Home » Awards
» Thumbs Up! Award

Thumbs Up! Award Teen Vote Open Through August 31

Submitted by coveyl on June 5, 2013 - 7:39pm.   

 
The Thumbs Up! Award is given annually to the author of an original work that has both literary quality and teen appeal for those 13 to 18 years of age. The award includes a statewide teen vote of the top ten books. These 10 books were narrowed down by a group of Michigan youth and teen librarians who spent more than 1,100 hours reading hundreds of titles. View the top ten list and share it with your teens to vote. 
 
Now it’s time for the teens to vote. Please distribute the list of Top Ten Titles to Michigan teens so they can read and vote! Teens can vote online HERE, either from home or from the library. Voting will be open through August 31, 2013.

2012 Thumbs Up! Award Winner – The Fault in Our Stars

Submitted by gcouraud on October 4, 2012 - 1:53pm.   

The Michigan Library Association is pleased to announce that The Fault in Our Stars written by John Green and published by Dutton Books is the winner of the 2012 Thumbs Up! Award, garnering top votes from both teens and librarians state-wide.

In The Fault in Our Stars, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, diagnosed with Stage IV thyroid cancer at 13, Hazel was prepared to die at 14. Then a medical miracle shrunk the tumors in her lungs, for now. Now at 16 Hazel is post-high school, post-friends, and post-normalcy. Even though she could live for a long time, she is now tethered to an oxygen tank. But when Augustus enters Hazel starts to re-examine life and death and the legacy that everyone leaves behind. Three honor titles were selected by the 2012 Thumbs Up! Committee: Divergent by Veronica Roth (Katherine Tegen Books), This Dark Endeavor by Kenneth Oppel (Simon & Schuster), and A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness (Candlewick).

The Thumbs Up! Award was established in 1986 to recognize and promote an outstanding contribution to teen literature that has both literary quality and teen appeal for those 13 to 18 years of age. A committee of Youth and Teen Librarians from all over the state determined the winner. This year’s committee members included Jess Pugh, Chair, Hiliary Berry-Griffioen, Kristin Siegel, Anna Slaughter, Andrea Smalley, Erin Strand and Brandi Swinehart. Since 2001, the Thumbs Up! Award selection process has also included a teen vote, which this year allowed teens to vote online for their favorite book.

2011 Thumbs Up! Award Winner

Submitted by gcouraud on June 1, 2011 - 4:03pm.   

The Michigan Library Association (MLA) is pleased to announce that Sorta Like a Rock Star written by Matthew Quick and published by Little, Brown and Company, is the winner of the 2011 Thumbs Up! Award, garnering top votes state-wide from both teens and librarians.

Hate List Selected as 2010 Thumbs Up! Winner

Submitted by gcouraud on July 15, 2010 - 12:03pm.   

The Michigan Library Association (MLA) is pleased to announce that  Hate List written by Jennifer Brown and published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, is the winner of the 2010 Thumbs Up! Award. In Hate List, Valerie Leftman was a normal teenager, until her boyfriend Nick decided to bring a gun to school and shoot their classmates and teachers based on a "Hate List" that she helped him create. Valerie, her family, and her classmates try to come to grips with the aftermath and decide if she is a hero or contributor to the shooting. Four honor titles were selected by the 2010 Thumbs Up!

MLA Announces 2009 Thumbs Up! Award and 2008 Mitten Award

Submitted by gcouraud on June 8, 2009 - 10:33am.   

2009 Thumbs Up! Award