The Poudre Page Turners. The Louisville Bookies. Nachos & Novels. These are just three of nine youth book groups across Colorado that have nominated books to be the Colorado Bruce Spruce Award winner. The book — the best one the groups read this year — will be announced at the Colorado Teen Literature Conference on April 5.
There will be two awards presented: one is the Reader’s Choice award for most popular book and the other is the juried award selected by teen book groups from across Colorado. Teachers, school and public librarians promote participation of teens in the Reader’s Choice Award and teens get to vote.
How do the juried teen book groups work?
Partners in Literacy sponsors the competition, working with school and public librarians across the state. Students in grades 7-12 form book teams at the beginning of the school year. Each regional team reads at least two books published in 2023 or 2024. They make a book talk on their favorite (their nomination) book, which they present online with other book teams. Then they have to read at least one book nominated by another book team. They discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the book. Book teams meet online to discuss the books and each student nominates the book they would like to win the juried award.
And without further ado, here are this year’s nominees.
Lies We Sing To The Sea
By Sarah Underwood
Two book clubs nominated this book.
Teens at the Sam Gary Library, part of Denver Public Library, and the Book Mark Brigade out of Regis Jesuit High School in Aurora were fans of this fantasy novel inspired by Greek mythology where the protagonist dies within the first few chapters. When Leto dies she wakes on a mysterious island where a girl with power to command the sea says Leto must break the curse on Ithaca by killing the new prince or all will be drowned. Students said the novel was an enjoyable, immersive take on The Odyssey and “a detailed, edge-of-your seat novel.”
The Island
By Natasha Preston
The “Duck O’ Tears” book group from the Dolores School District nominated this thriller about a group of teenagers who go on a trip to a private island only to find themselves in a terrifying survival situation. The group gave the book top marks for the plot with twists and turns that are both “unexpected and gripping” and characters that added “emotional weight to the narrative.” They did find however, that the attempts at humor felt a little forced and didn’t quite fit. But the group concludes that the tension and intrigue are enough to keep readers on the edge of their seats.
Impossible Escape: A True Story of Survival and Heroism in Nazi Germany
By Steve Sheinkin
The Mustangs book club out of West Grand Middle School in Kremmling loved this story of a Jewish teen who tried to escape the Nazi’s but later lands in Auschwitz only to escape and fight against Hitler. The book inspired the group and made them realize “how lucky we are to live how and when we do.”
Wren Martin Ruins It All
By Amanda Dewitt
The Poudre Page Turners from Poudre High School nominated this romantic comedy about Wren Martin, student body president trying to fix Rapture High. Wren, who is asexual, hates school dances but he finds himself in charge of the school's Valentines Day dance. In the process he develops a crush on someone and has other relationship drama. The book follows him on “his journey of connection, self-acceptance and planning an extravagant dance,” said one book group member. “It really hits hard on humor and diverse perspectives.”
Kill Her Twice
By Stacey Lee
The Dragon Book Club from the Odyssey School of Denver loved this mystery set in 1932 Los Angeles where two sisters discover movie star Lulu Wong’s body. They suspect her death is the result of foul play and set out to solve the murder since the police won’t take it seriously because of the era’s racial discrimination. At the same time, a proposed train station in Chinatown threatens to destroy their neighborhood. The group liked the plot and the characters with distinctive personalities.
Reggie and Delilah’s Year of Falling
By Elise Bryant
The “M-Cauliflower” book group at McAuliffe International School in Denver loved the book about two teens who meet on New Year’s Eve and keep meeting on other holidays. The two share feelings for one another but don’t know if it’s mutual. Together they go on a journey of self-discovery as they battle social anxiety, disabilities and racial injustice. “Both of these characters are young but through hardships they persevere showing how you are never too young to stand up for what you believe is right,” the group said.
Looking for Smoke
By K.A. Cobell
The Nachos & Novels book group at Mesa Ridge High School in the Colorado Springs area nominated this crime thriller set in an Indigenous community that weaves mystery with lessons about friendship, family, growing up and Blackfeet culture. One teen reviewer said the title foreshadows it all — throughout the book you don’t know who to trust, like smoke “the wind shifts direction and it’s very hard to trace.”
The Darkness Rises
By Stacy Stokes
The Louisville Bookies club based at the Louisville Public Library loved this thriller about a girl who has the power to see death before it happens. She always tries to prevent the deaths until one fateful day she makes a big mistake. The group said the intricately plotted novel is “a suspenseful read that will make you think and keep you guessing.”
We checked in with a couple of the teams who are rooting for their nomination to win at Saturday’s conference.“I think ‘The Island’ should win because the whole theme of you think you're safe on an island, but eventually people start going missing and then they turn up dead,” said Kyler Shoopman from the Dolores High “Duck ‘O Tears” book group in an interview. “It's just the whole mystery of it and the fact that they can't escape. Just something about that captivated our entire group.”
Alivia Anderson with the Poudre High Poudre Page Turners who will be at Saturday’s conference, is hoping “Wren Martin Ruins It All” will win.
“We think it has the most diverse perspectives of anything mentioned in the entire Colorado Blue Spruce Awards … it encompasses voices we’ve never seen before,” she said. “It's just a really relatable novel. Even though Wren might be smart, he still has his areas where he's struggling. It's a really funny book and a book that people can relate to and experience something new or see an experience that they've never seen before.”
Whichever book wins, students in the book groups are passionate readers and appreciate being able to talk books with other kids.
Matt Benson, a media specialist and teacher librarian, who mentors the Poudre Page Turners said the best part of the book awards for him is watching the connection between schools.
“Our kids would never have a chance to talk to kids from Dolores multiple times throughout the year about books,” he said. “Getting their perspectives on the books they chose and us providing up our perspective and why we chose our book and kind of arguing our books with each other has been really cool to watch. That's been one of my favorite parts.”
