It's the end of the month, so that means (for the moment!) the starred review spreadsheet that Donalyn Miller and I curate is up to date!
As a reminder, Donalyn and I curate and collate the starred reviews from six journals:
We realize, of course, that other sites/blogs award stars, too... but these are the journals we've chosen to focus on.
THE STARS SO FAR
1252 reviews recorded (so far!) and we're up to four books that have received a starred review from all six of the journals we curate! Some of you may remember that only two books received this distinction in 2023. And although there are several books, currently sitting with five stars, that I think deserve that 6th nod, I'm delighted to see that the following books have been loved by reviewers across the big six! At a little over halfway through the year, I wonder if we'll see more books with six stars this year!?
I was also excited to see a few of my other favorite books of the year earn additional stars this month! Here are just a few that I think deserve ALL THE STARS!
WHAT DID WE MISS?
Last month, a few people used the form I created to let me know that I had missed a star - thank you! As you might imagine, this project takes a lot of time and it's easy to make mistakes. I appreciate your help as I do my best to make sure the final product is as accurate as possible. That said, to be clear, we're not taking notes on misspellings, etc., but If, after at least a month**, you notice that we've missed a starred review from one of the journals we curate, please use this form to let us know.
**,Why do we ask you to wait a month? Some reviews appear online before that journal's official issue has been released. Waiting the month helps us avoid duplicating reviews.
Finally, as I've written about before, this work has proven to be very meaningful for me. In addition to making me aware of books I might never have heard of otherwise, it's also helped me recognize publishing trends more broadly. I feel better able to speak about children's literature, with another layer of authority, as a result of this work. It's a lot, but I'm super grateful for it.
Happy reading, y'all!
