Articles

September 3, 2026 by Travis Jonker

Kirkus Prize Finalists Announced!

The Kirkus Prize, sporting one of the biggest monetary awards in literature, has announced their group of 2026 Finalists. There are three children’s book categories: Picture Books Navigating Night, written by Julie Leung and illustrated by Angie Kang, and Electric Birds of Pothakudi, written by Karthika Naïr and illustrated by Joëlle Jolivet. I already love Navigating […]

September 1, 2026 by Travis Jonker

Odd Bookmarks

A long time ago, I made a bracket-style tournament to determine the worst bookmark ever. It was a tight race. So I was delighted to come across this piece at the new-to-me 1000 Libraries Magazine titled Libraries Reveal the Oddest Bookmarks Ever Left In Books. The saw blade really hooked me. Click here to read […]

August 31, 2026 by Travis Jonker

Notes on August 2026

In August . . . . . . we went down the children’s book parody rabbit hole again. There’s always a fresh crop. . . . I asked if you’d like to predict the 2027 Newbery Medal winner. The list of suggestions at Heavy Medal is a good place to start. . . . I […]

More Recent Posts

Updating the Caldecott Infographic!

August 28, 2026 by Travis Jonker

The Caldecott Medal Infographic gets an update!

Book-Related Headline of the Year?

August 27, 2026 by Travis Jonker

Sometimes I come across a children’s book story in the news that catches my eye. And this recent one from The Futurist definitely did that: Baby Boomers are whipping up AI-generated books for their grandkids, and the results are . . . awkward. Do I have to say, don’t do this?