2010 Indies Choice Book Award Winners

The American Booksellers Association, way back in April, announced the Indies Book Choice Awards. Books appearing on the 2009 Indie Next List were voted on by Independent bookstore owners and staff over a four week period. As a supporter of Independent bookstores (when and where ever possible), I thought I'd share their insights.

I thought I'd also check to see how they fared in predicting collectibles (not that that was their intention, after all, these are just damn fine books). At any rate, I've done a little research and have marked titles according to the key below:

[§] = signed copies currently garnering prices of $50 - $100

[§§] = signed copies currently garnering prices of $101 - $250

[§§§] = signed copies currently garnering prices of over $250

* = first editions already highly collectible

** = value may go up with additional printings

And the winners were...

Adult Fiction: Cutting for Stone, by Abraham Verghese (Knopf) * [§]
Adult Nonfiction: The Lost City of Z, by David Grann (Doubleday) [§]
Adult Debut: The Help, by Kathryn Stockett (Amy Einhorn Books/Putnam) * [§§§] First editions of this book are selling for over $100 (unsigned) and up to $1200 (signed)
Young Adult: Catching Fire, by Suzanne Collins (Scholastic) [§]
Middle Reader: When You Reach Me, by Rebecca Stead (Wendy Lamb Books) [§§]
New Picture Book: The Lion and the Mouse, by Jerry Pinkney (Little, Brown) * [§]
Kate DiCamillo was voted Most Engaging Author both for being an in-store star and for having a strong sense of the importance of indie booksellers to their local communities. [ABA]

So far (some notable books) on the 2010 list:

Shades of Grey, Jasper Fforde [§]
The Swan Thieves, Elizabeth Kostova [§]
The Unnamed, Joshua Ferris * [§]
Major Pettigrew's Last Stand, Helen Simonson [§]
Horns, Joe Hill [§]
The Dream of Perpetual Motion, Dexter Palmer
Angelology, Danielle Trussoni [§]
The Solitude of Prime Numbers, Paolo Giordano
Matterhorn: A Novel of the Vietnam War, Karl Marlantes * [§§]
Bite Me: A Love Story, Christopher Moore
31 Bond Street, Ellen Horan [§]
The Singer's Gun, Emily St. John Mandel [§]
The Lonely Polygamist, Brady Udall [§]
Beatrice and Virgil, Yann Martel [§]
Backseat Saints, Joshilyn Jackson [§] **
The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake, Aimee Bender [§]
The Madonnas of Echo Park, Brando Skyhorse
The Marrowbone Marble Company, Glenn Taylor [§]

So, Again, the lesson here? Buy signed copies whenever possible! Even if you don't have signed copies, it might be fun to see if you have any of these books on your shelves (in all honesty, I only have five in this list, although I've eyed quite a few in the bookstore). And if you don't have any? Well, now you have a great reading list courtesy of Independent bookstores everywhere!

Labels: 2010 winners, ABA, collectibles, Independent bookstores, Indies Choice Book Awards