Welcome to Fab Book Reviews!

My name is Michelle and I’m a Children’s Librarian in Canada. I live with my husband (known as Mr. Fab) who is also an avid reader, our lovely daughter, and another little one on the way!

What do I love to read? A lot of different things! Picture books, children’s lit, young adult, contemporary fiction, historical fiction, Canadian lit, mysteries, comic strips, graphic novels, and more! (You can read more about what I generally read and review here!).

For three years I reviewed teen titles for my now-defunct site Fabbity Fab Book Reviews. After a few years of reading reviews and wishing I could get it together to start my own review site, I…got it together and started my own site! I was so proud of that project. Not only did I get to share my favourite reads, feature bookish news, and highlight Canadian authors, but I was also introduced to some amazing and talented reviewers, bloggers, writers, and authors. The last six months of FFBR was, however, a struggle. I found it harder and harder to feel inspired or motivated to review books. LIFE was happening, lots of changes going on, and reading and reviewing fell by the wayside. When Blogger/Google crapped out on me suddenly (it’s a tedious story), I was torn. A bit of relief because the site had been dwindling…but also a bit of panic. What about all the work I had put in? The friends I had made? What was I going to do? Continue reviewing and blogging or…pack it in?

Well, I decided not to pack in it! I started Fab Book Reviews in May of 2014, and have been plugging away since then: expanding the genres I review, creating Must Read Monday and picture book lists, and bringing my genuine and open love of literature and art to this site.

2017 was a big, busy year for me in terms of my work on this site. I had the opportunity to grow even more professionally in my library work, and that fed into expanding my work here as a reviewer. I had fantastic opportunities to connect with even more new publishers, new authors and illustrators. I am also very honoured and touched to have been asked by Quill & Quire magazine to contribute to their year end (2017) issues, with my picks for best Canadian children’s graphic novel and non-fiction title.

2018 looks to be- fingers-crossed!- another packed, book and review-filled year. On the personal end of things, my husband and I are gearing up to (knock wood!) welcome another baby in late January, so we will have a very busy household with two young ones! (Things might seem a little hairy for the first few months here, so bear with me!). On the blogging and reviewing side of things, I hope 2018 is filled with even more reading, writing, discovery, and exploration of even more fantastic, wondrous and beautiful literature!

-updated January 2018