Missouri Reader Award Nominees!

July 22, 2011

Every year, the Missouri Association of School Librarians (whoa, what a mouthful...we'll call them MASL from now on) gets together and decides - with the help of dutiful nominators - what books will be finalists for the Gateway, Truman, and Mark Twain Awards (Show Me is a little young for you guys). I am always excited about this because these are usually some of our most popular teen titles for the coming year. They also tend to be *fantastic* books!

Any Missouri student who reads four (three for Gateway) of these finalists can participate in the voting for the official winner. This year, I am ahead of the game. I've already read four of the Gateway nominees! (I've only read one of the Truman nominees so far, don't judge me...) I can't wait to read more of these great books. While I am not eligible to vote (I'm a little old to be in high school), I am excited to be able to promote these titles to all my teens. Official voting starts March 1, 2012, so be sure to ask your teacher or school librarian about it.

Have you recently read a fantastic book that you think should be nominated for a MASL award? You can send in your nomination here, but be sure to read the requirements for submitting first.

We shelve the MASL nominees in a special place at all of our branches, so you can find them with ease. We also have bookmarks and brochures detailing the titles, authors, and short summaries of each. I know most teachers require you to read these books, so we're doing our best to make your life a little easier. Curious about who won last year? Check out the list here. Here are some shortcuts for finding the nominees at any MCPL branch:

Gateway Nominees 2011-2012    Truman Nominees 2011-2012    Mark Twain Nominees 2011-2012

Stop by your local branch and pick up a Missouri Reader Award Nominee today! You'll be glad you did.

Abbey L.
South Independence Branch