Previous Finalists

Newsletter

Hi everybody,

A month or so ago, we had a meeting with seven authors who have repeatedly entered the Wishing Shelf Book Awards. As a result of that meeting, we have decided to offer MEMBERSHIP to the awards. NOTE: you don´t have to be a member to be in the awards, but if you are, you will get access to the following benefits.

As a MEMBER, you will:

1. Only pay 50% of the entry fee on any future books you wish to enter in the awards - FOREVER! For as many books as you wish. So, if you wish to enter WITHOUT feedback, you will only pay £19.50 and NOT £39. And, if you wish to enter WITH feedback, you will only pay £39.50 and NOT £79.

2. If you wish us to organise an Editorial Review for you, you will only pay 50% of the fee - FOREVER! For as many books as you wish. At present the cost of an Editorial Review is £79. So, you will only pay £39.50. Note, an Editorial Review is totally separate to the awards. If you don´t know what an Editorial Review is, go to our Need a Review page on this website.


The cost of the MEMBERSHIP is £100 ($125). You will pay this fee just ONCE! It´s NOT annual. Once you are a member, you can be a member for as long as you want!

I think you´ll agree, this is a FAB offer! And, should you be intending to publish more books over the coming years, you would be CRAZY to pass it up.

Why, you might wonder, are we offering this. Well, firstly, we like to reward the authors we work with. And, secondly, we want to employ a third (part-time) member of staff to help run the awards. The funds will go towards his/her salary.

So, don´t miss out. Contact us at thewishingshelfawards@gmail.com NOW to confirm your MEMBERSHIP. Then enjoy all the benefits!

Cheers,

Edward and the Wishing Shelf Gang

Hi everybody, This will be our second year running the Best Book Cover Award. It is sort of fun, very, very cheap to enter, and every penny is sent to Blind Children UK, which is the charity we support. The funds we send our ringfenced for producing books for children with sight problems. So, for example, a child will pick a book from the Blind Children UK´s catalogue, and the charity will produce a copy of that book using a specific font, font size, paper color, etc. which that child can access. Anyway. this is the plan. You can enter the Best Book Cover Award (2022) anytime up until 30th June. We will then announce the FINALISTS and WINNERS a month later in July. The sooner you enter, the better, as there is a lot to organise. What happened last year - which worked well - was 30 of our readers got together for the day and went through all the book covers entered. They then picked a list of finalists and, from that list, the winners. There will be a Children/Young Adult Category and an Adult Category. If you wish to enter a book cover (or lots of book covers), simply send me a pdf or jpeg of the front cover, and I will then organise your entry. Send to thewishingshelfawards@gmail.com. The fee is £5 ($7) which, these days, is pretty much the price of a cup of coffee from Starbucks. A few of you have already entered the Best Book Cover Award; do not worry, your book cover will be thrown into the hat with all the rest. That´s it! It´s all a bit of fun, but it´s a wonderful charity, so don´t be shy. ENTER TODAY! Note: the Best Book Cover Award is totally separate from the book award we run every year, and will not influence the results of that award in any way.

BOOK LIST 2021 (Winners)

Category 1 Pre-School Picture Books

Gold

Too Cute to Spook, Diana Aleksandrova, ill. by Alicia Young

Noah, No! Kristen Cornell, ill. by Rebeca J. Pintos

Silver

Kita and the Magic Paint, by Laura Schaumer, ill. by Pardeep Mehra

Caleb's Adventures with Granddad, Christian Kueng, ill. by Nana Melkadze

Bronze

Mary and Me, Kate Woodard, ill. by Sara Sanchez

Alastair McAllister Goes to School, Valerie Ramer, ill. by Kat Harrington

Olive the Worrying Wiener: A Short Tale about a Particularly Long Dog, Ally Arena, ill. by Rafaela Sukiyama

Category 2 Books for 6 – 8 Year Olds

Gold

Treasure Isle, Catherine Corcoran, ill. by Natalie Lundeen

Mighty Mila: An Inclusive Children's Book about an Unstoppable Deaf Girl, Katie Petruzziello, ill. by Nadja Sarell

Silver

Be Mindful of Monsters, Lauren Stockly, ill. by Ellen Surrey

Spike, Sarah Cullen, Carmen Ellis, ill. by Zuzana Svobodova

Bronze

The Whisker Twitchers, Kathy Tallentire, ill by Becky Stout

Sticky Icky Vicky: Courage over Fear, Alysia Ssentamu, Michael Ssentamu, ill. by Noor Alshalabi

Millie’s Magic, Hilary Hawkes, ill. by Andrea Petrlik

Category 3 Books for 9 – 12 Year Olds

Gold

The Chocolate Clouds, Marc Remus

Silver

The Children of Horseshoe Hideout, Rebecca Matthews Vorkapich

Beyond the Doors, Clay Kelly

Bronze

The Fall of a Sparrow, Griselda Heppel

Osasu and The Great Wall of The Benin Empire, Tamkara Olayinka Adun

Octavia Bloom and the Missing Key, Estelle Grace Tudor

Category 4 Books for Teenagers

Gold

Guardian Angel Academy, Year 1: Renegade, Tamara Hart Heiner

Silver

Malcolm and Me, Robin Farmer

Super, Grant Smits

Bronze

The Vault, L. Wood

Monologues for Kids and Tweens II, Mike Kimmel

Starvation, Molly Fennig

Category 5 Books for Adults (fiction)

Gold

The Crocodile Makes No Sound, N L Holmes

The House on the Lake, Holly Hill Mangin

Silver

Song of the Nile, Hannah Fielding

What Death Taught Terrence, Derek McFadden

How Icasia Bloom Touched Happiness, Jessica Bell

Backstory, A Novel, William Michael Ried

Bronze

A Quiet Dissonance, Poornima Manco

Calling Mr. Nelson Pugh, Christopher Opyr

Skiathos, Boris L. Slocum

Sin Eater, Amanda Denham

Sentinals Awaken, Helen Garraway

The Poison Keeper, Deborah Swift

Category 6 Books for Adults (non-fiction)

Gold

Go: A Memoir about Binge-drinking, Self-hatred, and Finding Happiness, Jessica Bell

Silver

Your Next Big Idea: Improve Your Creativity and Problem-Solving, Samuel Sanders

Breakdown: A Therapist's Journey of Losing It and Finding It, Ali Psiuk

Bronze

Surrender, Marylee MacDonald

The Burning Light of Two Stars: A Mother-Daughter Story, Laura Davis

Audacious Goals, Remarkable Results: How an Explorer, an Engineer and a Statesman shaped our Modern World, Brad Borkan and David Hirzel

Category 7 Audio Books for Children/YA

Gold

The Girl Who Looked Beyond the Stars: Sheena Meyer, L. B. Anne, performed by Alaura Howery

Silver

Amanda Lester and the Pink Sugar Conspiracy, Paula Berinstein, performed by Allan Corduner

Bronze

The Pumpkin Master, Mark Milbrath, performed by Livia Zita

Category 8 Audio Books for Adults

Gold

When Your Life Depends on It: Extreme Decision Making Lessons from the Antarctic, Brad Borkan, David Hirzel, performed by Dennis Kleinman

Silver

My Memory Told Me a Secret, Jeremy C. Bradley-Silverio Donato, performed by Matthew Lyon

Bronze

Unethical: A Psychological Thriller, Marla L. Anderson, performed by Tara Langella