Tools

Ever wonder where you can find lists of great fantasy books?  Our team of reviewers at n2imagination used the following tools to help us select great fantasy books to read.  Many of these tools are freely available to others on the internet or via your public library's online databases.

Mythopoeic Society:  This society of fantasy fans annually presents The Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Children's Literature.  Anyone can access their list of winners and honor books at:  http://www.mythsoc.org/awards/winners/

DAWCL / Database of Award Winning Children's Literature:  This database can be accessed online at:  http://www.dawcl.com/search.asp
By entering the genre="fantasy" and selecting the desired age range, you can find a list of award-winning fantasy books for your age-range.

Booklist Top Ten SF/Fantasy for Youth:  Every year the American Library Association's Booklist produces a list of the ten best Science Fiction and Fantasy Books for youth.  This current list is available online at:  http://www.booklistonline.com/ProductInfo.aspx?pid=3516193

YALSA / Young Adult Library Services Association:  This sub-committee of the American Library Association selects award-winning books each year.  Readers can peruse these lists looking for good reads, some of which are in the Fantasy genre.  Access to the award-winning book lists are available online at:  http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/booklistsawards/booklistsbook.cfm

Novelist:  This database search tool was created by EBSCO Publishing to help school media specialists to locate books by age range, genre and other criteria.  You can acess this database via your public library's online databases, if it has a subscription.  Accessing this tool via San Francisco Public Library, our team was able to search for Fantasy Genre titles for ages 9-12.  Learn more about this tool at http://www.ebscohost.com/novelist/default.php?id=5

Shelfari:  This social networking site is targeted to people who enjoy a good book.  Members can share what's on their bookshelf and view what others have to say about those books.  Membership is free at http://www.shelfari.com/

Word of Mouth:  Ask a teacher or talk to the librarian at your school or local public library.  These folks do a terrific job of keeping abreast of the lastest books for tweens.  We found our fellow-professionals to be invaluable and hope you do too.