Without really intending to, we’re shooting for the stars with today’s selection of featured reviews. From the literal making of stars to wishing upon a star to (kidlit) star power, we explore the concept in all its brilliance! Summaries excerpted from Goodreads. Click the cover to see full descriptions. EARLY CHAPTER BOOK The Mountain Bookie @ Goodreads – This book …
Monday Books | #CYBILS2023 Reviews 1.8.24
It’s time to get back to the books … the #CYBILS2023 books, that is. We’ve introduced the finalists for each of the categories. Truth is, they are a small portion of the books that readers nominated and believe are CYBILS worthy. So we’re going to keep going. If a reader nominated it and a (round 1) judge wrote a review, …
2023 CYBILS Judges: Books for New Readers Panels
Easy readers are designed for kids to build vocabulary (e.g., “sight words”) and practice their reading. They are leveled, with controlled vocabularies. They are commonly parts of series with reading-related titles, such as “Step into Reading” or “I Can Read” and they can usually be identified by their large type, simple sentence structure, and colorful illustrations on every page. Compared …
Backlist Book List: #STEM + #DiverseBooks For Young Creators
In 2019, Frankie Sparks and the Class Pet by Megan Frazer Blakemore won the Cybils Award in the Early Chapter Book. In selecting Frankie Sparks as a finalist, the panelists said: … This promising first book in a series will have children learning about animals, design thinking, and emotional intelligence while turning the pages to meet the new pet. …
REVIEW: Sofia Valdez and the Vanishing Vote
Today’s blogger review brings us back to the Early Chapter Books category, with a peek at finalist title Sofia Valdez and the Vanishing Vote by Andrea Beaty and illustrated by David Roberts: In this latest title in “The Questioneers” chapter book series, Sofia’s teacher announces that the class can vote on a pet for the class. The class narrows the …
REVIEW: Our Friend Hedgehog
Today’s featured review looks at Early Chapter Books nominee Our Friend Hedgehog: The Story of Us by Lauren Castillo: The animal characters are lovable, and each has his or her own distinct personality. We loved Owl and his penchant for defining vocabulary words. This story has the feel of a classic, with its cozy illustrations and animal friends teaching values. …
REVIEW: Mindy Kim and the Yummy Seaweed Business
Today’s featured panelist review is Early Chapter Books nominee Mindy Kim and the Yummy Seaweed Business, written by Lyla Lee and illustrated by Dung Ho: Through Mindy’s honest, endearing voice, humor, and a lot of heart, Lyla Lee expertly explores topics like grief, cultural identity, loneliness, friendship, and responsibility in age appropriate and fun ways. Click here to read the …
REVIEW: Owen and Eleanor Move In
Today we’re happy to present our first finalist review of the New Year! Our featured review is from Cybils organizer and judge Jennifer Wharton, who is on the Round 1 panel for Easy Readers and Early Chapter Books this year. On her blog Jean Little Library, she looked at Early Chapter books finalist Owen and Eleanor Move In (Owen and …
REVIEW: The Princess in Black and the Science Fair Scare
Our featured blog review for today looks at Early Chapter Books nominee The Princess in Black and the Science Fair Scare by Shannon Hale and Dean Hale and illustrated by the incomparable LeUyen Pham. The review was written just last week by Jennifer Miller, a Round 1 Cybils judge, scholar, and writer who blogs at Raise Them Righteous. About the …
Interview with Dori Hillestad Butler
You write a lot of mystery stories for emerging readers. What are the challenges in creating a satisfying mystery for that reading level? Creating a simple mystery isn’t really a challenge for me, but sometimes I struggle with word count. There’s a pattern to the King & Kayla books. Each one has five chapters. The first chapter sets up the …