Category Archives: Audiobook

2021 Cybils Finalists and Ones that Got Away

Posted on January 4, 2022 by Katy K.

Here’s my annual post about the 2021 Cybils finalists and the ones I wish could have made the already excellent list. Continue reading →

Posted in Audiobook, Fantasy, Lists, Middle Grade, Print | Tagged , | 9 Comments

3 Scary Stories: Temple Alley Summer, Ghost Girl, and Beasts and Beauty: Dangerous Tales

Posted on December 1, 2021 by Katy K.

Here’s some more of my Cybils reading – ranked roughly in order from least to most frightening. Temple Alley Summer by Sachiko Kashiwaba. Translated by Avery Fischer Udagawa. Illustrated by Miho Satake Yonder, 2021 ISBN 978-1632063038 Read from library copy.  Fifth-grade … Continue reading →

Posted in Audiobook, Books, Fantasy, Middle Grade, Print | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

3 Fantasies about Bullying: The Insiders, Friend Me, and the Nightmare Thief

Posted on November 21, 2021 by Katy K.

As an empathic adult who was bullied as a child, bullying is always very painful for me to read about. But it happens all too frequently, and it is dishonest for adults to deny kids the opportunity to read about … Continue reading →

Posted in Audiobook, Books, Fantasy, Middle Grade, Print, Sci-Fi | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Five 2021 Cybils-Nominated Fantasy Adventures

Posted on November 17, 2021 by Katy K.

Here are reviews of five great Cybils-nominated adventure fantasies. Continue reading →

Posted in Audiobook, Books, Fantasy, Middle Grade, Print | Tagged , , , , , , | 10 Comments

3 Spine-Tinglers: The Plentiful Darkness, Long Lost, and Paola Santiago and the Forest of Nightmares

Posted on November 10, 2021 by Katy K.

Halloween may be over, but I’m still reading books to make you want to keep the light on at night. Continue reading →

Posted in Audiobook, Books, Fantasy, Middle Grade, Print | Tagged , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Cattywampus and Cinders and Sparrows

Posted on June 9, 2021 by Katy K.

Every year I participate in the Cybils Awards, I read books more quickly than I can review them. Here are a couple of the books I’d wanted to share with you since the fall.  Cattywampus by Ash Van Otterloo. Scholastic, … Continue reading →

Posted in Audiobook, Books, Fantasy, Middle Grade, Print | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

More Modern Adventures with Gods: Girl Giant and the Monkey King and City of the Plague God

Posted on May 24, 2021 by Katy K.

Two stories in which modern-day kids get entangled with the living mythology of their culture, both great for fans of the Percy Jackson books. Continue reading →

Posted in Audiobook, Books, Fantasy, Middle Grade, Print, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Reading with My Son – the Middle School Years

Posted on March 23, 2021 by Katy K.

At a friend’s request, I put together a list of the audiobooks and read-alouds my son and I read together when he was in middle school. I hope you enjoy these as much as we did. Continue reading →

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Complex & Compelling Teen Fantasy: Legendborn and Burn

Posted on February 12, 2021 by Katy K.

Legendborn by Tracy Deonn and Burn by Patrick Ness are both finalists in the Teen Speculative Fiction category of the Cybils Awards with complex, multilayered, and very compelling narratives. Continue reading →

Posted in Audiobook, Books, Fantasy, Print, Reviews, Teen/Young Adult | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

Apprentice Witches: Kiki’s Delivery Service and Eva Evergreen, Semi-Magical Witch

Posted on November 14, 2020 by Katy K.

I was fortunate enough to read both a new translation of the classic Japanese fantasy book and a recent book inspired by in the same week. There is lots of charming witchy fun to be had in both of these! Continue reading →

Posted in Audiobook, Fantasy, Middle Grade, Print, Reviews | Tagged , , , | 9 Comments