SLJ BoB: Moonbird vs. Seraphina

My first disappointment.  It's not that I didn't enjoy Seraphina.  I did.  I just really loved Moonbird.  That tireless little guy worked his way into my heart and just would not let it go.  I can't fault judge Marie Lu for giving this one to a strong female character coming to terms with her identity over a bird that flies really long distances.  I get it.  I just loved that little tufted whats-his-bucket.

And so, I couldn't help it.  I had to choose this song to send Moonbird off.  I contemplated Free Bird, but I didn't think it was as "on message" when a) "and this bird you cannot change" does not hold true for this particularly amazing species that morphs itself into whatever the habitat and demands of the journey require and b) Lynrd Skynrd doesn't have a Vevo page where I can get the "official" video (I don't believe there is one).



We're getting to the end of Round 1.  Almost half of the books that entered this tournament have been knocked out, and after tomorrow a full half of them will be knocked out.  And just who will that lucky book be?  No Crystal Stair goes up against the formidable One and Only Ivan, and I'm betting that the judge won't waste too much time monkeying* around.  That's right.  I'm calling that One and Only Ivan will be the final title to advance to Round 2.

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SLJ BoB: Splendors and Glooms vs. Liar and Spy

I'm late! I'm late! For a very important post! Another correctly predicted match in the SLJ BoB.  Just like Taylor ham and cheese, I'm on a roll.  Whattup!?

That's right.  After counting up the many ways that she loved each book, judge Franny Billingsley chose the one her child self would have chosen: Splendors and Glooms.  Which, if you've read her book, Chime, makes a lot of sense.  They're both dark and magical, beautiful and haunting.

Sorry Liar and Spy.  You may be a sneaky peeker, but you did not win this round.  Still, we'll watch our backs knowing you're out there...waiting...watching...looking to come back.



I already gave a quick and dirty prediction for the Moonbird vs. Seraphina this morning, so I won't belabor that.  I chose Moonbird.   And I'll post about what the judge chose tomorrow morning.

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SLJ BoB: Prediction for Moonbird vs. Seraphina

Eek!  It's a busy week, and I was just about to accidentally read the blog post on Moonbird vs. Seraphina without having given a prediction.  So lemme do that right now: Moonbird.  Why?  Because it was nonfiction that drew you in right away with a "personal" story and made you keep reading to find out whether or not we would see little Moonbird again.  And oh, how you wanted to and how worried you were that you wouldn't.  Not that Seraphina wasn't good, or even great.  But it just wasn't as magical as Moonbird. And when you're comparing a nonfiction book to a fantasy book, and the nonfiction title is the one you call magical...well, that's the clincher for me.

And I'll be back later with some music.

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SLJ BoB: Jepp, Who Defied the Stars vs. Starry River of the Sky

Man, that Adam Gidwitz sure can rattle on and on without giving an answer, can't he?  I almost thought he was going to beg off on the decision and pass it off to someone else or otherwise do a coin toss.  I appreciate that it was a difficult decision to make, but did the decision need to be made in parentheses?

Okay, okay, I'll stop harping on him...because, well, he made the right decision.  At least in my eyes, he did.  Hooray and congratulations to Grace Lin's Starry River of the Sky! Let's celebrate with a starry song, shall we?



Tomorrow's match will be a grueling one, with two middle grade novels facing off.  In what is sure to be a close call, it's Newbery Award winning author Rebecca Stead's Liar and Spy vs. Newbery Award winning author Laura Amy Schlitz's Splendors and Glooms.  My money is on the well-spun fantasy to take this one, but it's really anyone's game.  Something in me says that the language and imagery will put S&G over the top, though.  But don't mark my words.  All will be revealed (or, I guess, has already been revealed, by the time this post goes live) on the SLJ BoB blog.

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SLJ BoB: Temple Grandin vs. The Fault in Our Stars

Two very deserving books that I read and loved faced off on Friday.  One came away the victor and the other went out to pasture*.  Judge Deb Caletti once again said wonderful things about the two titles.  And then, like most commentators guessed she would, she let Temple down easy.   But hold the phone! Can you believe how many authors and bloggers and people who you'd expect to read John Green (you know, what with all his critical acclaim and how beloved he and his books are to teens) haven't even cracked one of his books?  Thank goodness that's remedied.



















I was going to save this one for when/if TFIOS gets knocked out, but then I couldn't think of a different song to use, so, well, this is all I've got.  But don't worry Temple, "it's not your fault."



Monday's match (Round 1, Match 4) will be judged by Mr. Cutie Pie Fairytale himself, Adam Gidwitz.  Jepp, Who Defied the Stars will try to outshine Starry River of the Sky.  But I think Grace Lin's Chinese folktale's got this one.  I mean, it's a folktale.  And Gidwitz is judging.  He can't possibly choose little people over traditional tales, can he?  I think it's against his personal moral code.  Or at least it should be.

* Yes, I did just do that.

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SLJ BoB: Endangered vs. Three Times Lucky

Boom! Roasted.  Guess Ms. Turnage's book wasn't that lucky after all.  I think maybe what gave Endangered the advantage was the creepy extra set of arms. (What is going on there?)

Wow.  That was uncharacteristically mean of me. I'm sorry.  I'm in a feisty mood.  It's Friday.  It's a dress down day at school, and I'm headed to a Capitol Choices meeting, which means that I'll get out of my library for the day and talk books with some of the DC area's finest librarians.

But before I go, I must post a video that will see Three Times Lucky off into the sunset.  Figuring out today's video was harder than anticipated.  Ben Fold's The Luckiest doesn't fit.  Nor does Jason Mraz or Cobie Calliat's Lucky.  Or Frank Sinatra's Luck Be a Lady.  So this one is coming totally out of left field.  I hadn't heard it before today.  I give you Larry Norman's Unlucky.



Today's match-up (which the results have probably already been posted about, but I haven't seen them) puts The Fault in Our Stars against Temple Grandin.  Sorry Temple, I think you're going down.

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SLJ BoB: Code Name Verity vs. Titanic

Another day, another face-off.

This time, it was Elizabeth Wein's historical spy suspense novel Code Name Verity against Deborah Hopkinson's gripping narrative nonfiction Titanic: Voices from the Disaster.  

Are these graphics awesome, or what?

I was kind of hoping that judge Margarita Engle would give her ruling in verse, but it was not to be.  She went for straightforward prose.  A disappointment.  Not disappointing, however, was her judgment of espionage over icebergs.  I was a bit worried when she started making gaga eyes at Titanic's photographs (which, yes, were totally awesome!) and talking all sweet about how she was rooting for a different ending than the tragedy we all knew was inevitable (I was too!).  But in the end, she made the right decision.  Code Name Verity moves on to Round 2!

But I would be remiss if I didn't honor Titanic for the wonderful book that it was.  So for you, Titanic, I offer up this little ditty by Celine Dion.  Know that you were and are loved.  Near...Far...Wherever you are...



Tomorrow's match puts Elliot Schrefer's National Book Award finalist Endangered up against Sheila Turnage's Newbery-honored Three Times Lucky.  With Kathi Appelt making the call, I'm inclined to guess the bonobo ape will come out on top.  I guess we'll have to wait and see.

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SLJ BoB: Bomb vs. Wonder

The long-awaited day finally arrived and the SLJ Battle of the Kids' Books began with a bang.  Round 1, Match 1 brought us a match that built the titles up, and then brought one down.  In just a few short paragraphs, judge Kenneth Oppel lavished praise upon Palacio's Wonder and Sheinkin's Bomb.  And then, well, he dropped the bomb on Wonder.

Sorry Wonder.  I really liked you.  You had a great message that was delivered without being heavy-handed.  And even though I might have held against you the dual/multiple narrator thing (which I think is way overused), it actually worked for you.  Really well.

Here's a song for you, Wonder.




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SLJ Battle of the Kids Books: Meet the Contenders

The start of School Library Journal's Battle of the Kids Books is just days away.  Before we get into the grueling face-offs, BoB is giving each book a chance to introduce itself.  And in the most adorable way possible: with introductory blurbs written by student readers, in the voice of the book. Holy wow!

I loved these books before.  And now they have personalities.  Written by witty teens and pre-teens.  Who is their English teacher? Give that (wo)man or those (wo)men a raise.  Pronto.  Seriously.  It's a pretty serious writing task to personify a book.  And these are the bees knees.

Check it:

Contenders Speak Day 1 (Can you believe a 6th grader wrote the TFIOS blurb!?!?)
Contenders Speak Day 2 (...and the little book people that go along with each blurb!?!?)
Contenders Speak Day 3 (...those little book people! and more quality writing. What's not to love?)

Just a small taste of the icons.
IVAN!

Update!  Today has brought about Contenders Speak Day 4!

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SLJ Battle of the Books: The Undead

I know, I know, the battle hasn't even begun, so how can one possibly vote for which book needs to be brought back from the dead for the final round?  This is YOUR chance to put in a peanut gallery vote for your absolute favorite book.  The one you think should win.  At all costs.

Who knows, your favorite might make it all the way to the end.  But what if it gets knocked out in a surprise upset during the first round?  It's happened before. Some of these match-ups are tough.  And some of these judges have the tough decision of choosing one favorite book over another.

So take a look at the brackets.  There are a few particularly hard first round match-ups.  Maybe you vote for the one you think will get knocked out, but doesn't deserve it.  Maybe you're a Nerdfighter and will do everything in your power to make sure TFIOS makes it to the final round.  Maybe you loved Wonder and can't believe it got snubbed for the Newbery.  Whatever your loyalties, make them known.  Vote in the Undead Poll!

The LibrariYAn is an Amazon Associate. If you click from links on this blog to Amazon and buy something (anything!), I receive a small percentage of the purchase price.

SLJ Battle of the Books: Brackets!

A few weeks ago, the SLJ Battle of the Books (which I'm just going to need to refer to as BoB from now on) announced the match-ups for the first round.  Over the past week or two, they've announced the judges.  And now they've released the brackets, complete with judge assignments!

This can mean only one thing: February is almost over* and it's time to bring on March Madness!

The printable brackets haven't yet been released, but I'm sure they're on the way.  The first match (Bomb vs. Wonder, judged by Kenneth Oppel) will be on March 12th, though, so there's time.  Time to read and strategize.

*Thank the Good Lord.  I could not possibly take one more day of this dreaded cold, wet, dark and miserable month.

The LibrariYAn is an Amazon Associate. If you click from links on this blog to Amazon and buy something (anything!), I receive a small percentage of the purchase price.

SLJ Battle of the Kids' Books: Brackets Revealed

This morning the brackets for the SLJ Battle of the Kids' Books were revealed.  And something tells me that yesterday's Youth Media Awards announcements figured into these match-ups.

In some cases, titles that really brought home the bacon (ahem, Bomb) are paired with those that fell short of honors (ahem, Wonder).  In others, its widely applauded books (Temple Grandin and Fault in Our Stars) that didn't get the awards love that are matched up.  And then there are the books that received honors/awards that are now facing off (Seraphina vs. Moonbird).

Of course, maybe I'm just reading into things and the real reason some match-ups were created is more for comedic value and the opportunity for witty commentary.  Examples:

• Seraphina vs. Moonbird  = mighty dragons vs. tiny, yet powerful birds
• Starry River of the Sky vs. Jepp, Who Defied the Stars = "seeing stars," "lights out"
• Code Name Verity vs. Titanic = plans vs. boats
• Temple Grandin vs. The Fault in Our Stars = autism vs. cancer (Offensive? Yes. But...)

I'm going to stop there before I really get myself into trouble.

Needless to say, I'm pumped to start putting together my bracket and can't wait for the competition to get underway.

The LibrariYAn is an Amazon Associate. If you click from links on this blog to Amazon and buy something (anything!), I receive a small percentage of the purchase price.

SLJ Battle of the Kids' Books: The Contenders

The SLJ Battle of the Kids' Books is coming.  The contenders have been announced.  If you haven't read them all yet, you still have time. The competition won't get underway until March.

Here's who will be battling it out:

Bomb by Steve Sheinken (Macmillan)
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein (Hyperion)
Endangered by Eliot Schrefer (Scholastic)
Fault in Our Stars, The by John Green (Penguin)
Jepp, Who Defied the Stars by Katherine Marsh (Hyperion)
Liar & Spy by Rebecca Stead (Random House)
Moonbird by Philip Hoose (Macmillan)
No Crystal Stair by Vauda Micheaux Nelson (Lerner)
One and Only Ivan, The by Katherine Applegate (Harper Collins)
Seraphina by Rachel Hartman (Random House)
Splendors and Glooms by Laura Amy Schlitz (Candlewick)
Starry River of the Sky by Grace Lin (Little Brown)
Temple Grandin by Sy Montgomery (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage (Penguin)
Titanic by Deborah Hopkinson (Scholastic)
Wonder by R. J. Palacio (Random House)

I'm a happy girl, because the only two of these that I haven't read are Jepp, Who Defied the Stars, which truthfully, I've been avoiding (but will now break down and read) and Three Times Lucky, which was on my library hold list forever and just finally came in on Wednesday.  I can't wait to see what the bracket looks like and hear what the judges have to say!

The LibrariYAn is an Amazon Associate. If you click from links on this blog to Amazon and buy something (anything!), I receive a small percentage of the purchase price.

It's Coming: SLJ's Battle of the Kids' Books

Get your crystal balls and peanut gallery comments ready!  SLJ's Battle of the Kids' Books will be announcing this year's bracket contenders on Thursday, January 24th.  Make sure you're subscribed to their RSS feed on your reader (and make sure you have the updated internet locale too!)

The LibrariYAn is an Amazon Associate. If you click from links on this blog to Amazon and buy something (anything!), I receive a small percentage of the purchase price.

Let the Battle Begin! SLJ's Battle of the Kids Books is Back

Well, ok, not yet exactly. But soon!  The announcement of titles went out on twitter (follow them: SLJsBoB) today and Educating Alice was kind enough to copy down a complete list.  As always, I've read over 50% of the books (maybe even 75%), but there are still a bunch of titles I'm going to need to read before the battle begins, which is usually in March.  Better get reading!

The LibrariYAn is an Amazon Associate. If you click from links on this blog to Amazon and buy something (anything!), I receive a small percentage of the purchase price.

Comments from the Peanut Gallery: Let's Get Ready to Rumble!

SLJ's Battle of the Kids' Books kicks off today with what just may be the closest match-up of them all: Phillip Hoose's Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice versus Deborah Heiligman's Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith.  Judge Jim Murphy did an admirable job in making his decision (which I personally think was the right one).

But I won't spoil the decision here, just in case you haven't already heard.  Instead, I'll say that I think Murphy reasoned out his decision very well and I'm glad the decision came from someone as well-respected in the young adult non-fiction community as he is, so there can be no accusations of ballot-rigging or game throwing.

Tomorrow's match-up pits Jacqueline Kelly's debut novel The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate against Kristin Cashore's sophomore effort, Fire (Graceling).  I had the opportunity to get an ARC of Cashore's novel way back in early 2009, and loved.every.second.of.it.  Her world-building skills are top-notch (read her Horn Book article for more on that) and her strong female characters and well-paced storylines that keep you turning pages and rooting for good to overcome evil just can't be beat.  And what can I say about Calpurnia Tate? Well, I have Kelly's novel checked out from the library and have heard again and again just how fabulous it is, but alas, have not had a spare moment to sit down and read it.  I MUST do this tonight.

Kibbles n' Bits (and Gravy Bits!)

I haven't had the chance to read much lately, and that's caused a lack of things to blog about.  Happily, there's enough going on in the YAlitosphere that I can bring you this post, filled with bits o' news from around the interwebs!

• As you may be aware, Betsy Bird has been counting down the Top 100 Chapter Books over at her blog, Fuse #8.  What you may not have noticed is that just yesterday she quoted yours truly in her description of #35, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.
• This isn't news to me (or probably you either!) but I guess the rest of the adult world can sometimes be slow to catch on to things teens (and people who work with teens) know instinctively.  What I'm speaking about specifically is that YA lit is awesome. 
• Is there a YA book that you feel is under-appreciated? If so, nominate the title for the Nerds Heart YA tournament, and give it the chance to shine! Nominations must be submitted by March 31st.
• Opening Ceremonies got underway yeaterday, brackets are posted and the books are ready to battle to the death!  Check out SLJ's Battle of the Kids' Books.  The first contest is on March 15th.
• And finally, what good would an update be without an entry from The Twilight Zone? Summit Entertainment has released a teaser trailer for Eclipse, which releases in theatres on June 30th.

That's all for now, but I'll be back once I get a chance to read some of these paper things lying around the house.  Take care!

It's Baaaack!: The SLJ Battle of the Kids' Books

Ah March, the days are getting longer, the weather is slowly (very slowly) warming, and spring is in the air. March also brings the NCAA Basketball Tournament (aka March Madness) and the SLJ Battles of the Kids' Books (aka March Mayhem)!

From the BOKB blog: "School Library Journal's Battle of the (Kids') Books is a competition between 16 of the very best books for young people published in 2009, judged by some of the biggest names in children's books."

Last week, whilst I was overwhelmed with my personal life and didn't get around to blogging, they announced the contenders and judges. In alphabetical order, the books are:

Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith by Deborah Heiligman

Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice by Philip Hoose

The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly

Fire by Kristin Cashore

The Frog Scientist (Scientists in the Field Series) by Pamela S. Turner

The Last Olympian (Percy Jackson & the Olympians, Book 5) by Rick Riordan

Lips Touch: Three Times by Laini Taylor

The Lost Conspiracy by Frances Hardinge

Marcelo in the Real World (Schneider Family Book Award. Teen) by Francisco X. Stork

Marching For Freedom: Walk Together Children and Don't You Grow Weary by Elizabeth Partridge

Peace, Locomotion by Jacqueline Woodson

A Season of Gifts by Richard Peck

The Storm in the Barn by Matt Phelan

Sweethearts of Rhythm by Marilyn Nelson

Tales From Outer Suburbia by Shaun Tan

When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

What an amazingly diverse field with strong representation from the tween market! This is going to be an intense competition, and I don't even know who I'm rooting for just yet. I'm proud to note that I have purchased all of these books for my middle school library collection and I've read all but just a few, a failing which I shall quickly remedy this week.

Oh yeah, and the judges aren't too shabby either! Talk about a diverse crew of authors, running the gambit from science fiction to realistic fiction to novels in verse to graphic novels, and also culturally diverse!

M. T. Anderson
Christopher Paul Curtis
Nancy Farmer
Candace Fleming
Helen Frost
Shannon Hale
Angela Johnson
Cynthia Kadohata
Julius Lester
Jim Murphy
Walter Dean Myers
Katherine Paterson
Gary Schmidt
Anita Silvey
Megan Whalen Turner

I am PUMPED for this competition to get underway! Brackets will be posted tomorrow, March 1st, on the fancy-dancy NEW website (which doesn't yet exist for public view), the same day the real excitement begins!

Oh, and I've got a preliminary favorite: Fire by Kristin Cashore. But really, with a competition featuring so many awesome books, I can hardly be upset no matter who wins!

The LibrariYAn is an Amazon Associate. If you click from links on this blog to Amazon and buy something (anything!), I receive a small percentage of the purchase price.

Octavian Ain't Got Nothing on These Games

It's the final countdown! (cue 80s action movie montage featuring books training for competition, clad in headbands and sweats, running, working the speed bag, etc. - you know the drill)

Wednesday's match-up decides the winner of SLJ's Battle of the Books, and judge Lois Lowry better not screw it up!

Er, um, what I mean is...I sure hope Lois Lowry gets as sucked into Katniss's story as I did, so that she just can't help but award this suspense-filled novel the prize it deserves.

I'm sure Octavian Nothing is a great book, and I even had it bracketed to make it this far into the competition, but it's time for Octavian to get on the boat and head home. No, I haven't read it. I meant to. I checked the first one out of the library (twice, actually!), but just never got around to actually reading it. It'll happen this summer. Promise. I'm sure John Green is disappointed in me, but I lent him my computer last week and I'm going to subscribe to his vlog, so I think we're even.

But that's not even the point. The point is that Katniss and District 12 deserve this win, and I can think of at least two teens who agree.

The Kat Fight That Wasn't

I had big plans for a Friday post entitled Kat Fight, but alas, Nancy Werlin has ruined those best laid plans. Sadly, Kristin Cashore's Graceling has fallen to Candace Fleming's The Lincolns in SLJ's Battle of the Books. So, instead of a Katniss (Hunger Games) / Katsa (Graceling) showdown, it'll be Katniss against Abe and Mary. Katniss was able to take down a whole field of stronger, better conditioned contenders in The Hunger Games though, so I have faith her to pull through once again. Cris Crutcher better not mess this one up.