This past year has seen another excellent crop of wonderfully inventive speculative fiction books for kids! Along with the expected spells and space rockets and aliens, this is the category for books with talking animals, time-travel, ghosts, and paranormal abilities, and all the other books that might not have obvious magic on every page, and which are set here on …
Category Description: Elementary/Middle Grade Non-Fiction
Kids are curious about the world around them and nonfiction is the perfect way to introduce them to that amazing world. History? Biography? Art? Science? Math? Animals? Sports? It’s all here and more besides! We love text and illustrations or photographs that will wow kids and adults alike and topics so fascinating that kids will want to go digging for …
Category Description: Easy Reader/Early Chapter Books
The Easy Reader / Early Chapter Book category of the Cybils covers the whole spectrum of titles for early elementary kids who are learning to read, from the very basic books for emergent readers to longer, illustrated titles for kids who are not quite ready for novels. What we’re looking for in easy reader nominations are leveled readers with controlled …
Category Description: Fiction Picture Books
Colorful. Beautiful. Funny. Poignant. Amazing. Pick your word. These are the stories – with and without words – that can capture our hearts and mind, whether we are two or 92! Fiction Picture Books are a show and tell art form. They introduce young readers to their worlds, present and past; take us on fantastic journeys, real and imagined; offer …
Category Description: Board Books
Just say the phrase “board book” and you’re bound to hear an “awww” or a “that’s so cute!” It happens in my house all the time (even with the teenager)! We share these books with our youngest readers to be. These are our child’s first stories – at playtime, before nap, and as bedtime stories. Opening a board book to …
Meet the 2018 Organizers: William Polking, Young Adult Fiction
William’s path was set when he asked his third-grade teacher if he could move his desk by the window in order to continue reading during a power outage. A first-round panelist in this category consistently in the recent past, William teaches a ninth-grade reading class based entirely on student choice, a college composition class, a media literacy class, and a …
Meet the 2018 Organizers: Pam Margolis, Young Adult Speculative Fiction
Pam’s been an avid reader all of her life. In fact, she was probably in line for a book when they handed out map skills. Growing up she loved the classics but now that she’s a grown up she has learned to love all genres of books, especially books for kids and teens. Her passion is helping kids find books …
Meet the 2018 Organizers: Jennie Rothschild, Junior/Senior High Nonfiction
Jennie is returning to the CYBILS for the 8th time in her beloved Nonfiction category. She’s been a panelist and a judge and an organizer. A former youth services librarian and branch manager, she’s now a collection development librarian specializing in early literacy and readers advisory. On years when she hasn’t been doing CYBILS, she’s been on the YALSA Award …
Meet the 2018 Organizers: Bridget Wilson, Poetry
Bridget discovered children’s poetry while taking a children’s literature class in college. It was love at first read. As a youth services librarian, she loves sharing poetry with kids at her libraries. Bridget has served as a Round 1 Panelist for Poetry three times and as a Round 1 Panelist for Elementary/Middle Grade Nonfiction once. Bridget blogs intermittently at What …
Meet the 2018 Organizers: Alysa Stewart, Graphic Novels
Alysa Stewart accidentally forgot how to read for pleasure during college. After rediscovering the joy of children’s literature during a glorious Christmas break, she vowed to never again neglect her favorite hobby. (It must have been an Unbreakable Vow.) Alysa is the stay-at-home-librarian to her four young kids, and enjoys keeping a book blog called Everead. She has participated in …