Cybils Winners Announced!

Oh, man. I'm sick today. Not so super sick, but just enough sick to be definitely sick. But I wanted to tell you that the Cybils winners have been announced!

Since I helped compile the shortlist with the Graphic Novels Round 1 panel those were the picks I was most excited to see.

For the younger set: Zita the Spacegirl by Ben Hatke

Nominated by Isaac Z, I see. Could that be our own Isaac Z of Bookie Woogie? Good call Isaac! I loved this one so much I made Jacob read and he loved it too.

For the older set: Anya's Ghost by Vera Brogsol

This is what I had to say about Anya's Ghost back in July:

Inruiging. I liked the style and coloring.  Anya has a bad attitude, a self-centered outlook, and a smoking habit -- she's easy to hate. When she falls down a hole and meets the ghost of the girl who fell down it before her, her life begins to change. I thought the plot and art both well executed. It was just creepy enough for me, and has a great ending. Recommended for fans of Neil Gaiman (his blurb on the front reads, "a masterpiece!"), ages 12+.

Other winners I've already read:

• Winner of the Easy Reader category, I Broke My Trunk by Mo Willems - hilarious. Y'all know how much I love Elephant and Piggie. There's a reason they keep winning all the awards. 
• Winner of the Fiction Picture Books award, Me . . . Jane by Patrick McDonnell - sweet. It's the story of Jane Goodall's early childhood. 

Again, the full list of winners is announced on the Cybils website, and really all the books on these shortlists are going to be stellar.

Sequels, sequels!

I've been excited about a number of sequels this past half a year, Midnight in Austenland included (which I'm currently halfway through and loving). The three I've just gotten my hands on recently (been kinda busy moving halfway across the country to good ol' CA this winter):

Crossed, by Ally Condie
The Secret Prince, by Violet Haberdasher
Liar's Moon, by Elizabeth C. Bunce

All three of these books had really, really promising first installments. None of them quite lived up to their predecessors. BUT, they were all still good, fun reads.

First, Crossed. Picking up where Matched ended, Cassia chooses to search for Ky, beyond the city into the dangerous Outer Provinces where he's been sent to certain death. This one for me was a bit overly introspective, a little shy on more forward-moving plot elements, but still a lovely read. I'll be interested to see how she manages to wrap up all of the loose ends in book #3. I think too often I tend to love a second book based solely on the fact that I loved the first book and was therefore excited for and entirely convinced that I would love the second. So I've had mixed feelings about this one. Still, I enjoyed reading it. And that's important.

The Secret Prince:  The sequel to the promising, though admittedly very Harry Potter-like Knightley Academy, the title is a little less-than subtle on this one. Following his roommate's lead, Henry Grim begins to befriend the other boys at school, no longer the outcast he was convinced he would always be. Together, the boys form a secret club to train for battle, though such training is against the Brittonian laws. When they're discovered, Henry disguises himself as a servant on a train headed for the brink-of-war Nordlands, searching for evidence of their treachery to use as his own redemption back at Knightley Academy. The secrets that he finds there, however, will lead us nicely on to book #3 ... Highly recommended for middle grade readers, male and female alike, who adored Harry Potter.

Finally, Liar's Moon: Digger is back in the city, mostly trying to survive, half-heartedly searching for other wielders of magic like herself, not sure where she fits in with the brewing rebellion. When she learns that an old friend has been imprisoned for murdering his wife, she throws herself into the task of clearing his name. The secrets and plot twists she unearths along the way force her to question what she thinks she knows about her friends, herself, and even her evil brother---the man responsible for the imprisonment, torture, and deaths of so many born to magic ... just like herself. The first book in this series (Star Crossed) had me gasping for breath, again and again, literally biting my fingernails, wondering how on earth a plot so twisted, knotted, and switch-backed could ever manage to right itself in the end. This one was less gasp-worthy, but I'm still impressed by the gritty new talent that is Elizabeth C. Bunce.
_______________
affiliate links were added to this post on 10/7/2014. Happy Reading!

Some fun links

A few fun links for your Saturday:

Stephenie Meyer blogs about being on movie sets for Austenland, Breaking Dawn parts 1 & 2, and The Host.

Shannon Hale talks about the gothic romance.

I learned about Kid Book Ratings, a blog where books (mostly picture books) are given one of the following distinctions: Buy, Borrow, Donate or Destroy! So clever.

From the mental_floss blog, 12 Wonderfully Useless Flyers made me laugh quite hard.

Midnight in Austenland

Midnight in Austenland by Shannon Hale

Charlotte Kinder sends herself on a Jane Austen vacation, since her two children will be spending the next few weeks with their dad and his new wife. She knew she'd have to wear a corset and learn quadrilles; she didn't count on a murder mystery.

One need not have read Austenland to enjoy Midnight in Austenland. That said, I can't help comparing the two. Only supporting characters return for this book, set in the same resort  three years later. Austenland is a chick flick in print. Pure fluff! Midnight in Austenland is much more complex. It is heavier (both literally and figuratively) than Austenland was.*  A little darker. Well, it is Midnight. I'm sure that was intentional.

How would I categorize this book? Midnight in Austenland flirts with being a murder mystery. The whodunnit is vital to the plot, but not the focus of the book. Romance? Anti-Romance is more prevalent: it is so excruciating to hear about Charlotte's divorce. Wholly committed to her marriage and family, she has been suffering something of an identity crisis since the dissolution. Hearing about her broken past made her a character I could relate to in her current situation. Bildungsroman? Perhaps! Except Charlotte is in her thirties, not teenage years. Still, this is something of a coming-of-age novel. Aren't we grown ups still growing up, all the time? I loved how Charlotte was able to both change for the better and stay true to her nature.  I adored her passion for motherhood.

I laughed (when Charlotte triumphs, and at Shannon's signature funny**), I teared up (I didn't actually cry okay!?), and I did swoon a little bit there (at the end).  The book ended up making me think about a Jane Austen quote I have heard before: "I wish as well as everybody else to be perfectly happy, but like everybody else, it must be in my own way."

Recommended to all the ladies (and any of the gentlemen out there who are interested).
_______________________________________
*by no means a difficult achievement.
**which seems to have expanded to include physical funny, as there was much more of that.

ETA: There is a contest running until Friday the 10th on "I Loved This Book" where you could win a signed copy!

ETA2: Thoughts from the next day: I really enjoyed this book. I loved it! Did that come across, above? I also respected this book. Loved and respected it.

Book Stew review: Shakespeare's Secret

Back in the day, before I started Everead, I reviewed books on what is now my family blog. At the time, since I was posting so many book reviews, I called the blog Book Stew. This review was originally posted there.

The other day I recommended Shakespeare's Secret to my mom as a good read-aloud.  She has since read and enjoyed it, so I thought I'd repost my original review here on Everead:

Shakespeare's Secret

by Elise Broach, 272 pages.

Hero is the new girl in town, and, as usual, her Shakespearian name draws comments. There is something else that the town has been talking about though, and the missing Murphy diamond could be right under her nose.

As I was browsing the stacks at my local library, I stumbled upon this little volume. Its cover art and catchy title made me pick it up, and I'm glad I did. It was super fun. On the inside cover of this book which was published this year [2007], was a bookplate that suggested reading this book aloud with a child. I would highly recommend that. It has very short chapters, and thus provides many good stopping places for a voice. And, it's just awesome fun! Take a mystery, add a dollop of history, a dash of Shakespeare and you've got a really fun story. It is the sort of book that makes you want to study history and plant a garden and read Shakespeare. 

Go for it!!

Princess Academy Giveaway CLOSED

Shannon Hale has written a sequel to her Newbery Honor winning Princess Academy. Be still my heart! I just can't get enough of Shannon Hale!

Will the Princess Academy sequel have cover art by Alison Jay?

On Sunday last, the official title of Princess Academy 2 was announced on Shannon's website:

PALACE OF STONE

Ooh, I like it! Its so atmospheric! Linder stone is so important in Princess Academy, and Palace of Stone sounds ominous and mysterious at the same time that it suggests the palace in the lowlands being made from the mountains.

In honor of the title announcement, Everead is giving away a signed* paperback copy of Princess Academy! The contest closes on Feb 16, 2012. Palace of Stone is due out in Fall 2012, so we will all have plenty of time to read or re-read Princess Academy. To enter the contest, fill out the form linked below. *Hint: you might want to subscribe to the blog or to our new Everead newsletter. (Links in the sidebar!)

CONTEST HAS CLOSED, 
but you can see all our posts about Shannon Hale here!

What do you think of the title? On a scale of 1-10, how excited are you for this book? Having trouble with the entry form? This is my first time using one, so email me or leave a comment below with any comments.

The winner gets this book!

*ETA: I forgot! It's a signed copy!

Yo Gabba Gabba! board comics reviewed

So, I have to say, being a reader and proponent of graphic novels, I was pretty excited to try out these toddler-safe ones, sent to me for review by Oni Press.

There are two titles in the series (so far):
Gabba Ball! words and pictures by Chris Eliopoulos
Good Night, Gabbaland by J. Torres illustrated by Matt Loux

I've never watched the t.v. show these are based on (though I have seen the song, "there's a party in my tummy") I was glad that there were introductions made in Gabba Ball. The characters each say their name and an action as they play Gabba Ball. Muno likes to bounce, Foofa likes to roll, Toodee likes to kick, and so on. With all these great action words, I loved reading Gabba Ball to my 3 year old one snowy day. It made for a great activity: read this book, then play the game!

This morning I read Goodnight Gabbaland at least three times with my 1 year old. It is his favorite, and I like it best, too. In it, the inhabitants of Gabbaland prepare for bed by cleaning up, brushing teeth and reading a story. The art is less stylized and more realistic than the art in Gabba Ball (you can see the difference on the covers). I also like the rhyming text which is repetitive, easy to parse, and catchy. This would be the easier of the two for an emerging reader to tackle on his own.

The idea of panels in children's books isn't really new, apparently. Since board comics have been on my mind, I noticed paneled art in Richard Scarry's books. And I'm sure there are other examples aplenty. But here's the thing, none are so sturdy as the board book. And sturdy is important at this house. These are the first board comics I've come across -- I hope to see more!

UPDATE 3/28/16: These continue to be popular with my kids, four years later. They're getting quite worn on the spines, but still holding up otherwise! I'm going to add an affiliate link so you can shop for these on Amazon. Looks like they've only got used copies, now.
Yo Gabba Gabba: Good Night, Gabbaland

Yo Gabba Gabba: Gabba Ball