WNBA Pannell Award Nominees Announced

On Monday, the Women’s National Book Association announced this year’s nominees for the WNBA Pannell Award, to be presented to one general bookstore and one children’s bookstore that employ exceptional creativity to foster a love of reading among their young patrons. The winners will be chosen by the Pannell Awards jury from 18 nominees in the general bookstore category and eight in the children’s category.

This year’s nominees are:

General Bookstore

• {pages} A Bookstore (Manhattan Beach, CA)
• Anderson’s Bookshop (Naperville, IL)
• Astoria Bookshop (New York, NY)
• Bookshop West Portal (San Francisco, CA)
• Busboys and Poets Books (Washington, DC)
• Changing Hands Bookstore (Tempe, AZ)
• Frugal Bookstore (Roxbury, MA)
• Landmark Booksellers (Franklin, TN)
• Laurel Book Store (Oakland, CA)
• Left Bank Books (St. Louis, MO)
• MainStreet BookEnds of Warner (Warner, NH)
• Mostly Books (Gig Harbor, WA)
• Page & Palette (Fairhope, AL)
• Prairie Lights Books (Iowa City, IA)
• Skylight Books (Los Angeles, CA)
• Source Booksellers (Detroit, MI)
• The Bookstore Plus (Lake Placid, NY)
• Towne Center Books (Pleasanton, CA)

Children’s Specialty Bookstore

• Blue Manatee Bookstore (Cincinnati, OH)
• Books of Wonder (New York, NY)
• Hooray for Books! (Alexandria, VA)
• Monkey See, Monkey Do… (Clarence, NY)
• Once Upon a Time Bookstore (Montrose, CA)
• Square Books Jr. (Oxford, MS)
• Storybook Village of Pentwater (Pentwater, MI)
• The Reading Bug (San Carlos, CA)

Nominated stores must now submit a description of their activities, goals, and contributions to their local communities that involve young people and books. Photos, media coverage, letters from customers, and anything else that portrays the degree of contribution can be included in the submission. The deadline for submissions is Friday, March 13.

The Pannell Award jurors for 2015 are:

• Cheryl Willis Hudson, vice president and editorial director, Just Us Books
• Emma D. Dryden, children’s editorial and publishing consultant, drydenbks LLC
• Josalyn Moran, children’s publishing consultant
• Lisa Von Drasek, curator of Children’s Literature Research Collections, University of Minnesota
• Roger Sutton, editor in chief, The Horn Book

The jurors will make their decision by late April, and the winners will be honored at the Children’s Book & Author Breakfast at BookExpo America in May.  Each of the two winners will receive a $1,000 check and a framed signed original piece of art by a children’s illustrator.

Penguin Young Readers Group is a co-sponsor of the WNBA Pannell Award.