Winners of the Sharp Writ Book Awards

Like previous years, we had a tremendous response with nominations from around the world for Sharp Writ Book Awards in 2015 as well. We will like to thank all the members of the judging panel for their hard work - with so many qualified entries, it was not always easy to choose the winner - in fact, we had to declare a tie in one category and announce two winners! We are proud to announce the winners of the 2015 awards:

Children's Books

Winner:  Sir Princess Petra by Diane Robinson

Runner-up: Hello Little Owl, I am Hermit Crab! by Mary Uihlein 

Fiction (General) 

Winners (tie): A Gift for My Sister by Ann Pearlman 
                 and  A Thing Done by Tinney Heath
Runner-up: The Golden Dice - A Tale of Early Rome by Elisabeth Storrs

Non-Fiction (General) 

Winner: COMPASS, Creating Exceptional Organizations by William Brandt

Runners-up: You Are Now Less Dumb by David McRaney
                       and 
                         Human Natures of Animal and Spiritual by Carroll Blair

                     

Memoirs

Winner: Dandelions for Dinner: Greece at War and a Family's Dreams of America by Peter Stamatis

Mystery/ Suspense 

Winner: The Torah Codes by Ezra Barany

Runner-up: A Gathering of Shadows by Bob MacKenzie

Poetry 

Winner: Quarter Notes by Carroll Blair

Sci-fi/ Fantasy 

Winner: Maven Fairy Godmother: Through the Veil by Charlotte Babb

Runners-up: Light Bringer by Pat Bertram

and Philomena Sparks and the Curse of the Big Ben by M.C. Olmo 

Young Adult

Winner: Caves, Cannons and Crinolines by Beverly Stowe McClure 

Runners-up: The Comanchero's Grave by Karen Kelling                        
                          and Reternity  by Neal Wooten

Honorary Mentions: 

• Reel to Real by Carroll Blair
• Another Eternity by Bob MacKenzie

Book Review: "Mr. Sunny Sunshine: Smile"  by Dwayne Henson
Reviewed by Nanette M.

Filled with adorable, imaginative drawings, this comic book is more of an inspirational book for grownups than for kids. Although the ideas are great and the art cute, though, the writing isn't at the same level, showing why graphic novels, a.k.a. comic books are so hard to pull off by one person. It's a great early/ mid-level draft, to my mind, and I hope Henson continues to revise and hone his craft.