Young Reader's Choice Award
The Pacific Northwest Library Association's Young Reader's
Choice Award is the oldest children's choice award in the United States and
Canada. The award was established in 1940 by a Seattle bookseller, the
late Harry Hartman, who believed every student should have an opportunity to
select a book that gives him or her pleasure.
Nominations are taken only from children, teachers, parents and librarians in the Pacific Northwest: Alaska, Alberta, British Columbia, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington.
Nominated titles are those published within the previous three years, printed in the U.S. or Canada, and are already favorites with readers. Only 4th through 12th graders in the Pacific Northwest are eligible to vote. In March, 1999, over 56,000 young readers voted for this prestigious award.
Annual voting takes place March 15th through April 1st. Balloting results are sent to the State/Provincial YRCA Representative. These are then sent on to the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington.
You can check the availability of all these titles through our online catalog.
Congratulations to the following books that won the award for 2008:
A Dog's Life: The Autobiography of a Stray by Ann M. Martin
The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
Peaches by Jodi Lynn Anderson
And the nominees for the Young Reader's Choice Award for 2009 are:
Junior Division (4th – 6th grades):
Room One: A Mystery or Two by Andrew Clements
The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo
The Homework Machine by Dan Gutman
The Year of the Dog by Grace Lin
Rules by Cynthia Lord
Gossamer by Lois Lowry
The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron
To Dance by Siena Cherson Siegel
Intermediate Division (7th – 9th grades):
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne
Half-Moon Investigations by Eoin Colfer
Ark Angel by Anthony Horowitz
Pinhoe Egg by Dianna Wynne Jones
Fablehaven by Brandon Mull
Dairy Queen by Catherine Gilbert Murdock
Small Steps by Louis Sachar
Endymion Spring by Matthew Skelton
Senior Division (10th – 12th grades):
The Road of the Dead by Kevin Brooks
Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn
An Abundance of Katherines by John Green
The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl by Barry Lyga
New Moon by Stephenie Meyer
Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer
American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
Updated May 15, 2008