Cybils Finalists are up!

Happy New Year! What better way to begin here in blog-land than to salute the best of ’07. 3 cheers, because… the Cybils finalists are beginning to pop up over at Cybils Headquarters.

I am immensely excited about all of this, in part because I was one of the Middle Grade panelists. Boy was it a challenge to whittle so many worthy books down to only 8. It was almost painful. After much reading (much, I tell you, much), some careful scoring, hours of discussion, a little defending, and some tears (kidding), the lovely crew shook hands and settled on these beauties:

Leap of Faith – Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

Cracker – Cynthia Kadohata

Louisiana’s Song – Kerry Madden, my review

Miss Spitfire – Sarah Miller

Wild Girls – Pat Murphy

Emma Jean Lazarus Fell Out of a Tree – Lauren Tarshis, my review

A Crooked Kind of Perfect – Linda Urban, my review

Leepike Ridge – N.D. Wilson, my review

My first year of involvement with the Cybils could not have been more fun. And this was, in large part, due to my excellent fellow panelists, whom I wish to thank:

Miss Erin
Little Willow
Teen Book Review
Kate’s Book Blog
A Patchwork of Books
Semicolon
and our fearless coordinator: A Chair, A Fireplace and a Tea Cosy

I think that all of the nominated titles deserve congratulation. It was a treat to discover many authors that were new to me, and to marvel at so much great talent. (I’m glad I don’t have to choose the winner. Too hard).