Honor Vote Time! Honor book voting policies are weirdly absent from the RealCommittee P&P, but we checked in with a number of friends and colleagues, including at least one former RealCommittee Chair and one former RealCommittee Admin Assistant to make sure we had it down. And so we are ready to put the honor book [...]

Here’s the skinny.

BOMB . . .  Five starred reviews, three best lists, National Book Award finalist, and YALSA Nonfiction Award finalist.  The most buzzed nonfiction title of the year, BOMB is a thrilling cloak and dagger story that virtually reads like a novel.

CODE NAME VERITY . . . Six starred reviews, six best lists, Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor Award.  The standout literary fiction title of the year–with apologies to Margo Lanagan.  So happy to see Wein getting the recognition she deserves.  Now go check out all of her previous books, too.

ENDANGERED . . . One starred review, National Book Award finalist.  Having worked in Sierra Leone with the Peace Corps, Monica was really impressed by Schrefer’s ability to capture the complex nuances of the continent.  I wasn’t quite as enamored, but I figured it would make a nice bye round for either CODE NAME VERITY or THE FAULT IN OUR STARS.  Hey, what the %$#@ happened to the seeding!

THE FAULT IN OUR STARS . . . Six starred reviews, six best lists.  I’m never convinced that the new John Green novel is the Best Thing Ever Written–Like Ever, but I always think it’s a virtual lock for BBYA Top Ten (or whatever they’re calling that committee now).

JEPP, WHO DEFIED THE STARS . . . Three starred reviews.  With two other strong books in this niche–THE WICKED AND THE JUST, THE UNFORTUNATE SON–we thought this one was clearly the best.  Probably a bit of a surprise for many …

» Continue Reading: Wondering why we chose what we did?

Truth be told, I’ve never watched all of Rockey Horror Picture Show (to which the title of this post references). I tried when I was 16 or so and just couldn’t do it. Maybe I need to try again. Back on topic! The monthly roundup of most-requested books, #holdshelf, is back on track after a [...]

Before we say anything else, or share shiny data, and definitely before we name the book that gets the Pyrite* medal (which, really, would be more of a paperweight), we want to say thank you. Thank you, of course, for reading the blog. But mostly, and most importantly, thank you for caring about YA literature. [...]

Tomorrow I fly to Seattle; the Newbery committee is headed there right now, if they didn’t come in yesterday to get acclimated.  They may be preparing for the opening of their discussion, Friday morning, by reviewing the titles they feel they can most strongly champion.  At the same time that they articulate their defense of [...]

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)

Yeah! I’m heading to the American Library Association Midwinter Meeting, which is also the kick-off to my year on the Caldecott committee. The lead-up to ALA conferences always goes the same for me – I say I want to blog the sights, sounds, and unusual smells, and then barely manage to squeak out one measly [...]