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A Little Info on the Kidlitosphere

I often find that my students do not know what a blog is. Even if you do read a few blogs, you may not be familiar with the kidlitosphere--the world of blogs about children's literature. I'm relatively new to the whole experience myself, but over the past couple of years, I've learned a few things that might also be of interest to you.

First, you should take a look at an article written by Betsy Bird, a NYC children's librarian and blogger magnifico, titled: Blogging the Kidlitosphere. You will also want to subscribe to her blog, A Fuse #8 Production.

Another fabulous thing about the kidlitosphere is that they have their own annual awards, The Cybils. Anyone can submit nominations for books in the categories of fantasy/science fiction, graphic novels, middle grade and YA fiction and non-fiction, fiction and non-fiction picturebooks, and poetry. Children's and YA bloggers volunteer to serve on the selection committees. This year, the awards were announced on Valentine's Day. Take a look at all of the finalists as well as the winners and I'm sure you find great books to add to your reading list.

The kidlitosphere also has it's own online magzine, The Edge Forest, edited by Kelly Herold, a wonderful children's literature blogger (subscribe to her blog, Big A little A). The Edge Forest is published monthly and is full of book reviews and interviews with bloggers and authors of children's literature. You must check it out!

The Children Book Reviews wiki is place where you can find dozens of children's book reviews in a variety of categories by children's literature bloggers all in one place.

Another interesting happening in the blogging world is blog carnivals. The children's literature carnival is "a collection of posts about children's books: book reviews, interviews, stories from parents and teachers about their kids' adventures with books, peeks into the studio of children's book authors and illustrators, and more." You can find a list of previous carnival posts and where the next one will be held at A Carnival of Children's Literature.

As you look at these blogging resources, you'll find a group of very dedicated authors, teachers, librarians, parents, and others working together to bring current news and information along with their own thoughts and insights to all of us who are interested in children's literture.

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