Best big word in a picture book

That honor, at least this week, will have to go to "malfeasance", from Ian Falconer's Olivia and the Fairy Princesses. As in: "I [Olivia] could be a reporter and expose corporate malfeasance."

I have to confess--I can't even pronounce 'malfeasance'.

Am I the only one who thinks that Olivia will grow up to be Harriet the Spy?

Bring on the 2012 Cybils!

I'm excited and honored to once again be participating in the Children's and Young Adult Bloggers Literary Awards (but known as the Cybils among friends.) This will be my 5th year acting as a judge, my 4th year in non-fiction, my 2nd year reading for the Non-Fiction Middle Grade Young Adult (NFMG/YA) category, and my 1st year as a second-round judge in the category. Phew! I think that covered all the bases.

Let's be honest--the Cybils is a labor of love: it takes an enormous amount of time to read all the books which are nominated (this cannot be understated!) by dedicated individuals who probably read a lot anyway. Still! It's a ton of books (or apps, for those on the Book App committees.) It's certainly good for the circulation statistics at my local library, as I start requesting copies of the nominated titles. But to finally have a decent excuse to ignore chores and tackle all the great books I've been eyeballing all year ("sorry hon--no clean laundry today. Committee work!") is liberating.

So come on--help me avoid housework! Give me lots of books to read! Nominate your favorite childrens and young adult books in a variety of categories. Nominations open 1 October 2012 and will remain open until 15 October 2012. You can read the Cybils FAQ here to get the nitty-gritty on the nominating process. Then be sure to scour those nomination lists and marvel at all the wonderful books that have been published this past year.

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase

My review of The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken is today's Retro Review over at the Nerdy Book Club. Check it out!

Appropos of nothing

So....who watched Saturday's new Doctor Who episode? I did. And I immediately thought of every one's favorite Time Lord when this arrived in Monday's new book order:

You can't go wrong with dinosaurs in a public library. Dinosaur books come second only to Captain Underpants replacement copies in my book order hierarchy. I personally am not big on dinosaurs. But I have a few favorites. In no particular order:

A sentimental favorite, because it was one of the first books I was able to read on my own.

OK--I've not read this one. But I love the retro theme that's rocking the cover.

Here's one I have read--repeatedly. The idea of receiving dinosaurs instead of lollipops when out on errands with mum seems immensely satisfying. As a child I probably would have preferred ponies to dinosaurs-----but still! Free pets!

 According to this cover, I'd say they descended from Heaven! I like the original approach of this title. Folks are usually more interested in where the dinosaurs went.

 :)

What is your favorite dinosaur book?