2019 Cybils Winners

February 17, 2020February 14, 2020 | Tasha

The winners of the 2019 Cybils were announced on Friday. Here they are:

BOARD BOOKS

Jump by Tatsuhide Matsuoka

EARLY CHAPTER BOOKS

Frankie Sparks and the Class Pet by Megan Frazer Blakemore, illustrated by Nadja Sarell

EASY READERS

Yasmin the Superhero by Saadia Faruqi, illustrated by Hatem Aly

ELEMENTARY NONFICTION

Nine Months: Before a Baby Is Born by Miranda Paul, illustrated by Jason Chin

ELEMENTARY/MIDDLE GRADE GRAPHIC NOVELS

New Kid by Jerry Craft

ELEMENTARY/MIDDLE GRADE SPECULATIVE FICTION

Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky by Kwame Mbalia

FICTION PICTURE BOOKS

One Fox: A Counting Book Thriller by Kate Read

JUNIOR HIGH NON-FICTION

The First Dinosaur: How Science Solved the Greatest Mystery on Earth by Ian Lendler

MIDDLE GRADE FICTION

The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise by Dan Gemeinhart

MIDDLE GRADE NON-FICTION

It’s Trevor Noah: Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood by Trevor Noah

POETRY

Ink Knows No Borders: Poems of the Immigrant and Refugee Experience edited by Patrice Vecchione and Alyssa Raymond

SENIOR HIGH NON-FICTION

Playlist: The Rebels and Revolutionaries of Sound by James Rhodes, illustrated by Martin O’Neill

YOUNG ADULT FICTION

Heroine by Mindy McGinnis

YOUNG ADULT GRAPHIC NOVELS

This Place: 150 Years Retold by David A. Robertson, Jen Storm, Katherena Vermette, Niigaanwewidam James Sinclair, Rachel Qitsualik-Tinsley, Richard Van Camp, Sean Qitsualik-Tinsley, and Sonny Assu

YOUNG ADULT SPECULATIVE FICTION

Fireborne by Rosaria Munda

2020 Best Fiction for Young Adults

February 12, 2020February 6, 2020 | Tasha

YALSA, the Young Adult Library Service Association, a Division of the American Library Association, has announced the 2020 Best Fiction for Young Adults list. The list includes titles published for young adults in the last 14 months for ages 12-18. The current list includes a Top Ten, shown below:

The Field Guide to the North American Teenager

The Field Guide to the North American Teenager by Ben Philippe

Girls on the Verge

Girls on the Verge by Sharon Biggs Waller

Heroine

Heroine by Mindy McGinnis

Like a Love Story

Like a Love Story by Abdi Nazemian

Lovely War

Lovely War by Julie Berry

On the Come Up

On the Come Up by Angie Thomas

Patron Saints of Nothing

Patron Saints of Nothing by Randy Ribay

Pet

Pet by Akwaeke Emezi

The Stars and the Blackness Between Them

The Stars and the Blackness between Them by Junauda Petrus

With the Fire on High

With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo

The 2020 Rainbow Book List

February 10, 2020February 6, 2020 | Tasha

The Rainbow Book List is a curated list of books from the Rainbow Round Table of the American Library Association. It features the best books with LGBTQIA+ content designed for youth from birth through 18 years old. There are 92 selected books on the list with a Top Ten also selected. Below are the books in the Top Ten:

Brave Face

Brave Face by Shaun David Hutchinson

The Love & Lies of Rukhsana Ali

The Love & Lies of Rukhsana Ali by Sabina Khan

Mooncakes

Mooncakes by Suzanne Walker and Wendy Xu

The Music of What Happens

The Music of What Happens by Bill Konigsberg

On a Sunbeam

On a Sunbeam by Tillie Walden

Pet

Pet by Akwaeke Emezi

A Plan for Pops

A Plan for Pops by Heather Smith and Brooke Kerrigan

Stonewall: The Uprising for Gay Rights

Stonewall: A Building. An Uprising. A Revolution. by Rob Sanders and Jamey Christoph

We Set the Dark on Fire (We Set the Dark on Fire, #1)

We Set the Dark on Fire by Tehlor Kay Mejia

When Aidan Became A Brother

When Aidan Became a Brother by Kyle Lukoff and Juanita Kaylani

2020 Laugh Out Loud Book Awards

February 7, 2020February 6, 2020 | Tasha

This annual British book award, known as the Lollies, is given for the best and funniest books for children and youth. The winners are chosen by teachers and children from shortlists. Below are the winners and shortlists for each age category:

BEST LOL PICTURE BOOK

Ten Fat Sausages

Ten Fat Sausages by Michelle Robinson and illustrated by Tor Freeman

PICTURE BOOK SHORTLIST

Baby's First Bank Heist (Baby Frank 1)

Baby’s First Bank Heist by Jim Whalley and illustrated by Stephen Collins

Spyder

Spyder by Matt Carr

You're Called What?

You’re Called What? by Kes Gray and illustrated by Nikki Dyson

BEST LOL BOOK for 6-8 YEAR OLDS

The World's Worst Children 3

World’s Worst Children 3 by David Walliams and illustrated by Tony Ross

6-8 YEAR OLD SHORTLIST

Older Not Wiser: A wickedly funny new Children’s book for ages six and up (Bad Nana)

Bad Nana: Older Not Wiser by Sophy Henn

Legend of Kevin

The Legend of Kevin by Philip Reeve and illustrated by Sarah McIntyre

The Nothing to See Here Hotel

The Nothing to See Here Hotel by Steven Butler and illustrated by Steven Lenton

BEST LOL BOOK for 9-13 YEAR OLDS

I Bet I Can Make You Laugh: The Funniest Poems Around

I Bet I Can Make You Laugh by Joshua Seigal and illustrated by Tim Wesson

9-13 YEAR OLD SHORTLIST

I Swapped My Brother On The Internet

I Swapped My Brother on the Internet by Jo Simmons and illustrated by Nathan Reed

Kid Normal and the Rogue Heroes

Kid Normal and the Rogue Heroes by Greg James and Chris Smith, illustrated by Erica Salcedo

Planet Stan

Planet Stan by Elaine Wickson and illustrated by Chris Judge

Hat tip to The Bookseller for the news

ALSC Notable Lists

February 3, 2020January 31, 2020 | Tasha

Association for Library Service to Children

The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) has announced their lists of notable items for children. The lists contain the “best of the best” in children’s books for 2020 with books published in 2019. The lists cover from preschool through age 14.

ALSC offers a Notable Children’s Books list that is really extensive and includes many of my favorites of 2019. They also have a Notable Children’s Recording list that offers the best of audio books.

Both lists are worth reading for librarians who may find amazing titles they missed last year. Enjoy!

2020 SCBWI Golden Kite Awards

January 30, 2020January 30, 2020 | Tasha

The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators has announced the recipients of the 2020 Golden Kite and Sid Fleischman Awards. Here are the award winners:

YOUNG READER AND MIDDLE GRADE FICTION WINNER

The Bridge Home

The Bridge Home by Padma Venkatraman

YOUNG READER AND MIDDLE GRADE FICTION HONOR BOOK

Pie in the Sky

Pie in the Sky by Remy Lai

YOUNG ADULT FICTION WINNER

Lovely War

Lovely War by Julie Berry

YOUNG ADULT FICTION HONOR BOOK

With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo

NONFICTION FOR YOUNG READERS WINNER

Mario and the Hole in the Sky: How a Chemist Saved Our Planet by Elizabeth Rusch, illustrated by Teresa Martinez

NONFICTION FOR YOUNG READERS HONOR BOOK

Just Right: Searching for the Goldilocks Planet by Curtis Manley, illustrated by Jessica Lanan

NONFICTION FOR OLDER READERS WINNER

Torpedoed: The True Story of the World War II Sinking of “The Children’s Ship” by Deborah Heiligman

NONFICTION FOR OLDER READERS HONOR BOOK

The First Dinosaur: How Science Solved the Greatest Mystery on Earth by Ian Lendler, illustrated by C.M. Butzer

PICTURE BOOK ILLUSTRATION WINNER

Clever Little Witch

Clever Little Witch illustrated by Hyewon Yum, written by Muon Thi Van

PICTURE BOOK ILLUSTRATION HONOR BOOK

The Roots of Rap: 16 Bars on the 4 Pillars of Hip-Hop, illustrated by Frank Morrison, written by Carole Boston Weatherford

PICTURE BOOK TEXT WINNER

A Green Place to Be: The Creation of Central Park by Ashley Benham Yazdani

PICTURE BOOK TEXT HONOR BOOK

The Undefeated by Kwame Alexander, illustrated by Kadir Nelson

SID FLEISCHMAN HUMOR AWARD WINNER

Pie in the Sky

Pie in the Sky by Remy Lai

2020 Rise: A Feminist Book Project

January 30, 2020January 29, 2020 | Tasha

The Amelia Bloomer Project will now be known as Rise: A Feminist Book Project for ages 0-18. The project continues to be part of the Feminist Task Force and the Social Responsibilities Round Table of the American Library Association. Here are the Top Ten books chosen for 2020:

At the Mountain’s Base by Traci Sorell, Illustrated by Weshoyot Alvitre

A Boy Like You by Frank Murphy, Illustrated by Kayla Harren

Forward Me Back to You by Mitali Perkins

The Proudest Blue: A Story of Hijab and Family by Ibtihaj Muhammad with S.K. Ali, Illustrated by Hatem Aly

Rise! From Caged Bird to Poet of the People, Maya Angelou by Bethany Hegedus, Illustrated by Tonya Engel

Shout by Laurie Halse Anderson

Surviving the City, Vol. 1 by Tasha Spillett and Natasha Donovan

Thirteen Doorways, Wolves Behind Them All by Laura Ruby

We Set the Dark on Fire by Tehlor Kay Mjia

What Do You Do With a Voice Like That? The Story of Extraordinary Congresswoman Barbara Jordan by Chris Barton, Illustrated by Ekua Holmes

2020 Charlotte Zolotow Award

January 28, 2020January 24, 2020 | Tasha

The Children’s Cooperative Book Center (CCBC) at the University of Wisconsin has announced the 2020 Charlotte Zolotow Award winners. The award is given for outstanding writing in a picture book. Here are the winners:

WINNER

Johnny's Pheasant