YALSA Awards for Young Adult: 2013

Here are some of the YALSA (Young Adult Library Services Association) book awards honoring young adult writers in 2013. Among its missions, YALSA strives to evaluate material of interest to teens (12-18) and to expand the library's outreach. Additional awards and book summaries can be found at their website. Check it out! 



Morris Award (honors best YA Debut Books)

Winner:
--Seraphina  by Rachel Hartman (Random House for Young Readers, 2012)

Finalists:
--Wonder Show by Hannah Barnaby (HMH Books for Young Readers, 2013)
--Love and Other Perishable Items by Laura Buzo (Ember, 2013) 
--After the Snow by S. D. Crockett (Feiwel & Friends, 2012)
--The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily M. Danforth (Balzer + Bray, reprint 2013)


Michael L. Printz Award (honors literary excellence in YA)

Winner:
--In Darkness by Nick Lake (Bloomsbury Books for Young Readers, 2012)

Honor Books:
--Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz (Simon & Schuster BFYR, 2012)
--Code Name Verity  by Elizabeth Wein (Hyperion, reprint 2013)
--Dodger  by Terry Pratchett (HarperCollins Children’s Books, reprint 2013)
--The White Bicycle  by Beverley Brenna (Red Deer Press, 2012)


Nonfiction Awards (honors best YA nonfiction) 


Winner:
--Bomb: The Race to Build - and Steal- the World's Most Dangerous Weapon by Steve Sheinkin (Flash Point, 2012)

Finalists:
--Steve Jobs: The Man Who Thought Different, a biography by Karen Blumenthal (Square Fish, 2012) 
--Moonbird: A Year on the Wind with the Great ---Survivor B95 by Phillip Hoose (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2012)
--Titanic: Voices from the Disaster by Deborah Hopkinson (Scholastic Press, 2012)
--We've Got a Job: The 1963 Birmingham Children's March by Cynthia Levinson (Peachtree Publishers, 2012)

The 39 Clues: Cahill Files: Spymasters by Clifford Riley: Book Review

The 39 Clues: Cahill Files: Spymasters
Author: Clifford Riley
Publisher: Scholastic Inc., 2013
Age level: 8-12, Middle Grade
Pages: 250



The 39 Clues: Cahill Files: Spymasters continues the Cahill family saga and the secrets they have guarded for generations. Their enemies, the Vespers, are constantly on the prowl searching for artifacts, documents, and other items capable of causing grave harm in the world. Three stories are told.

In the Redcoat Chase, twelve-year-old Frederick is sent on an important Cahill mission. America is at war (1814) with Britain. Frederick must locate the map to Gideon’s ring. Frederick races to the White House on horseback, chased by a Redcoat Vesper. Frederick meets the first lady and both are nearly killed in the search.

In The Houdini Escape, young Harry Houdini is a poor immigrant’s son in New York City (1891), earning little performing magic tricks. Overhearing a man bullying his ailing father (a Cahill descendant), Harry confronts a powerful Vesper named Zoltan. Instead he is kidnapped, bound, and thrown into the harbor. Cleverly skilled with ropes, Harry easily escapes. Zoltan captures him again and threatens to kill Harry’s family, unless he agrees to steal a valuable museum artifact. Harry agrees, performing his greatest magic trick yet. 

In The Submarine Job, fourteen-year-old Fiske Cahill rushes to help his sister. She is guarding a ring the Vespers desperately want. The year is 1955. Fiske takes the ring and goes undercover as the grandson of an admiral. He boards the USS Nautilus, the first ever nuclear submarine, and heads for safety in Puerto Rico. However, an undercover Vesper also boards and Fiske must fight for his life.

Readers can learn more online and continue the popular adventure with the game cards provided. Having jumped into the middle of this series, it was not clear to me what exactly the 39 clues are. Riley seems to have deviated from the original quest, but maybe it doesn't matter. The 39 Clues: Cahill Files is an entertaining read, a good adventure story for boys especially, and full of historical references (at least in this edition).


Copyright 2014 © Sharon M. Himsl

Sharon M. Himsl

Writer/Author. Blogging since 2011. 
Published with Evernight Teen: 
~~The Shells of Mersing
 

Weekly Recap: Touching the Stars

For me it is a pretty full plate this January. I no longer work outside the home, so some of you may just roll your eyes with envy. Juggling family, writing, and other passions with an outside job is demanding, no question. Done that, been there before! I do have a part-time editing job, but it so part-time it hardly counts. 

Started my Master Gardener class yesterday and excited I can finally do this, as there was never enough time before. Homework, lectures, and online exams will keep me busy through mid-April and I am meeting a great group of like-minded gardeners. Still determined to submit my novel by the end of this month. Worked on it almost 17 hours last week toward that end. Later this month, I will be attending a regional SCBWI workshop (Spokane, WA) called "Building a Following: How to Grow Your Author Platform Before and After Publication." Working on one book review, but (darn) missed my 'read one book a week' goal last week, so need to think about that. All in all, it's lining up to be a month of learning. Hope your week is going well. Is it?

Below is a quote from a book called The Treasure Chest, a high school graduation gift to me from my parents many years ago. I cannot tell you how often I have read and enjoyed this collection of quotes and poetry over the years. I will read it my entire life. Today's quote about 'touching the stars' seemed so applicable to the goals I am seeking and the frustration I sometimes feel. I love how it ends. I could not help but think of blogger friends like you and others in my life :)

"You Can Touch Stars"

Stars have too long been symbols of the
unattainable. They should not be so. For
although our physical hands cannot reach
them, we can touch them in other ways

Let stars stand for those things which are
ideal and radiant in life; if we seek sincerely
and strive hard enough, it is not impossible
to reach them, even though the goals seem
distant at the onset.

And how often do we touch stars when we
find them close by in the shining lives of
great souls, in the sparkling universe of
humanity around us!

(Esther Baldwin York)

  

Good Reads Choice Awards 2013: Young Adult and Younger

Really like the Good Reads Choice Awards. Readers vote on their favorite books. Be sure to click on the Good Reads link for more information and other genres. Below is a handy list of books for  young adults and younger. Books are listed in descending order, the first one having the most votes. Not my choices necessarily, but it is interesting to see what readers like. Enjoy!

Best Young Adult Fiction (20):

--Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell (21,818 votes)

--Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

--Dare You To by Katie McGarry

--United We Spy by Ally Carter

--The Moon and More by Sarah Dessen

--Just One Day by Gayle Forman

--Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan

--Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys

--Ali's Pretty Little Lies by Sara Shepard

--Perfect Scoundrels by Ally Carter

--If You Find Me by Emily Murdoch

--This Is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith

--The Distance Between Us by Kasie West

--Game by Barry Lyga

--Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein

--Wild Cards by Simone Elkeles

--Forgive Me Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick

--The Beginning of Everything by Robyn Schneider

--Where the Stars Still Shine by Trish Doller

--Golden by Jessi Kirby 

Best Young Adult Fantasy & Science Fiction (20)

--Allegiant by Veronica Roth (36,157 votes)

--Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare

--The Indigo Spell by Richelle Mead

--Opal by Jennifer L. Armentrout

--Scarlet (Lunar Chronicles) by Marissa Meyer

--Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson

--The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey

--The Elite by Kiera Cass

--Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas

--Prodigy (Legend) by Marie Lu

--Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi

--Requiem by Lauren Oliver

--The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken

--Light by Michael Grant

--Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi

--The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater

--Etiquette Espionage (Finishing School) by Gail Carriger

--Siege and Storm (The Grisha) by Leigh Bardugo

--The Rithmatist (Rithamatist) by Brandon Sanderson

--The Fall of Five (Lorien Legacies) by Pittacus Lore

Best Middle Grade and Children's books (20)

--The House of Hades by Rick Riordan (42,877 votes)

--Fortunately, the Milk by Neil Gaiman

--Dork Diaries by Rachel Renee Russell

--The Land of Stories (The Enchantress Returns) by Chris Colfer

--Doll Bones by Holly Black

--The Runaway King by Jennifer A. Nielsen

--The Sun Trail (Warriors: Dawn of the Clans) by Erin Hunter

--Fyre (Septimus Heap) by Angie Sage

--Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan

--Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library by Chris Grabenstein

--Navigating Early by Clare Vanderpool

--Chasing the Prophecy (Beyonders) by Brandon Mull

--Prisoner B-3087 by Alan Gratz

--Trust No One (The 39 Clues: Cahills vs. Vespers) by Linda Sue Park

--The Screaming Staircase (Lockwood & Co.) by Jonathan Stroud

--The School of Good and Evil by Soman Chainani

--The Girl Who Soared Over Fairyland and Cut the Moon in Two by Catherynne M. Valente

--The Royal Ranger (Ranger's Apprentice) by John Flanagan

--Loki's Wolves (The Blackwell Pages) by K.L. Armstrong and M.A Marr

--Rump: The true Story of Rumpelstiltskin by Liesl Shurtliff

Best Picture Books (20)

--The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt, Oliver Jeffers (9,087 votes)

--The Dark by Lemony Snicket, Jon Kassen

--Chus's Day by Neil Gaiman, Adam Rex

--A Little Book of Sloth by Lucy Cooke

--Journey by Aaron Becker

--Unicorn Thinks He's Pretty Great by Bob Shea

--My Brother's Book by Maurice Sendak

--Count the Monkeys by Mac Barnett, Kevin Cornell

--Flora and the Flamingo by Molly Idle

--That Is Not a Good Idea! by Mo Willems

--The Matchbook Diary by Paula Fleischman, Bagram Ibatoulline

--Mr. Tiger Goes Wild by Peter Brown

--Exclamation Mark by Amy Krouse Rosenthal, Tom Lichtenheld

--Open This Little Book by Jesse Kausmeier, Suzy Lee

--On a Beam of Light: A Story of Albert Einstein by Jennifer Berne, Vladimir Radunsky

--Mr. Wuffles! by David Wiesner

--Mustache Baby by Bridget Heos, Joy Ang

--Deck the Walls! A Wacky Christmas Carol by Erin Dealey, Nick Ward

--If You Want to See a Whale by Julie Fogliano, Erin E. Stead

--Sophie's Squash by Pat Zietlow Miller, Anne Wilsdorf

Celebrate the Small Things: Even a Messy Desk

Was pleased to see the Celebrate the Small Things blog hop has been extended . . .

Okay, sharing my messy desk with the blog world today, going public here. It's been a busy two weeks, blogging (and visiting blogs) more  than ever before, with the exception of the A-Z in April, and despite the holiday. I have enjoyed the conversations at your blogs and learned more about you, as we share our lives and different perspectives, and (always, it seems) offer words of encouragement, but as you can see . . .  My husband even pulled out the vacuum cleaner twice, despite the fact I have an i-robot that does just fine, thank you.

Another noticeable difference with increased blogging is that my stats have changed, not the total number of page views or visits necessarily (although there, too), but the audience. I was dealing with a lot of  'referrer spam' before . . . Vampire and 7secrets, to name two. For some reason, the more you blog, the more referrer spam drops off. I'm not exactly sure why or what the purpose of this type of spam is, except that I am told (online) it is nothing to worry about unless you start clicking on the links, which increases the visits (Eeeh....did this in the beginning out of curiosity). Have any of you dealt with referrer spam before?

So . . . today I am celebrating the Messy Desk. Such as it is, it has brought exceeding joy, some thoughtful moments, and a means to doing great things . . . We should always think 'big', right?

"Reach high, for stars lie hidden in your soul.

Dream deep, for every dream precedes the goal.  

(Pamela Vaull Starr)

Copyright 2014 © Sharon Himsl

Thanks Viklit for making this blog hop possible.  

Cybils Award Finalists 2013: A Handy List

Children's and Young Adult Blogger's Literary Awards

Here are some of the finalists. Listed are genres I tend to review, but there are more! Click here for other awards and more information.

Fiction: Middle Grade 

--Escape from Mr. Lemoncellos' Library by Chris Grabenstein (Random House Books for Young Readers)
--Prisoner B-3087 by Alan Gratz (Scholastic)
--Serafina's Promise by Ann E. Burg (Scholastic)
--The 14 Fibs of Gregory K. by Greg Pincus (Arthur A. Levine)
--Ultra by David Carroll (Scholastic Canada)

Fiction: Picture Books

--Count the Monkeys by Mac Barnett (Disney Hyperion)
--If You Want to See a Whale by Julie Fogliano (Roaring Brook)
--Journey by Aaron Becker (Candlewick Press)
--Mr. Tiger Goes Wild by Peter Brown (Little, Brown)
--Open This Little Book by Jesse Klausmeir (Chronicle Books)
--Sophie's Squash by Pat Zietlow Miller (Schwarts and Wade Books)
--The Bear's Song by Benjamin Chaud (Chronicle Books)

Speculative Fiction (Science Fiction and Fantasy): Elementary and Middle Grade

--Jinx by Sage Blackwood (HarperCollins)
--Lockwood & Co.: The Screaming Staircase by Jonathan Stroud (Disney Hyperion)
--Rose by Holly Webb (Sourcebooks Jabberwocky)
--Sidekicked by John David Anderson (Walden Pond Press)
--The Rithmatist by Brandon Sanderson (Tor Teen)
--The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp by Kathi Appelt (Atheneum)
--The Water Castle by Megan Frazer Blakemore (Walker Books for Young Readers)

Nonfiction: Elementary and Middle Grade

--Anubis Speaks! by Vicky Alvear Shecter (Boyds Mills Press)
--Barbed Wire Baseball by Marisa Moss (Harry N. Abrams)
--How Big Were Dinosaurs? by Lita Judge (Roaring Brook)
--Locomotive by Brian Floca (Atheneum)
--Look Up! Bird-Watching in Your Own Backyard by Annette LeBlanc Cate (Candlewick Press)
--The Boy Who Loved Math: The Improbable Life of Paul Erdos by Deborah Heiligman (Roaring Brook)
--Volcano Rising by Elizabeth Rusch and Susan Swan (Charlesbridge)

Fiction: Young Adult

--Dr. Bird's Advice for Sad Poets by Evan Roskos (Houghton Mifflin Books for Children)
--Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell (St. Martin's Griffin)
--Out of The Easy by Ruta Sepetys (Philomel)
--Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein (Disney Hyperion)
--Sex and Violence by Carrie Mesrobian (Carolrhoda Books)
--Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass by Meg Medina (Candlewick Press)

Nonfiction: Young Adult

--Breakfast on Mars and 37 Other Delectable Essays (Roaring Brook)
--Imprisoned: The Betrayal of Japanese Americans during World War II by Martin W. Sandler (Walker Books for Young Readers)
--The Boy on the Wooden Box: How the Impossible Became Possible . . . on Schindler's List by Leon Leyson (Atheneum)
--The Bronte Sisters: The Brief Lives of Charlotte, Emily, and Anne by Catherine Reef (Clarion Books)
--"The President Has Been Shot!" The Assassination of John F. Kennedy by James L. Swanson (Scholastic)

Speculative Fiction (Science Fiction & Fantasy): Young Adult

--Conjured by Sarah Beth Durst (Walker Books for Young Readers)
--Dark Triumph (His Fair Assassin Trilogy) by Robin LaFevers (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
--Pantomime by Laura Lam (Strange Chemistry)
--Shadows by Robin McKinley (Nancy Paulsen Books)
--The Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson (Arthur A. Levine)
--The Waking Dark by Robin Wasserman (Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers)
--William Shakespeare's Star Wars by Ian Doescher (Quirk Books)