We asked children's booksellers around the country to vote for their picks in a variety of categories. The winners (and bookseller comments, where appropriate) appear below. (Special Cuffies kudos go to Alison Morris at Wellesley Booksmith, for successfully predicting both the Newbery and Caldecott winners.)
Favorite Picture Book of the Year
Diary of a Wombat by Jackie French, illus. by Bruce Whatley
Honorable mentions: The Man Who Walked Between the Towers by Mordicai Gerstein; How I Became a Pirate by Melinda Long, illus. by David Shannon
Favorite Novel of the Year
The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo ("begs to be read aloud")
Honorable mentions: A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly; The River Between Us by Richard Peck
Most Unusual Book of the Year
Dragonology by Ernest Drake, illus. by Helen Ward and Douglas Carrel
Honorable mentions: The Wolves in the Walls by Neil Gaiman, illus. by Dave McKean; The Rabbits by John Marsden, illus. by Shaun Tan
Best Book Title
The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things by Carolyn Mackler
Honorable mention: God Went to Beauty School by Cynthia Rylant
Best Opening Line
"Pirates have green teeth—when they have any teeth at all." (from How I Became a Pirate)
Best Sequel
The Second Summer of the Sisterhood by Ann Brashares
Honorable mentions: The Meanest Doll in the World by Ann M. Martin and Laura Godwin, illus. by Brian Selznick; Olivia... and the Missing Toy by Ian Falconer ("the best yet!")
Most Eye-Catching Jacket (tie)
Eragon by Christopher Paolini
Molly Moon's Incredible Book of Hypnotism by Georgia Byng
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Funniest Book (tie)
Diary of a Worm by Doreen Cronin, illus. by Harry Bliss ("when they do the hokey-pokey, they can only do the head verse!")
Diary of a Wombat ("funny, sweet, great pictures")
Honorable mention: Arnie the Doughnut by Laurie Keller ("kids everywhere will hesitate before they eat their next doughnut")
Favorite Book to Hand-sell
Inkheart by Cornelia Funke ("because it speaks to book lovers")
Honorable mention: The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau ("it's a sure-fire hit with almost any kid")
Most Promising New Author
Christopher Paolini
Most Promising New Illustrator
Stacey Dressen-McQueen (Boxes for Katje by Candace Fleming)
Your Vote to Win the Newbery
The Tale of Despereaux ("because the writing is so fresh and original"; "classic fairy tale, wonderful characters")
Honorable mentions: A Northern Light;Sahara Special by Esmé Raji Codell ("this book is divine"); The Canning Season by Polly Horvath
Your Vote to Win the Caldecott (tie)
The Tree of Life: Charles Darwin by Peter Sís ("incredibly detailed and informative illustration")
The Man Who Walked Between the Towers ("because the art is as grand a feat as the story itself")
Honorable mention: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, illus. by Robert Sabuda ("for exponentially raising the caliber of pop-ups")
Best Anthology (tie)
Storybook Treasury of Dick and Jane and Friends ("finally! after all these years!")
13: Thirteen Stories That Capture the Agony and Ecstasy of Being Thirteen, edited by James Howe
Best Book of Poetry
Plum by Tony Mitton, illus. by Mary GrandPré
Best Pop-Up
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland ("breathtaking—Sabuda's best yet!")
Best New Audiotape
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, read by Jim Dale
Honorable mentions: The Tale of Despereaux; A Northern Light
Best Series
A Series of Unfortunate Events
Honorable mentions: The Spiderwick Chronicles; the Bartimaeus Trilogy
Best Nonfiction Treatment of a Subject
The Tree of Life: Charles Darwin
Honorable mentions: An American Plague by Jim Murphy; Ben Franklin's Almanac by Candace Fleming ("an inventive way to study this great man")
Best Novel for Older Teens
A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray
Best Novel for Teens That Adults Would Love if They Knew About It (tie)
A Northern Light
King of the Mild Frontier by Chris Crutcher ("I read much of it aloud to my parents, and all three of us laughed so hard we were in tears")
Most Overrated Book
The English Roses by Madonna ("she missed the point entirely and sends the wrong message to kids"; "bad story, too long")
The "For Adults, Not Children" Award
Brundibar by Tony Kushner, illus. by Maurice Sendak
Most Overdone Subject
The Wright Brothers
Honorable mentions: fantasy series; bedtime books ("how many does a kid need?")
Most Disappointing Book in Terms of Sales (tie)
Brundibar
On Noah's Ark by Jan Brett
Hottest Selling Book to Go Out of Stock
Dragonology
Book Happiest to See Back in Print (tie)
Trixie Belden ("my childhood favorites!")
Dick and Jane
Most Original Concept
My Granny's Purse by P.H. Hanson
Most Effective Marketing Campaign
Eragon ("it had a great display, and drew a lot of attention to the book")
Most Annoying Marketing Campaign
Cat in the Hat ("the license was sold to too many companies")
Bratz display ("visually unappealing")
Madonna's books ("too secretive, too much hype"; "because of her crack about there being no good children's literature out there")
Best Publisher Promotional Materials
Harry Potter ("high-quality giveaway items")
Judy Moody mood rings
Spiderwick seeing stones and trading cards
Lemony Snicket ("great kits, buttons, freebies for kids")
Oddest Comment by a Customer
"I need a book for my three-year-old to help her get ready for her grandmother to have a walker."
"This one's so sad. A boy was asking his mother for Harry Potter, and she said, 'We just saw the movie; why would you want the book? I don't think you need the book.' "
"During Henry Winkler's signing a man came through the line with a child (we later found out it was a 'rent-a-kid') so he could hand over a CD of voice-over work he had done."
Most Unusual Complaint About a Book
"A woman asked for a copy of Make Way for Ducklings. When we handed it to her, she looked surprised and asked, 'It's not in color yet?!' "
"The customer who complained because Cinderella's stepsister was too mean."
"Mother: 'What is it about NO you don't understand?' Daughter: 'Both letters!' "
Most Garbled Title Request
Jiminy Cricket (for Lemony Snicket)
Germans Make Me Sick (for Germs Make Me Sick)
