2015 Printz: my predictions and favorites

Three librarians over at School Library Journal (SLJ) write a blog called Someday My Printz Will Come. This morning they posted a list of their five favorite YA books of the year and then they each made a prediction of the five titles they think will actually win tomorrow.

My favorite YA books of the year changes just about everyday. But since I am out of time I'll land somewhere and hope some of my favorites end up on the actual list tomorrow. They are listed in alphabetical order by title.

The Grasshopper Jungle by Andrew Smith---My opinion has been back and forth on this book but I really, really like it with all its funkiness, even though it is quite controversial.

I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson --- no other book this year has touched my heart the way this one did. The voices of the two narrators and the way the story was told by them from different time periods was genius.


The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton---a beautifully worked tale full of magical realism and enough symbolism to make an English teacher salivate.

Through the Woods by Emily Carroll---This books does what it sets out to do:
scare the living daylights out of the reader with seven interconnected written and illustrated by Ms. Carroll. The illustrations are wild, colorful, and creepy.

A Time to Dance by Padma Venkatramen---the book, written in verse, beautifully describes the Hindu religion while the setting in India is vividly brought to life. I know few are talking about this book, but I love it.


Now I doubt that all of these books will get picked by the Printz committee and I honestly won't be sad if they don't, with the possible exception of I'll Give you the Sun. I suspect that they will pick some book(s) I haven't even heard of before. It happens every year.

My predictions of the books the committee will actually select:

Egg and Spoon by Gregory Maguire --- This book is too irresistible to leave off the list. I think this and I've only read 50 pages of it so far.




I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson---I don't think they will be able to resist the interconnected stories, the two narrators, and the brilliant writing.








This One Summer by Mariko and Jillian Tamaki---a graphic novel that accurately handles a coming-of-age moment. Is it time for anothe graphic novel to win the award or and honor? I think so.

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart---There is just something about this book that has kept it on the top of all lists all year.

When I Discovered Poetry by Marilyn Nelson---a memoir written in exquisite poetry, more specifically 50 unrhymed sonnets about Nelson's life from age four to fourteen. Interestingly, the complexity of the poems and the depth of understanding matures as the narrator ages.






I like all of these books and won't be disturbed if any of them are selected.

Now we wait until tomorrow morning. just a few hours and we will know.