Today’s selection is a non-fiction book that splits between the present day and the Holocaust, between well-equipped spelunkers and three desperate Jewish families. What they share between them, across time and circumstance, is a secret cave in the Ukraine. Mindy from Propernoun takes us there in her gripping review of The Secret of Priest’s Grotto: A Holocaust Survival Story: The …

Many of us old timers in the blogging world remember when it was just Tasha Saecker and … well, it was just Tasha Saecker. Back in the early days of ’03, her Kids Lit blog was pretty much the only one of its kind. She’s said if she knew what crazy names we’d all be giving our online journals, she’d …

Hey, wanna have a cuppa joe with Andrea and Mark over at Just One More Book? That’s what it feels like when you listen in on their podcasts; you can even make out the cappuccino maker sputtering in the background as they sit in their favorite cafe and gab about kids’ books. They both loved Mama’s Saris, about a young …

If I post at Bildungsroman about a series, you can bet you’ll read the phrase, "Read the books in order," followed by a list of titles. Louisiana’s Song by Kerry Madden is the second book in a trilogy about a big family growing up in North Carolina. Unlike many middle books in trilogies, this book can stand on its own …

Former teacher, radio DJ, theatre manager, and general jack-of-all-trades David Elzey (maybe that should be "David-of-all-trades") describes his blog, the excelsior file, as "children’s literature, reviews, thoughts, commentary, and whatever else fits the bill." His blog is definitely eclectic. You’ll find contributions to Poetry Friday, comments on picture books, interviews, and sneak peeks at graphic novels, such as his recent …

Have you met Pam Coughlin, better known as MotherReader? If not, you’re missing one of the funniest, most over-the-top writers in the kidlit blogging world. A librarian and Mommy from Virginia, her annual 48-hour book challenge keeps scores of bloggers bleary-eyed while reading and reviewing — and then reading each others’ reviews. In September, she asks everyone for their favorite …

Alas, Tricia from The Miss Rumphius Effect didn’t win a Weblog award (see this post here) but we’re still awed she was a finalist. She recently reviewed a science book that’s, well, elementary, but she also gives us some personal glimpses into why it’s more than just another book to her: My friends call me a closet nerd. Well, let …

If you can think of a more aptly named book blog than Bookshelves of Doom, let us know. We’re highly jealous. Leila Roy’s an "Uber-librarian" from Kennebunk, Maine, who de-bunks the book-burning censors. Okay, those who challenge or ban library books aren’t really burning them — yet — no doubt because Leila’s on their case. She also does splendid book …

Known for some killer Poetry Friday posts over at her blog, Writing and Ruminating, Kelly Fineman is a children’s writer and poet, as well as a Nerdfighter Extraordinaire, as she was recently dubbed by John Green. In addition to interviewing authors and posting a whole array of info and resources about poetry, Kelly also reviews children’s books, from the classic …

Little Willow joins us again for another review: I review a variety of books at my blog, Bildungsroman. Most are young adult fiction, some are for children, some are for adults, but one thing they all have in common is strength of character. Reaching for Sun by Tracie Vaughn Zimmer definitely has a strong protagonist – a young girl who …