Quills nominees

The shortlists for the Quills are out and, hey, they're a lot better this year. (Thanks to Shaken & Stirred for the link.) Here are the nominees in the children's categories:

Picture Books

The Adventures of the Dish and the Spoon
by Mini Grey

Fancy Nancy and the Posh Puppy
by Jane O'Connor, illustrated by Robin Preiss

Flotsam
by David Wiesner

Orange Pear Apple Bear
by Emily Gravett

Owen & Mzee: The Language of Friendship
by Isabella Hatkoff, Craig Hatkoff and Dr. Paula Kahumbu, photos by Peter Greste

Middle Grade

Clementine
by Sara Pennypacker, illustrated by Marla Frazee

Diary of a Wimpy Kid
by Jeff Kinney

The Invention of Hugo Cabret
by Brian Selznick

Pick Me Up
by Jeremy Leslie and David Roberts

The Titan's Curse (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 3)
by Rick Riordan

Young Adult/Teen

American Born Chinese
by Gene Luen Yang

The Green Glass Sea
by Ellen Klages

Incantation
by Alice Hoffman

Life as We Knew It
by Susan Beth Pfeffer

Sold
by Patricia McCormick

I know the public was somehow taken out of the nominating process, though they will have the final vote for "Book of the Year." You can read all about the new voting procedures here.

While Waiting for the National Book Award shortlists...

...the Quills have been announced. And, just let me say, this is the last time I will ever make mention of them. Why? Well, here are the winners in each category.

• Children's Illustrated Book. If You Give a Pig a Party, by Laura Joffe Numeroff, illustrated by Felicia Bond. First one was cute, the rest...not so much. They're okay, they're fun, but aren't there more innovative titles out there this year?
• Children's Chapter Book/Middle Grade. The Penultimate Peril, Lemony Snicket. Alright, whatever. These books are fun. They're great for kids. I'm sure I would have loved them at age 10. They're smart, have great vocabulary (and lessons), but, seriously, #12 in a series is the best middle grade novel of the year? I don't think so.
• Young Adult/Teen. Eldest, Christopher Paolini. AAARRGH!!!!! Punctuation can NOT express why this novel could have possibly been better than any of the others nominated in this category. Seriously. From this moment on...

...I'm ignoring these awards.