Sunday, 17 February 2008

2007_01_01_archive



Cybils Awards announced (poetry included!)

I had the honor of being invited to participate in a brand new award

launched in the children's and young adult literature field, the

Cybils awards. The Cybils, a loose acronym for Children's and YA

Bloggers' Literary Awards, began with nominations open to absolutely

anyone. Then five nominating committee members read the nominated

books (with different committees in eight categories, from poetry to

fiction to nonfiction to graphic novels). I was on the committee for

POETRY along with Eisha Prather (Seven Impossible Things Before

Breakfast blog), Elaine Magliaro (Blue Rose Girls blog), Bruce Black

(Wordswimmer blog), and Johanna (Becky at Farm School blog). Susan

Thomsen (Chicken Spaghetti blog) was our awesome liaison to the Cybils

head honchos. And what a great committee it was, each one of us

already a poetry lover and not shy with our opinions! I also have to

give a shout out to the publishers who were so quick and generous in

sending us copies of many of the poetry books under consideration.

What a treat to focus on poetry only and to have it singled out for

award distinction. Woo hoo! And which books did we select? Here is our

list of the top five finalists (out of 26 nominations).

Butterfly Eyes and Other Secrets of the Meadow

written by Joyce Sidman; illustrated by Beth Krommes

Houghton Mifflin

Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich

written and illustrated by Adam Rex

Harcourt Children's Books

Handsprings

written and illustrated by Douglas Florian

Greenwillow Books/ HarperCollins

Jazz

written by Walter Dean Myers; illustrated by Christopher Myers

Holiday House

Tour America: A Journey Through Poems and Art

written by Diane Siebert; illustrated by Stephen T. Johnson

Chronicle Books


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