Best Book of 2009!

We're looking for the best book of 2009 and we need your help!

Between now and January 4, read three or more of the nominees on our Best Book of 2009 list, then cast your vote between January 4-13 to be entered in a drawing for a book store gift card!

We'll announce the winner on January 18.

The nominees are:
Anything But Typical by Nora Raleigh Baskin
New Lenox Library Call Number J BAS
Jason, a 12-year-old autistic, knows that most days it's just a matter of time before something goes wrong. But he finds a glimmer of understanding when he comes across PhoenixBird, who posts stories to the same online site as he does.

Wild Things by Clay Carmichael
New Lenox Library Call Number J CAR
Stubborn and self-reliant Zoe, recently orphaned, moves to the country to live with her prickly half-uncle and together they learn about trust and the strength of family.

The Girl Who Threw Butterflies by Mick Cochrane
New Lenox Library Call Number J COC
Eighth-grader Molly Williams has just lost her father in a car accident, and her mother has become withdrawn. Molly wants to make herself known to the kids at school for something other than her father's death, so she decides to join the baseball team.

The Magician’s Elephant by Kate DiCamillo
New Lenox Library Call Number J DIC
When orphan Peter Augustus Duchene asks a fortuneteller about his missing sister, the fortuneteller's mysterious answer sets off a chain of remarkable events.

The Great and Only Barnum by Candace Fleming
New Lenox Library Call Number J B BAR
P.T. Barnum is known far and wide for his jumbo elephants, midgets and three-ring circuses, but here is a more complete look at the life of Barnum.

Brooklyn Nine by Alan Gratz
New Lenox Library Call Number J GRA
Follows the fortunes of an immigrant family through nine generations as they experience American life and play baseball.

Scat by Carl Hiaasen
New Lenox Library Call Number J HIA
When Mrs. Bunny Starch, the most feared biology teacher ever, vanishes, the school's headmaster and the police seem to accept an unsigned note explaining that her absence is due to a family emergency. However, Nick and Marta don't buy it.

The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly
New Lenox Library Call Number J KEL
As Callie explores the natural world around her in 1899 Texas, she develops a close relationship with her grandfather, navigates living with six brothers, and comes up against just what it means to be a girl at the turn of the century.

The Best Bad Luck I Ever Had by Kristin Levine
New Lenox Library Call Number J LEV
Set in 1917 and inspired the by the author's true family history, this novel tells the poignant story of an unexpected friendship between a white farm boy and an African-American city girl--and the ripples it sends through a rural Alabama town.

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin
New Lenox Library Call Number J LIN
Inspired by old folktales her father shares, Minli sets off on an extraordinary journey to find the Old Man on the Moon to ask him how she can change her family's fortune.

Heart of a Shepherd by Rosanne Parry
New Lenox Library Call Number J PAR
When Brother's dad is shipped off to Iraq, Brother must help his grandparents keep the ranch going. In hopes of ensuring his father’s safe return, he tries to maintain it just as his father left it. The hardships Brother faces will not only change the ranch, but also reveal his true calling.

Chasing Lincoln’s Killer by James L. Swanson
New Lenox Library Call Number TEEN 973.7092 SWA
A fast-paced thriller about the pursuit and capture of John Wilkes Booth, Abraham Lincoln’s assassin: a wild twelve-day chase through the streets of Washington, D.C., across the swamps of Maryland, and into the forests of Virginia.

Stop in and check out the Best Books of 2009 display. Read some already? Let us know what you think!