One of my favorite things about this time of year (other than Christmas and a vacation from work, obviously) are the BEST OF lists that proliferate social media. It’s a great opportunity to reflect on the year that was and think about wishes for the upcoming year. I’ll keep mine short and sweet so you can have time to read others, bake (and eat) some cookies, visit with friends and family, or dive into a good book (or ten).

My BEST BOOKS of 2016

Kidlit is my preference when I bookshop. There were SO many this year that I loved, just follow me on Goodreads to see them all. Here are a few that I just can’t stop thinking about: (in no particular order)

Picture Books:

• Mother Bruce and Hotel Bruce by Ryan T. Higgins
• Snappsy the Alligator by Julie Falatko
• What Do You Do With a Problem? by Kobi Yamada
• A Child of Books by Oliver Jeffers
• Worm Loves Worm by Mike Curato
• Be a Friend by Salina Yoon
• We Found a Hat by Jon Klassen
• The Thank You Book by Mo Willems
• Thunder Boy Jr. by Sherman Alexie
• The Night Gardener by Teri and Eric Fan

Nonfiction

• Some Writer! The Story of E.B. White by Melissa Sweet
• A Poem for Peter by Andrea Davis Pinkney
• Pink is for Blobfish by Jess Keating
• Freedom Over Me by Ashley Bryan

Middle Grade

• Some Kind of Courage by Dan Gemeinhart
• Raymie Nightingale by Kate DiCamillo
• Pax by Sara Pennypacker
• Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk
• The Best Man by Richard Peck
• Save Me a Seat by Sarah Weeks and Gita Varadarajan
• Nine, Ten: A September 11 Story by Nora Raleigh Baskin
• All Rise for the Honorable Perry T. Cook by Leslie Connor
• Finding Perfect by Elly Swartz
• The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill
• Mrs. Bixby’s Last Day by John David Anderson
• Wish by Barbara O’Connor
• Ghost by Jason Reynolds
• The Seventh Wish by Kate Messner

YA Novels

• Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys
• The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner
• Lily and Dunkin by Donna Gephart
• The Memory of Things by Gae Polisner
• Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson
• Still a Work in Progress by Jo Knowles

I’m sure I’ve forgotten a few so for those of you who can’t get enough LISTS…here is a compilation of other “BEST OF” Lists to help you plan your vacation reading.

• NEW YORK TIMES BEST ILLUSTRATED BOOKS OF 2016
• WASHINGTON POST BEST CHILDREN AND YA BOOKS OF 2016
• BRAINPICKINGS BEST CHILDREN’S BOOKS of 2016
• KIRKUS BEST MIDDLE GRADE BOOKS 2016
• KIRKUS BEST PICTURE BOOKS 2016
• KIRKUS BEST YA BOOKS 2016
• NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE CHILDREN’S BOOKS 2016
• SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL BEST OF 2016
• All The Wonders Top 20 Middle Grade Novels

And don’t forget to watch for the 2016 Nerdy Book Award Winners at https://nerdybookclub.wordpress.com

Thank you to all the authors and illustrators who put in the lonely, tireless hours creating these amazing books for us.  You are my heroes. Here’s to those future books-in-progress and those ideas coming to life that will give us another great year of reading in 2017.