Cybils

REVIEW The Monarch's Progress: Poems with Wings

Elaine Magliaro, a former elementary school teacher and school librarian, is one of the Cybils Poetry panelists this year. She herself writes poetry for children--as well as blogging about children's books and poetry at Wild Rose Reader. You might also know her as one of the fabulous and inspiring Blue Rose Girls.

Elaine is also a regular contributor to Nonfiction Monday, and during one installment, she reviewed Cybils nominee The Monarch's Progress: Poems with Wings, written and illustrated by Avis Harley. This collection of butterfly-related poems is not just chock-full of scientific information; it also takes a beautiful look at a variety of poetry forms, including cinquains, sonnets, haiku, and limericks.

The Monarch’s Progress is an excellent poetry book to use across the curriculum in science and writing. It’s a neat literary package in which information about butterflies is conveyed through poetry, prose, and pictures.

Click here for the full review and recommendations for other butterfly books.

REVIEW You Know Where to Find Me

If you're looking for reviews of teen books and teen books only; if you're looking for news about the YA lit world, links to other kids' book sites, or guest posts from YA authors like Paula Yoo, Melissa Walker, and more--well, look no further than Teen Book Review, the blog of YA Fiction panelist Jocelyn Pearce.

Earlier this year, Jocelyn reviewed a title from the well-known co-author of Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist, which was the 2006 Cybils YA Fiction winner. Rachel Cohn's latest novel, You Know Where to Find Me, has a very different tone and style from her previous work, but is nonetheless sure to appeal to fans of her other novels. After the main character, Miles, loses her cousin and good friend Laura to suicide, her life spirals out of control:

Miles isn't really as alone as she thinks, though. She's got her best friend, Jamal, and his family, Laura's father, Jim, her often-absent father, Buddy, and maybe even an old friend of Laura's. She’s got lots of people to count on, if only she can realize it.

Click here for the full review.

REVIEW The Road to Oz

Readerbuzz is the blog of Debbie Nance, who is a primary school librarian and mom, but also a panelist for this year's Non-Fiction Picture Books category. She posts excellent booklists in the form of the Sunday Salon, puts together interesting themed reading challenges at her other blog, and has a great link list. She's also known for her succinct and fast-paced book roundups, which she's been regularly posting during the Cybils reading period.

One of her recent roundups included a review of The Road To Oz: Twists, Turns, Bumps, and Triumphs in the Life of L. Frank Baum, written by Kathleen Krull and illustrated by Kevin Hawkes. Krull, a well-known author of biographies for younger readers, tells the story of how L. Frank Baum grew from an imaginative boy into the author of the well-loved children's books about Oz. According to Debbie:

Krull presents a picture of a boy lost in his imagination who grows into a man who never really wants to leave the world he loved as a boy.

Read the full review here, along with brief reviews of several other Cybils NFPB nominees.

A Cybilian defends the Newbery Medal

I'm sorry this snuck by me, but I just noticed it yesterday.  Erica Perl, who'll be judging in Fiction Picture Books, has a post up at Slate.com from Friday.  She takes on the naysayers picking on the Newbery Medal, defending its lofty, if sometimes quirky, choices. 

Cybils was founded in part to get away from the idea that a great book had to be off-putting to kids.  We've put forward the rather daring notion that a book can be both literary and fun.  Erica's take is a fresh and lively addition to the dialog. 

--Anne Levy, editor

REVIEW A Thousand Never Evers by Shana Burg

Melissa at Book Nut describes her blog as "[t]he assorted book reviews (and other mostly book-related things) of a Stay-Home Mom with Four Daughters who has an Avid Love of Reading but is cursed with a Bad Memory." Her reviews are down-to-earth and intelligent with an honest personal angle, and she also poses reading challenges, like the upcoming Well-Seasoned Reader Challenge.

Recently, Melissa reviewed Cybils Middle Grade Nominee A Thousand Never Evers by Shana Burg. Melissa's own experiences living in Mississippi for a year gave her reading of the book additional depth--it's the story of seventh-grader Addie Ann, whose Uncle Bump is blamed for the mysterious destruction of a public garden in 1963 Kuckachoo, Mississippi. However, Melissa says, this is more than just the story of one girl:

[T]his book isn't that easy to sum up in one paragraph: there's an awful lot going on. A lot of it centers on the basic conflict between white and black: in employment, in housing, in voter registration, in the administration of justice.

Click here to read the full review.

REVIEW Goose and Duck by Jean Craighead George

You may know her as Andi or you may know her as Cloudscome, but either way you'll arrive at A Wrung Sponge, where you'll find a multitude of blog posts about multicultural children's books, poetry, gardening, knitting--and, best of all, original poems and photographs. (Yes, Cloudscome is a regular at Poetry Friday!)

Earlier this month, she reviewed the Easy Reader nominee Goose and Duck by Jean Craighead George, author of the now-classic My Side of the Mountain and Julie of the Wolves. This admirably prolific author is still at it, this time in conjunction with illustrator Priscilla Lamont. When a young boy finds a goose egg and lets it hatch, at first he's a bit surprised to find that the goose imprints on him--it thinks he's Mom. But the real silliness starts when they find a duck egg--and the duck decides the goose is its mother:

George does a masterful job of making a really complex and fascinating tale in simple, straightforward language that beginning readers can grasp.

Read more about it in the full review.

REVIEW How to Ditch Your Fairy

Tirzah Price, also known as The Compulsive Reader, is one of our panelists this year for Fantasy and Science Fiction--a daunting but rewarding quest indeed! At her blog, she reviews YA books of all genres, as well as posting book news, hosting contests, and featuring favorite books.

Recently, she reviewed the latest novel by Justine Larbalestier, author of the Magic or Madness Trilogy: a stand-alone book called How to Ditch Your Fairy. Imagine living in a world where everybody had their own personal fairy, each with its own special brand of luck--you could have a good hair fairy, a loose-change-finding fairy...or you could be like Charlotte, aka Charlie, and have the lamest fairy ever: a parking fairy. Sure, everyone else wants to have you in their car, but when you're only fourteen, who really needs a parking spot? Enter the fairy-ditching plan.

Charlie is a spunky, fun, and hilarious character whose frustration is palpable and whose many wild (and occasionally death-defying) escapades, along with her frank narration, will have readers roaring in laughter.

Click here for the full review.

A big, fat shout-out with pom-poms and megaphones to our panelists

Three holiday cheers for our panelists, who're busily plowing through the 840+ nominated books on our 2008 list.  Sheila Ruth built a fabulous, behind-the-scenes database that shows 89% of the titles have gotten at least one read.  Since that number doesn't include the non-fiction picture book folks, it's probably closer to 100%, or just about.  

I've promised publishers, authors and the book-reading universe in years past that every nominee would get a read.  I'd cross my fingers and hold my breath that it would actually happen.  Now I have proof!

Even more remarkable, more than 80% have gotten at least two reads.  All I can say is THANKS, in all-caps.

Some of you are keeping track on your blogs.  Check out Becky's Book Blog and her impressive list.  Note all the cross-offs.  It's even more impressive when you realize they're all YA books.  Is she made of awesome, or what?

Semicolon hopes she can get through all 80 titles on her list, while Readerbuzz has only five more to go.  Kim Baccellia reviews two nominees and Elaine at Blue Rose Girls has some reviews up for a recent Poetry Friday. 

Prize for the ultimate themed list goes to Laini at Grow Wings for a look at fairy tale-themed Cybils nominees.   

Speaking of lists, we get some love from Random House, which posts about their four nominees. 

Have I said a big, fat thanks yet to our panelists?  Oh wait, I did.  Well, another couldn't hurt.  Thanks.  Seriously.

--Anne Levy, Editor

REVIEW Splat the Cat by Rob Scotton

Fiction Picture Books panelist Cheryl Rainfield is a writer of teen fiction and a collector of all sorts of useful resources about children's and YA books--links, author websites, themed booklists for picture books and teen books, and more. She shares her love of books on her blog, which also includes in-depth reviews.

One of her Cybils nominee reviews looked at Splat the Cat by Rob Scotton (known for his books about Russell the Sheep). It's Splat's first day of Cat School, and like many kids on that first day, he's a little nervous and isn't quite sure he wants to go. According to Cheryl:

Splat is a character kids will like and identify with; he’s scared of school and resists change in funny ways, he likes and feels protective of his pet mouse, and he questions things that others take for granted (why do we chase mice?).

Read the full review here.

REVIEW Magic Trixie by Jill Thompson

Paula Willey is "the pink-haired librarian who reads all the kid books." She's a children's/YA book enthusiast and mother of two who blogs at Pink Me, recommending titles for all ages from baby books to YA novels, and compiling booklists of extra-special good ones. She's also part of the nominations panel for the Graphic Novels category this year.

Paula posted a review this fall of Eisner Award-winner Jill Thompson's Magic Trixie, a graphic novel for children and middle-grade readers that was nominated for this year's Cybils. Halloween might be well behind us, but is there ever a bad time for a story about a young and fiesty pink-haired witch who's trying to cope with a baby sister? We don't think so. Says Paula:

Jill Thompson has drawn up a set of monsters, witches and ghosts that are hip and fabulous....but the real joy is in learning about spitfire Trixie and finding out what fresh visual fun is waiting on the next page.

Click here for the full review.