Travis Jonker, Cybils veteran and elementary school librarian, knows his way around picture books. Of nominated fiction picture book Shh! We Have a Plan by Chris Haughton, Travis writes: Admission: I’ve edited books on the fly. In a school library setting, the clock is king, and I’ve had to trim a sentence or paragraph when running out of time with …
Review: El Deafo
Long-time Cybils volunteer and round one panelist Alysa Stewart at Everead has today’s review of the day. She reviewed Graphic Novel nominee El Deafo, by Cece Bell, with her son. Their final word? This is a landmark book. It feels very true-to-life, gives you all the feels, and helps you sympathize with the deaf and hard of hearing. Two thumbs …
Review: How I Became a Pirate
Today’s review comes from Cathy, a librarian in Maine. She usually blogs at the Nonfiction Detectives, but she frequently reviews book apps at the School Library Journal. Recently she reviewed Book App-nominated How I Became a Pirate. Cathy writes: Sound and animation have been added to this version of the story. A sea chantey plays in the background on opening the app—setting …
Review: Kinda Like Brothers
Mark, a sixth grade language arts teacher, first round Middle Grade Fiction panelist, and one of the few male presences around the Cybils blogs at the wonderfully alliterative Buxton’s Blog O’ Books. He recently reviewed Kinda Like Brothers, by Coe Booth, writing: Many books deal with stepfamilies, but foster children are kind of like temporary stepfamilies. Devon is treated like …
Review: Gabriel Finley and the Raven’s Riddle
New first round Middle Grade fiction panelist, Brenda, who blogs at Log Cabin Library. A speech pathologist by profession, she says has a weakness for middle grade fiction with pretty covers and fairy-tale retellings. She reviewed the Elementary/Middle Grade Speculative fiction nominee Gabriel Finely and the Raven’s Riddle by George Hagen, saying: Gabriel Finley and the Raven’s Riddle is also about being …
Review: Brown Girl Dreaming
Today’s review comes from Jennifer, an elementary school librarian and first time Fiction Picture Book judge, who blogs at Reederama. She reviewed Jacquline Woodson’s National Book Award shortlist-making book Brown Girl Dreaming. She writes: This is a story that is at once universal and unique. For this reader, born in the same year as Jacqueline Woodson and raised in the inner …
Featured Blogger: Amy at Hope Is the Word
Our first featured blogger is Amy at Hope Is The Word, who hosts the Armchair Cybils every year. She was nominated by Sherry at Semicolon who says: ” Amy reads and reviews lots of Cybils nominees and gives bloggers who are unable to be judges a chance to get in on the Cybils fun. Amy is a teacher and librarian turned …
Review: Colors of the Wind
Today’s review comes from Elementary/Middle Grade Non-Fiction round one panelist Reshama, at Stacking Books. I have to admit I featured this 1) because I met Reshama at KidlitCon last week and she’s delightful and 2) I met the author of this book at KidlitCon last week and she’s delightful as well. Of Colors of the Wind, Reshama writes: This is …
Nominations Now Closed
You blew it. You had your chance to nominate, and now it’s gone. You missed the boat, you’re out of time, past deadline, unpunctual, late. Done, finished, kaput. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news here, but nominations are now closed. Of course, if you nominated a book or few, we’re delighted. We collected more than 880 nominations altogether …
So You Need a Book to Nominate?
Your favorite book got nominated already, the nominations close TOMORROW, and you don’t know what to do? We’re here to help! A number of bloggers have complied lists of books that haven’t been nominated (yet), but deserve to be. Feel free to pick and choose from their lists! Nominations close tomorrow, October 15, so you do need to hurry. Theres …