, and adults, but her favorite genre is YA contemporary/realistic fiction. She's a public librarian specializing in youth and teen books. Fun fact: she plans to participate in SIXTEEN reading challenges this year. Last month, she reviewed NFMGYA finalist …
The Ones that Got Away
Oh, we had so many wonderful Cybils submissions this year–and, like every year, there were plenty of books we loved that just didn't quite make the shortlists (or, as our SFF organizer Sheila put it, had to be "sacrificed to the gods of compromise"). Our volunteer judges often choose to honor their personal faves by giving them a shout-out on …
REVIEW
Nic Bishop Snakes by Nic Bishop
Deb Nance of Readerbuzz is a veteran of the Cybils and a Round 1 judge for Nonfiction Picture Books this year. She's a Texas librarian who's been blogging since 2008 about books she's loved–not just reviews, but also booklists, read-alikes, and more. Fun fact: She was first an NFPB panelist back in 2008! Last month, she reviewed Cybils NFPB finalist …
More Author/Illustrator Love
Did you see our fabulous list of finalists yet? Yes? Well, have you noticed all the love we've been getting from the honored (and honorable!) finalist authors and illustrators? We did one post about it already, and here are a few more lovely tweets we wanted to share: Stefan Bachmann (@Stefan_Bachmann), SFF finalist, says: Woah, so The Peculiar is shortlisted …
REVIEW
Wonder by R.J. Palacio
Cybils veteran Andi Sibley is our feature reviewer of the day. She's a Round 1 judge for Middle Grade Fiction and a blogger (since 2006!) over at A Wrung Sponge, where she reviews books, software, and electronic resources for children and young adults with a particular interest in multicultural and diverse books. Fun Fact: She's also a Poetry Friday regular, …
Triumphantly Tweeting Authors
In the wake of our announcement of the Cybils finalists a couple of days ago, a number of triumphant tweets have come to our attention. Frankly, we're tickled pink at the kind words that we've been getting from authors and illustrators. Here's just a small sampling: Mac Barnett (@macbarnett), FPB finalist, says: Oh, thank you—it was a a surprise and …