Source: Children Come First http://www.childrencomefirst.com/2003bksensebkyrfinalists.shtml Awards The American Booksellers Association has announced the finalists for the 2003 Book Sense Book of the Year Awards. The finalists in six categories -- Adult Fiction, Adult Nonfiction, Children's Literature, Children's Illustrated, Rediscovery, and Paperback -- are all Book Sense 76 titles nominated by ABA bookseller members as their handselling favorites. The awards will be announced at the Celebration of Bookselling, on Friday, May 30, during this year's BookExpo America, at the Los Angeles Convention Center in California. Book Sense Book of the Year ballots will be sent to all ABA bookstore members at the end of March. The tabulation of votes will be handled by KPMG, and the results will be kept secret until the May 30 event. The finalists, listed in alphabetical order by title in each category, are: Atonement, by Ian McEwan, Nan Talese/Doubleday Blue Latitudes: Boldly Going Where... , by Tony Horwitz, Holt The Arctic Incident (Artemis Fowl) , by Eoin Colfer, Hyperion Dear Mrs. La Rue: Letters From Obedience... , by Mark Teague, Scholastic Auntie Mame: An Irreverent Escapade , by Patrick Dennis, Broadway Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress , by Sijie Dai, Anchor Commenting on the finalists, ABA President Ann Christophersen said, "This diverse list reflects how Book Sense has continued to grow and gain momentum over the past four years. Now that we have expanded to six categories, this gives us the opportunity to honor even more of the thousands of titles that independent booksellers handsell each day. And, as we enter the next stage of voting to select one book in each category, I think that each one of these books is worthy of being named the Book Sense Book of the Year and deserves the public's attention." The Book Sense Book of the Year Awards, inaugurated in 2000, have become a much anticipated component of the Book Sense program and have grown from two awards to this year's six. In 2000, the Book Sense Book of the Year Awards were presented in an Adult and a Children's category. In 2001, these categories were split into Adult Fiction, Adult Nonfiction, Children's Illustrated, and Children's Literature. The Rediscovery award, added in 2002, is drawn from a mix of adult and children's backlist or recently reissued books that made the year's Book Sense 76 lists. This year, reflecting the increasing significance of the Book Sense program and independents' role in supporting books of quality, the Paperback award was added. The Paperback category is open to both fiction and nonfiction titles. All current ABA member bookstores can vote for the Book Sense Book of the Year. The remaining four finalists in each category will be awarded the title of Book Sense Honor Book. All nominated authors and illustrators will be invited to attend the award ceremonies and the Book Sense 76 Lunch, also to be held on Friday, May 30, at BEA. (C) Copyright 2002 American Booksellers Association. All Rights Reserved |