Cybils

The 2008 Nominations

The links below will take you to the full list of nominations in each genre.  If you don't see a book you suggested, it's likely on another list.  We did a little horse-swapping behind the scenes as some books didn't quite fit the category where they'd been nominated. 

Please consider using these lists for your holiday shopping.  Is it too early to make an appeal?  We could use the tiny commission we get off Amazon and other booksellers to buy a nice award for our 2008 winners.

--Anne Levy, Editor

The Categories:

Easy Readers
Fantasy & Science Fiction (Middle Grade)
Fantasy & Science Fiction (Young Adult)
Fiction Picture Books
Graphic Novels (Middle Grade)
Graphic Novels (Young Adult)
Middle Grade Novels
Non-Fiction Middle Grade/Young Adult Books
Non-Fiction Picture Books
Poetry
Young Adult Novels

What's missing?

I gotta tell ya.  The crazy way TypePad does comments now makes it harder to skim through them all to see what's already been nominated.  Complaints are pouring in about duplicate nominations, wasted nominations, etc.  We hear you!

Has anyone compiled a list of what terrific books are still missing from our nominations?  If you've posted a list on your blog, send me the link.  We'll start a "what's missing" meme.

I haven't nominated anything yet while I let everyone else get first pick.  I -- and doubtless many others -- would be happy to help nominate deserving books that might get overlooked.

Send us URLs.  Add it to the comments here or email me at anne (at) bookbuds (dot) net. I'll update this post as links come in. 

--Anne Levy, Editor

UPDATE:  As promised, here are links to lists.

SECOND UPDATE:  See additions to several categories, marked with *.

General
The Shady Glade has a few she's surprised aren't on the list. *Same with A Patchwork of Books.

Easy Readers
Many books still missing, says Cloudscome and Wizards Wireless.

Picture Books
*Mother Reader has a handful of omissions so far.

Non-fiction
Miss Rumphius has some suggestions for picture books, while The Well-Read Child mulls the mg/ya nominees still missing.  *Miss Rumphius comes back for more. 

Poetry
Cloudscome has her Poetry wish list, while Sylvia Vardell has a comprehensive overview of everything out there.

Science Fiction/Fantasy
Charlotte takes the opposite approach, listing what has been nominated.  Looks like panelists have their work cut out for them.

Young Adult
Becky has her list up for YA books and is crossing out those that get nominated. *And the Ya Ya Yas have a few too. 

 

Got Nomination Questions?

Please keep your questions to genre-bending books. 

Is it a graphic novel, or is it a picture book? Is it fantasy, or is it YA? Lots of titles cross genre boundaries, and it's part of the job of the Cybils organizers to help you figure out where a book belongs.

If you're not sure which category is most appropriate for a title you'd like to nominate, please post your nomination here in the comments. We'll discuss it amongst ourselves and make sure it gets to the right place--and we'll post a quick note here to let you know the outcome.

As mentioned before, you can nominate one title per person, per category. Please keep this in mind if you have a title you're not sure about. Now, nominate away!

Other questions?  Contact us at anne (at) bookbuds (dot) net.

--The Editors

2008 Nominations Young Adult Fiction

You'll find no dragons or magic, robots or vampires here. Just real people, in the real world, in real situations. In a good YA novel teens will find themselves and discover their world. A great YA novel will do both of those while respecting and appealing to its audience.

We are looking for a handful of the greatest teen novels of 2008. Historical, humorous, or contemporary, they must have literary merit AND a lasting effect on their readers; something teens will press into their friends' hands with fervor in their eyes and say, "You HAVE to read this book."

--Jackie Parker, organizer

Please leave a nomination -- including author and title -- in the comments below. One nomination per person, per category, please. Avoid duplicate nominations--it only takes ONE nomination to add a book to the list.

2008 Nominations Poetry

Poetry is what this category is all about. We're seeking the best poetry collection for kids or teens. Now, some of the poetry collections are fully illustrated and have the size, shape & appearance of picture books.

When deciding if something belongs here, ask yourself "Is this a collection of poems?"

• A picture book that is written in rhyme belongs over in the picture book section, not here.
• Poetry collections for older kids and teens belong here as well.
• A novel written in free verse belongs with all the other novels for the appropriate age range.

Poetry collections can be fiction or nonfiction; they can have a single author or be an anthology that includes the work of many poets. Collections need not be the work of a single author, but may be an anthology.  The poems can be in rhyme or not, and can be in any form, including no real form at all (which is to say, free verse is very welcome, as are shape poems).

--Kelly Fineman, organizer

Please leave a nomination -- including author and title -- in the comments below. One nomination per person, per category, please. Avoid duplicate nominations--it only takes ONE nomination to add a book to the list.

2008 Nominations Non-Fiction Picture Books

Kids are curious about absolutely anything, so that's what the books in the non-fiction picture book category will be about--absolutely anything!  As long as it's true and factual, of course. (it's gotta be "not fiction", after all!). Science, art, history, sports, current events--and more--are all fair game, from slice-of-life biographies and other true stories kids will read beginning-to-end, to list books and other compendiums of information that will delight the browsers in the crowd.

We're looking for fresh subjects or old favorites approached in a new way; writing that sizzles and sings; illustrations that make you say, "Wow."; and all of this between covers young readers (and those read to!) will want to open again and again.

Non-fiction picture books will be 48 pages or less and aimed at younger readers. Non-fiction books 48 pages or more, with longer, denser text divided into chapters, belong in the Middle Grade/Young Adult Nonfiction category.

--Fiona Bayrock, organizer

Please leave a nomination -- including author and title -- in the comments below. One nomination per person, per category, please.

2008 Nominations Middle Grade Fiction

The middle grade years are those with the most potential to turn a child into a reader for life. It's often the books you read between the ages of 8-12 that you remember long into adulthood as your dearest books of all. These are the years when kids really and truly start to figure themselves out as readers--their likes and dislikes and all the rest in between. It's during this time when children strike out on their own in earnest, reading for themselves and by themselves, all the while creating themselves.

In this Cybils category, we're looking for the 2008 novels that capture real life in all of its wonderful messiness. So we're not talking magic or superheroes or werewolves or elves. Instead, think adventures and school stories, mysteries and stories about families, and tales that tell kids of life across the globe. Tell us which of the Middle Grade fiction titles published this year you think kids will still be talking about when they're all grown up.

--Kerry Millar, organizer

Please leave a nomination -- including author and title -- in the comments below. One nomination per person, per category, please. Avoid duplicate nominations--it only takes ONE nomination to add a book to the list.

2008 Nominations Non-Fiction MG/YA Books

Facts First! Don't fall under the misconception that facts are boring. Facts can break boundaries. Facts can open eyes. Facts can inspire. Facts can do anything fiction can do. Maybe more. Not that we don't love fiction, but nonfiction has been a special focus of many bloggers in the kidlitosphere since the inception of Nonfiction Monday for good reason. We want to highlight the best of 2008 in informational books for kids and teens.--The Editors

We're also drawing the line between this category and the younger non-fiction titles by, well, looking at the drawings.  If the book's more than 48 pages, has more text and seems geared for somewhat older kids, you're probably right. Put it here.

--Mindy Rhiger and the editors

Please leave a nomination -- including author and title -- in the comments below. One nomination per person, per category, please.

2008 Nominations Graphic Novels

Pictures and stories; stories and pictures. While many of the Cybils categories explore one or the other, only the Graphic Novel category looks at the unique melding of words and images that is comics. Whether it's the daring deeds of superheroes or realistic stories of middle school life, sweeping fantasy tales or terrifying works of horror, graphic novels offer a way to read that engages all parts of the brain, electrifying the senses like no other print medium. We're looking forward to your nominations for the best of the best, those graphic novels that blend words and pictures into a seamless work that will capture readers and never let them go.

--Snow Wildsmith, organizer

Please leave a nomination -- including author and title -- in the comments below. One nomination per person, per category, please.

2008 Nominations Fiction Picture Books

A good picture book is a pleasing merger of text and artwork. A great picture book is a celebration of story and illustration, with lasting appeal for kids and/or adults. The best picture books completely excel in art, story, kid-friendliness, and adult appeal.

A Cybils-winning picture book adds that special "It Factor." In message, in world-view, in connection, in humor, in reach, a book with "It Factor" rises to a higher level. These are the picture books we bring home to show our seventh-grade daughter. These are the titles that we recommend repeatedly to everyone who will listen. These are the ones we buy even if we have no preschool children, and the ones we pull out to read again and again. And at the end of the Cybils judging, these are the books that we hope to share with you.

--Pam Coughlan, organizer

Please leave a nomination -- including author and title -- in the comments below. One nomination per person, per category, please. Avoid duplicate nominations--it only takes ONE nomination to add a book to the list.