By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 12/22/2016
Here in the North Central region of California, the winter is scarcely wild (though it is a bit frosty and rainy) and we are all wearing sweaters and coats and boots and scarves as though freezing to death. (Pause for laughter from everyone east of... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 12/15/2016
Very classy coverSynopsis: I'm pretty sure this one is also a Cybils Spec Fic nomination—but since I don't see it on Tanita's immediate review docket, I'm jumping on in! I decided to treat myself with this one because I enjoyed Amy Tintera's... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 12/8/2016
Synopsis: This is another one I acquired and got signed at the KidLitCon in Wichita a couple of months ago—and I got to meet and hang with the author as a fun bonus! Interesting aside—James Kennedy is founder of the really awesome 90-Second... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 11/28/2016
Synopsis: I picked this one up (and got it signed; woot!) at the most recent Kidlitosphere Conference in Wichita—somehow I missed it when it came out a few years ago, but I'm so glad I went back for it, because it's up there with my favorite A.S.... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 11/24/2016
Wish I could take credit for the nice graphic, but in fact I found it on a great site called Open Clip Art. It's based on art from the Columbia Evening Missourian of 1922.With much love and gratitude for the amazing people of the kidlit... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 11/21/2016
Synopsis: Forge and Ashes are the 2nd and 3rd books in the Seeds of America trilogy by Laurie Halse Anderson. Way, WAY back in 2009, I reviewed the first book, Chains, and was so glad to know there was a sequel in the works: it was an absorbing tale... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 11/17/2016
This scary cover almost made me not want to read it.Synopsis: I’m a huge fan of Frances Hardinge’s Fly By Night books, so I was eager to check out this one—another middle grade fantasy. It’s hard to talk about this one without giving away... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 11/14/2016
I haven't been producing a lot of new content (or stringing together coherent sentences) over the past week, so instead of a regular blog post I thought I'd do a quick roundup of other online stuff I've been doing:I donated to the Sierra Club... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 11/7/2016
Synopsis: Yes, look, I'm participating in a Thing, and that thing is Middle Grade Monday! When am I ever organized enough to do that? Today, evidently. Anyway, I recently read Newbery Award winner Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool, who was one... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 10/31/2016
Yeah, so the irony about me doing a post about scary books for Halloween is that I am a wimp who tends to avoid anything scary. But I do like suspense, and sometimes I can handle a good dark fantasy. And, of course, I've had to read more than a few... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 10/27/2016
I've been sitting on this idea for a while (too busy to 'toon--very sad) but here's the second installment of Writer Nightmares. More to come! This one is loosely based on reality--my own and others'. I know many a writer who has lost a critical... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 10/24/2016
This is one of the most gorgeous and effectivecovers I've seen. I love it.Synopsis: Clara and Hailey are twin sisters, and like a lot of sisters, they are closer than close one moment, but in the next, they get on each other's last nerve. Hailey is... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 10/17/2016
My goal is eventually to put together a few curated tweets from the con--seems appropriate since Sheila and I talked about that during our session on social media. But I haven't quite recovered, so for the time being I present you with a few pretty... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 10/6/2016
This is for anyone and EVERYONE who has a fave book of the past year (published in U.S. or Canada between Oct. 16, 2015 - Oct. 15, 2016). You--yes, YOU!--are eligible to nominate one book per category for this year's Cybils Awards--Children's and... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 10/3/2016
Synopsis: Sacrifice is the sequel to Serpentine (reviewed here), and follows the continuing quest of Skybright to save her world and the people she loves from encroaching demons. By the end of the first book (minor spoilers ahead, so you might want... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 9/29/2016
Synopsis: The "every X years something life-changing/terrible/wonderful happens" trope always reminds me of that Ray Bradbury short story "All Summer in a Day," which I read for school in maybe 6th or 7th grade and found incredibly traumatic. In... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 9/26/2016
How fantastic is it that the theme for this year's Banned Books Week (Sept. 25 - Oct. 1) is Frequently Challenged Books with Diverse Content? We are all about books with diverse content here (well, not ALL, but it's one of the themes we feature... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 9/22/2016
Just like this entire year has been flying past at inconceivable speed, the Cybils season is revving up without delay, and Tanita and I are both incredibly excited to be judging again. Tanita is part of the Round 1 YASF panel (which brings back... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 9/19/2016
Synopsis: The Queen of Blood, which comes out TOMORROW, is a foray into YA crossover fantasy by Sarah Beth Durst, author of numerous wonderful, whimsical, fantastical MG and YA fantasy titles such as (most recently) The Girl Who Could Not Dream... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 9/12/2016
Don't miss our interview with author Sherri Smith this Wednesday, as part of the Pasadena blog tour! Synopsis: "The thing I'm finally learning is that someone can be your best friend in the world, but you're not necessarily theirs." Pasadena. It's... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 9/8/2016
No, really. It's already time for another Cybils Awards season, and the application for judges is open until September 14th, so get cracking! There are TWO new pilot categories this year for you to explore--Board Books and Audiobooks--so if you... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 9/1/2016
I really like the cutout-look images on the cover, with the hidden animals...Synopsis: We don't necessarily review a ton of realistic MG fiction here (not as much Wonderland in the real world, I suppose) but it doesn't mean we aren't reading or... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 8/29/2016
Yep, you guys. I went to the library again! Whee! That one on the top left? It's by Mariko Tamaki, who has also written a number of wonderful graphic novels for kids and teens.Top right: the final (I think) book in the Dream Thieves series, which is... Read the rest of this post
By: Sarah Stevenson,
on 8/22/2016
Can I blame these Cybermen for my time famine? Photo: (C) BBC.co.ukIt's been A Summer. I know many of you would agree with me on that. The year has flown by too quickly, and the time has been eaten up by, apparently, some sort of Doctor-Who-esque... Read the rest of this post
By: tanita✿davis,
on 8/18/2016
This has been the summer of the monkeybrain - too much going on, too much we wanted to do and we're not going to get it done, because it's nearing the end of August. ::sigh:: One thing we didn't want to miss was talking about Kate Messner's latest... Read the rest of this post
Yep, this is a Cybs, and you got the review in before me. I'm falling behind...!
I am so behind on everything it isn't even funny. Getting there, albeit slowly. I've had to skip a lot of reviews, though, and even logging my reading on Goodreads has seemed like too much. This year I thought longingly about doing Cybils Round 1 again someday, though... If I'm good, I might manage it next year.