Youth Media Awards 2015

The ALA Youth Media Awards have been announced!

Here are some of the winners, and I've highlighted everything that I had a prediction about or was on my radar as a potential winner in red. Too bad I wasn't in a betting pool this year! I could have cleaned up.

Newbery

The Crossover - Kwame Alexander

Newbery Honor:

El Deafo - Cece Bell

Brown Girl Dreaming - Jacqueline Woodson

Caldecott:

The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend - Dan Santat

Caldecott Honor:

Nana in the City - Lauren Castillo

The Noisy Paint Box: The  Colors and Sounds of Kandinsky’s Abstract Art - Barb Rosenstock,  illustrated by Mary GrandPré

Sam & Dave Dig a Hole - Mac Barnett, illustrated by Jon Klassen

Viva Frida - Yuyi Morales

The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus - illustrated by Melissa Sweet, written by Jen Bryant

This One Summer - illustrated by Jillian Tamaki, written by Mariko Tamaki

Coretta Scott King (Author) Book Award:

Brown Girl Dreaming - Jacqueline Woodson

King Author Honor:

The Crossover - Kwame Alexander

How I Discovered Poetry - Marilyn Nelson, illustrated by Hadley Hooper

How It Went Down - Kekla Magoon

Coretta Scott King (Illustrator) Book Award:

Firebird - Misty Copeland, illustrated by Christopher Myers

King Illustrator Honor:

Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker - Patricia Hruby Powell, illustrated by Christian Robinson

Little Melba and Her Big Trombone - Katheryn Russell-Brown, illustrated by Frank Morrison

Printz:

I’ll Give You the Sun - Jandy Nelson

Printz Honor:

And We Stay - Jenny Hubbard

The Carnival at Bray - Jessie Ann Foley

Grasshopper Jungle - Andrew Smith

This One Summer - Mariko Tamaki, illustrated by Jillian Tamaki

Pura Belpré (Illustrator) Award:

Viva Frida - Yuyi Morales

Belpré Illustrator Honor:

Little Roja Riding Hood - Susan Middleton Elya, illustrated by Susan Guevara

Green Is a Chile Pepper - Roseanne Greenfield Thong, illustrated by John Parra

Separate Is Never Equal: Sylvia Mendez & Her Family’s Fight for Desegregation - Duncan Tonatiuh

Sibert:

The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus - Jen Bryant

Sibert Honor:

Brown Girl Dreaming - Jacqueline Woodson

The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, & the Fall of Imperial Russia - Candace Fleming

Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker - Patricia Hruby Powell, illustrated by Christian Robinson

Neighborhood Sharks: Hunting with the Great Whites of California’s Farallon Islands -  Katherine Roy

Separate Is Never Equal: Sylvia Mendez & Her Family’s Fight for Desegregation - Duncan Tonatiuh

Stonewall Award:

This Day in June - Gayle E. Pitman, Ph.D., illustrated by Kristyna Litten

Stonewall Honor:

Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out - Susan Kuklin.

I’ll Give You the Sun - Jandy Nelson

Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress - Christine Baldacchio, illustrated by Isabelle Malenfant

Newbery and Caldecott Picks for 2015

The Newbery and Caldecott awards are going to be announced soon - all of the American Library Association youth media awards, actually, including the Alex, Printz, Morris, Coretta Scott King and Pura Belpre, Batchelder and Seuss Geisel awards. (along with a few more that I'm sure I'm forgetting!) But, the Caldecott and Newbery awards are the ones that get people really excited. I've put together a list of predictions - things that have been getting a lot of buzz. We'll see in a few days, if any of these end up as winners, or if the awards will go to some dark horse from a small press that none of us have heard of.

Caldecott Predictions

Sam and Dave Dig a Hole - Mac Barnett & Jon Klassen

     I loved this book. Will it strike gold?

Brother Hugo and the Bear - Katy Beebe & S.D. Schindler

Flashlight - Lizi Boyd

The Right Word: Roget and his Thesaurus - Jennifer Fisher Bryant & Michelle Sweet

     Super educational. Teachers and librarians will be so happy if this one wins. I like Michelle Sweet's illustrations a lot, even if they don't feel "strange" enough to win.

Draw! - Raul Colon

Firebird - Misty Copeland & Christopher Myers

Gaston - Kelly DiPuccio & Christian Robinson

Some Bugs -Angela DiTerlizzi & Brendan Wenzel

The Farmer and the Clown - Marla Frazee.

     Lots of good buzz on this nearly wordless picture book. I can see this one winning. I'm a longtime Frazee fan.

Grandfather Gandhi - Arun Ghandi & Bethany Hegedus & Evan Turk

     How great would it be if this was a winner? I love to think of generations of school children enjoying this title.

Have You Heard the Nesting Bird? - Rita Gray & Kenard Pak

Extraordinary Jane - Hannah E. Harrison

Firefly July - Paul B. Janeckzo & Melissa Sweet

Winter is Coming - Tony Johnston & Jim La Marche

Have You Seen My Dragon? - Steve Light 

The Iridescence of Birds: A Book About Henri Matisse - Patricia MacLachlan & Hadley Hooper

     Another wonderful biographical picture book. I'm rooting for it.

Viva Frida - Yuyi Morales & Tim O'Meara

     Really distinctive.

Hi, Koo! - Jon J. Muth

     This book is such a charmer!

Baby Bear - Kadir Nelson

The Book with No Pictures - B.J. Novak

     I'm including this book, just to be ornery! I think it would cause such a stir to nominate this book for an award that goes to the best pictures.

The Noisy Paint Box: The Colors and Sounds of Kandinsky's Abstract Art - Barb Rosenstock & Mary GrandPre

     I think people will go wild, if the American illustrator for Harry Potter wins for this book.

Aviary Wonders, Inc.: Spring Catalog and Instruction Manual - Kate Samworth

     Such a strange and wonderful book. This could really be a winner.

The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Best Friend - Dan Santat

Henny - Elizabeth Rose Stanton

Bad Bye, Good Bye - Deborah Underwood & Jonathan Bean

Stella's Starliner - Rosemary Wells

Newbery Predictions

Crossover - Alexander Kwame

     I love narrative poetry.

The Madman of Piney Woods - Christopher Paul Curtis

     Lots of buzz for this one. Will multiple award winner Curtis snag the gold again?

Glass Sentence - S.E. Grove

     Fantasy doesn't usually stand a chance, but maybe this one will come up with an award.

The Secret Hum of a Daisy - Tracy Holczer

A Snicker of Magic - Natalie Lloyd

     This is the kind of thing that I'd love to see win. Magical and fun.

West of the Moon - Margi Preus

The Riverman - Aaron Starmer

Brown Girl Dreaming - Jacqueline Woodson

     Okay, you heard it here first. I think this book is going to sweep multiple categories. I'm hearing so many wonderful things about it.

Youth Media Awards 2013

Well, all the dust has settled, and the award winners announced. What do we think of the award winners this year?

The Newbery award went to The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate. I wasn't surprised by this pick! I'd heard a lot of positive buzz about it. There's a lot of excitement in Atlanta for this book, since the gorilla in the story spends part of his life at the Atlanta Zoo.

The Caldecott went to This Is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen. The only thing that surprised me about this one is that such a popular book was chosen! I think it's a lot of fun, and kind of off the beaten track.

I love all of the Caldecott honor books as well:
Creepy Carrots! illustrated by Peter Brown, written by Aaron Reynolds
Extra Yarn illustrated by Jon Klassen, written by Mac Barnett
Green by Laura Vaccaro Seeger
One Cool Friend illustrated by David Small, written by Toni Buzzeo
Sleep Like a Tiger illustrated by Pamela Zagarenski, written by Mary Logue was the only one that I hadn't heard of.

The Coretta Scott King Award went to Hand in Hand: Ten Black Men Who Changed America by Andrea Davis and Brian Pinkney. I really expected that Each Kindness by Jacqueline Woodson, illustrated by E. B. Lewis would win, but at least it got an honor.

The Printz Award for young adult fiction went to In Darkness by Nick Lake. All right, I'll just come out and say it. I feel like the Printz award is running away with itself. In Darkness seems like a dark horse. I certainly hadn't heard any buzz about it. It doesn't sound like the kind of book I'd normally pick up, but most reviewers had rated it highly, as a beautifully written, challenging work. I've heard a lot more positive things about Code Name Verity, one of the honor picks in this category.

I hadn't given much thought to the Schneider Award for books that address characters with disabilities until last year's debacle when the committee opted not to give any awards, stating they didn't feel there was anything worth recognizing that year. This year was totally different. Back to Front and Upside Down by Claire Alexander was the winner for the category for books for children under 10. It's a sweet little encouraging book about a student who may be dyslexic.

The Batchelder winner was My Family for the War by Anne C. Voorhoeve, translated by Tammi Reichel. I hadn't heard of this one, but it was translated from German, and I do think German books generally translate very successfully into English.

The Pura Belpré (Illustrator) Award went to Martín de Porres: The Rose in the Desert illustrated by David Diaz and written by Gary D. Schmidt. No surprise there. David Diaz is a real favorite of mine.

The Geisel Award is for the most distinguished beginning reader book. I'm sad to say, I hadn't heard of the winner, Up, Tall and High! by Ethan Long, but it sounds charming. Sometimes I think the award could be renamed, "The Mo Willems Award" since the man seems to sweep it nearly every year with his wonderful Elephant and Piggie series. Let’s Go for a Drive! did get an honor. I was very surprised that Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons by Eric Litwin, illustrated by James Dean won an honor. I look at that book and think, "picture book" or even, "great storytime pick" but I don't think "beginning reader" even though it technically qualifies with it's simple and repeating vocabulary and fun to sing-along-to rhymes.

I was thrilled that Seraphina by Rachel Hartman, won the William Morris Award for a first-time author writing for teens. It's no secret that I have a special soft spot for dragons and this book was one of the best reinventions of dragonlore I've seen in a while.

This isn't a complete or comprehensive list, by any means. For a complete listing of award winners, check out the American Library Association website's official press release.

Cybils Winners 2011

Right! So the Cybils winners have been announced for 2011!
Let's see how things look. I could be a completist, and cover every category, but instead, I'll only mention those of particular interest to me.

Book Apps: The Monster at the End of This Book
Look, I have to admit, I haven't really tried very many book apps - so I didn't have any "favorites" I was rooting for. But I loved this book - I can see it working very well in an interactive context. So, hurrah!

Fiction Picture Books: Me... Jane by Patrick McDonnell
I like this book. I don't have anything against it. But, I have to admit, I didn't expect to see it garner so many awards.

Easy Readers: I Broke My Trunk! by Mo Willems
Elephant and Piggy never fail. A sure bet for a win.

Early Chapter Books: Have Fun, Anna Hibiscus! by Atinuke
I am so excited for this! Amazing!!! I nominated this book, and it's so gratifying to see it make it all the way to the top! *swoon* I am on cloud 9 over this one.

Graphic Novels: Zita the Spacegirl by Ben Hatke
What a great book. I would have nominated it myself, if it hadn't been nominated already.

Middle Grade Fantasy and Science Fiction: The Chesire Cheese Cat: A Dickens of a Tale by Carmen Agra Deedy and Randall Wright
What a surprise. I didn't see this one coming, mainly because I hadn't realized that The Chesire Cheese Cat counts as a fantasy book. For me at least, anthropomorphism alone isn't enough to elevate a book to fantasy status. But it's nice to see a local author honored - this is Carmen Agra Deedy's first chapter book and I'm glad she won.

Young Adult Fantasy and Science Fiction: Blood Red Road by Moira Young
Hurrah! I haven't finished reading this one yet, but what I've read so far is fantastic.

Young Adult Fiction: Stupid Fast by Geoff Herbach
I haven't read this one yet, but I've heard great things about it. Now that's it's won a Cybil, I'll be sure to check it out.

Cybils nominations 2011

Nominations are open for Cybils awards. Haven't heard of the Cybils yet? You should definitely check them out. I think of them as the blogging world's answer to the ALA Youth media awards which includes the Caldecott, Newbery, Printz awards, etc.


Here are the titles I put forth.


Teen Fantasy/SF: Juliet Immortal by Stacey Jay
Middle Grade Fantasy/SF: The Princess Curse by Merrie Haskell
Teen Fiction: Pink by Lili Wilkinson
Poetry: Hurricane Dancers by Margarita Engel
Fiction Picture Books: A Zeal of Zebras by Woop Studios
Graphic Novels Teen: The Last Dragon by Jane Yolen and Rebecca Guay
Middle Grade Fiction: Have Fun, Anna Hibiscus by Atinuke


I'm really rooting for all of these. There are a few more categories, especially non-fiction, that I didn't nominate for, because I just didn't feel that I had read enough in that area... and all the titles in middle-grade graphic novels that I liked have already been nominated!


Read something great this year that you think deserves a spot on the list? Hurry over to the Cybils site to make your nominations before October 15.

Georgia Picture Book award nominees

I've been serving on the Georgia Picture Book Award committee this year, and this past weekend was the culmination of months of effort. Having read dozens and dozens of picture books for potential nominees, and debated with committee members, we presented our final list of 20 books at the Georgia Children's Literature Conference. These books will then be read by children all over the state who will cast their votes and make the final determination as to the winner. Below, I've listed the five books that I presented at the conference... you can read the complete list on the newly revamped Georgia Children's Book Award website.

Forever Friends
by Caroline Berger
Greenwillow Books
2010

A blue bird and a bunny form a fast friendship. Over the course of the year, they enjoy spending time together, until the fall, when blue bird must fly south for the winter. In the spring, they are joyfully reunited, with another pleasant year ahead of them. Berger’s collage technique uses sharp, precisely cut, paper with found media to strong effect. Short declarative sentences, paired with several pages of wordless frolicking make this book a natural for very young audiences, although the classic theme of friendship despite their obvious differences makes this book valuable for all ages.

The Umbrella Queen
by Shirin Bridges, illustrated by Taeeun Yoo
Greenwillow Books
2008

A young girl in an small village in Thailand marches to the beat of her own drummer, and stays true to her vision. While it's traditional to paint flowers on umbrellas, instead Noot sees elephants -- beautiful elephants! -- marching across her delicately painted umbrellas. When the emperor comes to visit (riding an elephant), he's intrigued by Noot's tiny umbrellas that he spies in a window and declares Noot as that year's Umbrella Queen because she paints from the heart. Yellow, orange, blue lineleum prints with pencil illustrations lend a sunny and joyful air to this book.

Summer Birds: The Butterflies of Maria Merian
by Margarita Engle, illustrated by Julie Paschkis
Henry, Holt & Co.
2010

An inspiring story about a young female scientist, Maria Sibylla Merian, who in the 1600’s overturned years of medieval thought about the origin of butterflies, then known as ‘summer birds.’ Through simple observation she discovered the process of metamorphosis from caterpillar to butterfly. Beautiful painted illustrations inspired by medieval woodcuts in bright, rich colors are paired with an appealing, easy to understand text. "Today as a result of [her] careful studies, we know that butterflies, moths and frogs do not spring from mud. We also know that they are not evil, but natural and amazing."

Sojourner Truth’s Step-Stomp Stride
by Andrea Davis Pinkney, illustrated by Brian Pinkney
Hyperion
2009

This book is everything one could hope for in a picture book biography, distilling the life of the subject into a few passages of beautifully sweet, lyrical prose celebration. Helpfully appended with additional biographical information, photographs and a bibliography this book features warmly hued watercolor and charcoal illustrations masterfully paired with informative and rhythmic text. A triumph. "Big. Black. Beautiful. True./That was Sojourner... Down came Sojourner’s hand, an iron fist, smashing the lies of the day." An inspiring look at a famed American abolitionist.

El Barrio
by Debbi Chocolate, illustrated by David Diaz
Henry Holt & Co.
2009

A young boy proudly shows off his barrio, where the preparations for the celebration of his beloved older sister’s quincenera are well underway. "This is el barrio!/My home in the city/with its rain-washed murals/and sparkling graffiti." Diaz’s trademark illustration style with bold black outlines and luminous color uses woodcuts, painting and collage to capture the feeling of stained glass windows. Whether this neighborhood is as familiar as home to you, or an exciting, vibrant place to visit, Chocolate’s words convey a strong sense of the community of "Aztec eyes and Mayan faces" in el barrio.

I'm off!

This weekend I'm off to Athens, GA to convene with my fellow wizards meet with my fellow committee members where we will hash out which picturebooks will be honored with the Georgia Book Award this year.


I'm looking forward to it! As a children's librarian, I do read a fair amount of picture books every year - usually in the hundreds. It's going to be fun to meet with other teachers and librarians, folks whose bread and butter is children's literature, to discuss which were our favorites. I know being on the committee has afforded me the chance to read quite a number of books that I might have otherwise overlooked, and has already changed the way I think about picture books - picture book biographies, especially.

2010 Cybils winners announced!

The day has arrived! This year's Cybils winners have been announced! Naturally, the first thing I am curious about is if any of my predictions from the shortlists have come true.


Here are the categories, and my thoughts on the winners.

Easy Reader: We Are In a Book - Mo Willems
Oh, I was so hoping that Cowgirl Kate and Cocoa would win! But, I did think that if anything else picked up the award, it would be a Willems book.

Early Chapter Book: Zapato Power: Freddie Ramos Takes Off - Jacqueline Jules
Didn't see this one coming at all!

Middle-Grade Fantasy and Science Fiction: 

The Shadows - Jacqueline 

West
Wow, this one was another total surprise, at least for me.

Young Adult Fantasy and Science Fiction: Rot & Ruin - Jonathan Maberry
Disappointed by this one, because I might be a little zombied out. I think I need a break from horror, at least for a while.

Fiction Picture Book: Interrupting Chicken - David Ezra Stein
I did not predict this one, but I'm not surprised. It's a great book.


Middle-Grade Graphic Novel: Meanwhile Pick Any Path - Jason Shiga
Rats! I was hoping Athena: Grey-Eyed Goddess by George O'Connor would win. Still, I know how popular Choose Your Own Adventure novels are... can't keep them on the shelf. Pair that with a graphic novel format, and you just can't lose.

Young Adult Graphic Novel: Yummy: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty - G. Neri
Ah, I just finished reading Ghostopolis, and was hoping it would make the cut. Again, another winner here that I'm not familiar with.

Middle-Grade Novel: The Strange Case of Origami Yoda - Tom Angleburger
I just finished reading this, and didn't love it as much as I hoped. Still, I didn't see a lot of strong contenders in this category, so I'm not surprised that this one won.

Middle-Grade and Young Adult Nonfiction: The Secret of the Yellow Death: A True Story of Medical Sleuthing - Suzanne Jurmain
I was rooting for The Hive Detectives, another entry in the Scientists in the Field series. I'm not familiar with the winner, here.

Nonfiction Picture Book: The Extraordinary Life of Mark Twain According to Susy - Barbara Kerley
I was secretly rooting for Bones by Steve Jenkins, but I honestly did think that this one would win out. I was right!

Poetry: Mirror, Mirror: A Book of Reversible Verse - Marilyn Singer
Lots of wonderful contenders in this division, but yes, I did think Mirror, Mirror would win. It's so unique and beautifully done.

Young Adult Novel: Split - Swati Avasthi
I thought this award would go differently, but this sounds like a very interesting read... brothers who are trying to come to terms with the abusive household they grew up in.

SLJ Battle of the Kids Books

Okay, titles have been announced and the brackets are up for School Library Journal's Battle of the Kid's Books!
Some might say it's a little early to start making predictions, especially because the celebrity author judges have not been finalized yet, and that could really be a game changer, but I'm going to go ahead and make my guesses anyway.
There are so many books on the list of contenders that I haven't read, but you know, that just makes the guesswork more fun.
Looking at the book titles all together, it's tough to know how things will shake out, but now that we know which books are going head-to-head, it's not that hard to start surmising who the winners will be. Here's my set of predictions:

Round 1 is probably full of some of my riskiest bets, so, if I'm wrong, I'll be really wrong later.  For example, why did I say The Cardturner will beat out As Easy as Falling off the Face of the Earth? Only because I've read The Cardturner, and even though it wasn't my favorite, I've never heard of the other book. On the other hand, Hereville: How Mirka Got Her Sword vs. Keeper is a really, really close call. I think One Crazy Summer will do very well... that's why I think it will make it to the finalists. I hate that there's a book that could come back from the grave! Once a book is eliminated, it should be done. I don't want a book to randomly make it to the top. I'm rooting for The Ring of Solomon enough that I felt bad for predicting it's elimination in Round 1... which is why I gave it a second shot by putting it in the "back from the grave" slot. Honestly, if it does come down to Hereville vs. One Crazy Summer that could really go either way. I chose Hereville for my final winner, because it deserves some recognition!

ALA Youth Media Awards 2011

Color me surprised! What an interesting selection of winners.

The winner of the 2011 Printz award was Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi.  I was glad to see a science-fiction title win.  It sounds quite steampunkish. I haven't read it yet, but am glad to see that I am number one in line for it at the library. Even though it's a grim, dystopian tale, I'm hoping that it isn't as cheerless as Philip Reeve's Hungry City Chronicles.

I was so happy that the Theodore Seuss Geisel award went to Bink and Gollie by Kate DiCamillo and Alison McGhee. What a rare gem this book is. So well deserved.

For the Caldecott award, I was surprised to see Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein pick up an Honor.  I'd heard lots of buzz about A Sick Day for Amos McGee by Philip Christian Stead and Erin Stead. If I'm totally honest, I hadn't been rooting for it, especially.  I was disappointed that Flora's Very Windy Day by Jeanne Birdsall and Matt Phelan didn't at least pick up an Honor.

For the Newbery award, talk about a dark horse! I'm amazed. I haven't even heard of this book, Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool.  I was so ready for One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams Garcia to sweep the awards and pick up everything.  Still, One Crazy Summer did get the Scott O'Dell historical fiction award, the Coretta Scott King award, plus a Newbery Honor.  That's not too shabby!


Waiting to hear the awards felt so very odd to me this year.  When I'm not at the ALA conference in person, I'm used to being on the West Coast, and getting up at ridiculous hours of the early morning in order to hear who's won.  This year, I'm on the East Coast, and the awards were announced on the West Coast... meaning I had to wait all morning and into the afternoon to find out who the winners were.


My kudos to the award committee members, who give so much of their year to make these awards happen. I'm already looking forward to another year of reading, speculating and betting on next year's winners.

Cybils Short Lists announced

The 2010 Cybils short lists have been announced.  I'm rather excited to see several of my favorites listed, including one that I nominated!


Who do I think (or hope) will win?

For Easy Readers, I'm obviously pulling for the book I nominated, Cowgirl Kate and Cocoa: Spring Babies by Erica Silverman.  The only other nominee that I think could give it a serious run for it's money is We Are in a Book by Mo Willems, because the Piggy & Elephant series is so popular.

For Early Chapter books, I see Frankie Pickle and the Pine Run 3000 by Eric Wight as the clear winner. Nothing else on this short list really captivates me as much as Frankie Pickle does.

For Middle-Grade Fantasy and Science Fiction my vote is for Dragonbreath: Attack of the Ninja Frogs by Ursula Vernon.  I'm not sure if the fact that it's a hybrid graphic novel (partly illustrated, mostly chapter book, a lá Diary of a Wimpy Kid) will help it or hurt it, but I hope it does win, because it's such a funny book.

For Young Adult Fantasy and Science Fiction, I have to say, I'm not too familiar with the books that made the list!  I guess I'll root for Plain Kate by Erin Bow, because it doesn't sound like dystopian fiction, which I am growing a bit weary of, plus it has a talking cat, and you can nearly never go wrong with a talking feline.

For Fiction Picture Books, I just finished reading (more like, poring over with delight) Flora's Very Windy Day by Jeanne Birdsall.  What a gorgeous book. There are a lot of great books in this category though.  I could easily see the prize going to A Sick Day for Amos McGee by Philip Christian Stead, or even (although, it wasn't my favorite) The Cow Loves Cookies by Karma Wilson.

For Middle-Grade Graphic Novels, I thought it might be hard to say which book I'm rooting for. But then I saw Athena: Grey-Eyed Goddess by George O'Connor had made the short list, and I knew that's the one. Athena has always been my favorite goddess, and I love the art, so I hope this one wins.

The Young Adult Graphic Novels category is a true toss-up for me. I was so excited about Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The Graphic Novel, which I had nominated, but it did not make it to the short list. I think Ghostopolis by Doug Tennapel will win, I've heard lots of good buzz about it.

For Middle-Grade Novels, I wasn't too excited by anything on the list... until I saw The Strange Case of Origami Yoda. It's at the top of my nightstand and I can't wait to read it.

For Middle-Grade and Young Adult Nonfiction, I'm hoping The Hive Detectives: Chronicle of a Honey Bee Catastrophe will win. What an important and worthy topic, and I love the Scientists in the Field series. Kakapo Rescue: Saving the World's Strangest Parrot is another strong contender though.

The Nonfiction Picture Books short list has a couple of books that I have seen appeal to adults, especially The Extraordinary Mark Twain (According to Susy) by Barbara Kerley.  I wanted to love Pop! The Invention of Bubble Gum by Meghan McCarthy but it just didn't grab me.  Kids love it though. Ultimately, I hope that Bones by Steve Jenkins will win. His cut-paper collage style art is mesmerizing! I don't think I could ever get tired of Steve Jenkins books.

For the Poetry shortlist, I see a number of books that I hadn't heard of, and I must check out! Borrowed Names: Poems About Laura Ingalls Wilder, Madame C.J. Walker, Marie Curie and Their Daughters sounds fascinating.  I think Mirror Mirror: A Book of Reversible Verse by Marilyn Singer should win for it's sheer inventiveness.  I would say that Joyce Sidman's Ubiquitous would be another possibility, but I wonder if Sidman's other book on the short list, Dark Emperor and Other Poems of Night, will end up drawing attention away from Ubiquitous, allowing Mirror Mirror to coast unimpeded to victory?

And finally, in the Young Adult Novel category, phew! Everything on the short list looks like a gritty, challenging read.  If I had to guess, I might say that Stolen by Lucy Christopher will take the award.

Georgia Book Award

Exciting news!  I have been hard at work on a seekrit project.  I've been chosen to be on the awards committee for the Georgia Book Award!  Myself and a panel of Georgia librarians and teachers will be reading dozens (and dozens) of picture books, winnowing it down to a "short list" of twenty titles that  schoolchildren across the state will read and vote on in the 2011-2012 school year.

Best of all, I'll be attending the Georgia Annual Conference on Children's Literature, next March in Athens.  Guest speakers include some of my favorite children's and YA writers ever, Mary Downing Hahn, M.T. Anderson, Alma Flora Ada, Karen Beaumont, and Gail Gibbons.  What an incredible line-up.  I'm swooning a little, just thinking about it.  And now, it's back to the books -- my "to be read pile" (never a tiny thing, even in the best of times) has now grown to truly alarming proportions.  I'm excited to be looking at so many books that might otherwise have slipped me by - I know it's going to be pretty tough to make our final selections, as there are so many wonderful stories out there.

Still time to nominate!

There are still a few hours left to nominate a book for the Cybils awards, if you haven't already. Polls close tonight, at midnight.
I've got my nominations in.  I know a lot of these aren't front-runners.  But, they're books that I think deserve a look, nonetheless.  I thought long and hard about what to put for my middle-grade graphic novel pick... ultimately, I decided there are so many great books nominated already in that category, I couldn't think of any to add.  Clearly, it's an area that requires more reading, on my part!  Here's the complete list of what I put forth.



Early Chapter Books: Mallory Goes Green! by Laurie B. Friedman
Easy Readers: Cowgirl Kate and Cocoa: Spring Babies by Erica Silverman
Fantasy and Science Fiction - middle/elementary: The Magic Thief: Found by Sarah Prineas
Fantasy and Science Fiction - teen: Monster High by Lisi Harrison
Fiction Picture Books: The Trucker by Barbara Samuels
Graphic Novels - teen: Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The Graphic Novel by Jane Austen
Middle Grade Fiction: Ratfink by Marcia Thornton Jones
Non-Fiction - middle/teen: Denied, Detained, Deported: Stories from the Dark Side of American Immigration by Ann Bausum
Non-fiction/Information Picture Books: Country Road ABC: An Illustrated Journey Through America's Farmland by Arthur Geisert
Poetry: All Around the Seasons by Barney Saltzberg
Young Adult Fiction: Stranded by J. T. Dutton

Looking over my choices, I wish I had 10 more votes for the following picture books! Some are sharp and funny, others very tender and cosy, all of them are great.

Santa Duck - David Milgrim 978-0399255410


Ernest, the Moose Who Doesn't Fit - Catherine Rayner 978-0374322175


Brownie and Pearl See the Sights - Cynthia Rylant 978-1416986379


Dinosaur vs. the Potty - Bob Shea 978-1423133391


Everyone Needs a Friend - Kolanovic 978-0843199185


Welcome Home, Mouse - Elisa Kleven 978-1582462776


Little Wolf's Song - Britta Teckentrup 978-1907152337


Snow Happy! - Patricia Hubbell 978-1582463292


Socksquatch - Frank W. Dormer 978-0805089523


Babyberry Pie - Heather Vogel Frederick 978-0152059279


10 of my favorite KidLit Blogs:
Forever YA
Eve's Book Addiction
Oops, Wrong Cookie
Jacket Whys
Stacked Books
Wands and Worlds
Charlotte's Library
The Book Aunt
Chasing Ray
The Happy Nappy Bookseller

Finally, a shout-out to a few of my favorite independent bookstores, Little Shop of Stories in Decatur has wonderful storytimes, and bright, clean, pretty displays.  When I lived in Austin, TX, I frequently could be found shopping at Book People, a Texas-sized independent with a cool stage/magic passage/storytelling spot in the children's area. No other store could ever take the place in my heart of Children's Bookworld in Los Angeles though, with their fabulous selection, busy line-up of author visits and highly-knowledgable staff.  I was lucky to work there for over 6 happy years!

Cybils: State of the Judges

I thought it might be interesting to take a look at where the Cybils judges are from.  There are 107 judges total (including one set of co-judges), and nine panel organizers (some of whom are serving double-duty as judges as well) for a total of 116 individuals.

After checking out their blogs and twitter accounts, I was able to find out where all but 10 of them are located.  Four of them are outside of the U.S., two of them in Canada.  Out of the 10 judges that didn't reveal their location, three gave vague, broad areas such as "North America" or "New England."  I was a little surprised to see that the competition is so American-centric.  The award is for any book in English  in each category, which falls within the scope of the judging year.  I had anticipated seeing kidlit bloggers from Great Britain, Europe, Australia... all over the globe really; but with only a few exceptions, most of the judges appear to be American.  Maybe that will change in years to come.

As can be expected, we see the most judges in denser urban areas and populous states.  New York and California are at the top of the heap, with 11 and 12 judges respectively.  They are closely followed by seven in Texas.  The Washington, D.C. metro area is also rather healthy in Cybils judges, with 12 total spread out over the surrounding suburbs in neighboring states of Virginia and Maryland.

Next, let's look at states who nabbed 3-5 spots on the Cybils judging panels.  They are: Florida, New Jersey, Wisconsin, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Utah and Massachusetts.

Plenty of states had only one or two judges.  The states with two judges a piece are: Georgia, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan and Washington state.  The states with only a lone representative on the Cybils award panels are: Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Oregon and Pennsylvania.

What really surprised me the most was to see how many states had no one on the Cybils panels at all.  With over a hundred judges, and with some states grabbing a lot of spots, I knew that not every state would be represented.  Is there just a dearth of bloggers in these areas?  Is it that they're sparsely populated or don't have as much access to technology?  Or were they simply unlucky?  Unless a few of our judges with undisclosed locations are hidden away there, the 18 17 states with no Cybils judges this year are: Hawaii, Nevada, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Missouri, Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, South Carolina, West Virginia, Delaware, Rhode Island and Vermont.

Wherever they're from, I'm sure the Round I stars are busy reading, re-reading, requesting, note-taking and otherwise preparing to whittle down their tremendous lists of nominees.  There are still five more days to nominate one of your favorites!  Polls close on October 15th.  If you can think of a book that hasn't been nominated yet, but you think deserves a look, skedaddle over to the Cybils website and make your suggestions now!