Category Archives: Format

Watchdog by Will McIntosh

I think I’m finally approaching the end of books I read for the Cybils award! No guarantees, but here at least is a fun, fast-paced story, especially for fans of giant robot dogs. Watchdog by Will McIntosh. Delacorte, 2017. In … Continue reading

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The Marvelwood Magicians

I’ve enjoyed books by Diane Zahler in the past, including Baker’s Magic and The Thirteenth Princess, so I was happy when this new offering came up in my Cybils reading last year. The Marvelwood Magicians by Diane Zahler. Boyds Mills Press, 2017. … Continue reading

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Rebel Genius by Michael Dante DiMartino

This book was a 2016 Christmas gift from my love to my son and I.  We finished the book we were reading and then took several months reading it aloud together. Rebel Genius by Michael Dante DiMartino. Roaring Brook Press, … Continue reading

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Beast & Crown by Joel Ross

Beast & Crown by Joel Ross. HarperCollins, 2017. This most recent book by the author of the 2015 Cybils Middle Grade Speculative Fiction winner, The Fog Diver, features a similarly diverse cast, this time in a historical fantasy world. (I … Continue reading

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Dominion by Shane Arbuthnott

My catching up with books I read for the Cybils continues… Dominion by Shane Arbuthnott. Orca, 2017. Twelve-year-old Molly Stout lives and works on her family’s airship, the Legerdemain, along with her father and two older brothers. Following the legacy … Continue reading

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The Painting by Charis Cotter

Here is another creepy, atmospheric story from the author of 2015 Cybils finalist The Swallow: a Ghost Story. The Painting by Charis Cotter. Tundra Books, 2017. In the present day, our heroine, Annie, is struggling with her mother being in … Continue reading

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Brave Red, Smart Frog

This week, I’m going to focus on reviewing Cybils books that I wasn’t able to write up during the rush of Cybils season. Brave Red, Smart Frog by Emily Jenkins. Illustrated by Rohan Daniel Eason. Candlewick Press, 2017. This volume … Continue reading

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Spindle by E.K. Johnston

Spindle by E.K. Johnston. Hyperion, 2016. Hundreds of years after the Storyteller Queen drove the demon out, as told in A Thousand Night, the demon has been slowly plotting its escape.  It has invented a curse on making and the … Continue reading

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