When the two big “new year” markers come around – a new school year in September and a new calendar year in January – I like to pause and reflect on the books that have made a difference in my heart and mind over the course of the year. Much like special people or meaningful […]
Author Archives: donalynm
January
03
The 2023 Nerdies: Young Adult Fiction Day Two Announced by a Convention of Nerds
posted by donalynm
Today marks the last day of the 2023 Nerdy Book Club Awards’ announcements. There are so many fantastic books for young readers. Thank you for everything you do all year to get engaging and relevant books into kids’ hands. ! Our final Nerdies’ post shares the second half of the Young Adult Fiction winners. Thank […]
January
02
The 2023 Nerdies: Young Adult Fiction Day One Announced by a Chapter of Nerds
posted by donalynm
Recommendations like the Nerdy Book Club Awards lists, collected from experienced readers and educators, can be useful as one resource when identifying and evaluating titles to include in library collections or offer for independent reading. Nominations for the Nerdy Book Club awards come from scholars, teachers, librarians, authors, illustrators, editors, families and other readers of […]
December
31
The 2023 Nerdies: Longform Nonfiction Announced by Donalyn Miller
posted by donalynm
I didn’t coin the term “longform nonfiction,” but I cannot recall where I learned the term. Probably Teri Lesesne. Longform nonfiction includes various types of nonfiction presented in a format that is NOT poetry, a graphic novel or a picture book. Check out more nonfiction titles in other formats on the Nerdies lists that have […]
December
30
The 2023 Nerdies: Poetry and Novels in Verse Announced by Donalyn Miller
posted by donalynm
In my middle school and upper elementary classrooms, poetry was the licorice of the classroom library. No one was neutral about poetry. Everyone had feelings about it. Many of my students loved to read and write poetry. Others expressed how much they disliked poetry or didn’t understand it. As with any sort of reading my […]
December
29
The 2023 Nerdies: Early Readers and Chapter Books Announced by Alyson Beecher
posted by donalynm
Have you ever tried to guess what books would make it to the Nerdies in a particular category? It can be hard. For the Early Readers and Chapter Book category, there was a time that would be very easy to guess possible titles. It seemed like the same authors and the same series were being […]
December
28
The 2023 Nerdies: Graphic Novels Announced by Katherine Sokolowski
posted by donalynm
One of my favorite parts of my winter break from school is when I see the email in my inbox from Donalyn Miller sharing the winners for this year’s Nerdies in the Graphic Novel category. I love to pour over the list, thinking which titles my students are already devouring, which ones I need to […]
December
27
The 2023 Nerdies: Nonfiction Picture Books Announced by Donalyn Miller
posted by donalynm
I love nonfiction picture books. When I taught social studies, I shared biographies and books about geography, history, and culture with my students. My students built their background knowledge about the world and encountered the stories of many people who were unknown to them. I did, too! The best nonfiction picture books feed the joy […]
December
11
Nominate Your 2023 Favorites for the 13th Annual Nerdies! by Donalyn Miller
posted by donalynm
In November, Goodreads, the well-known social media site for readers, opened voting for its annual Goodreads Choice Awards. Many members noticed some disappointing changes. Children’s and middle grade, poetry, and graphic novels were removed from the voting categories. In other words, Dan Santat’s lauded graphic memoir, A First Time for Everything, won the National Book […]
June
24
The 2023 Book Love Foundation Book Club by Clare Landrigan
posted by donalynm
“Because one day you will share something wonderful that only you know how to make.” ~ Danielle Davis from To Make The Book Love Summer Book Club officially launches on Monday. The words from one of our book club texts this year, To Make, by Danielle Davis and Mags DeRoma, beautifully reflect this annual event: […]
Nerdy Book Club 