I’m thrilled that my fave YA of the year, Sammy And Juliana in Hollywood by Benjamin Alire Saenz (Cinco Puntos, 2004) was named a Top Ten BBYA. See the complete list on the ALA Web site.

Sammy and Juliana in Hollywood also was unanimously voted onto the BBYA list.

I’d like to send out additional congratulations to Alex Flinn, author of Nothing To Lose; Deborah Noyes, anthologist of Gothic! Ten Original Dark Tales; Ron Koertge, author of Margaux With An X; Julie Anne Peters, author of Luna: A Novel; Nancy Werlin, author of Double Helix; Kathleen Jeffrie Johnson, author of A Fast And Brutal Wing; Rita Williams-Garcia, author of No Laughter Here; Jane Yolen, co-author of Prince Across The Water; and Jacqueline Woodson, author of Behind You.

I’ve interviewed Jane Yolen, Alex Flinn, Julie Anne Peters, and Nancy Werlin for my Web site, in case you’d like to learn more about them and their work.

On the Quick Picks front, I’m sending out cheers to Nikki Burnham, author of Royally Jacked; Gail Giles, author of Playing In Traffic; Marlene Perez, author of Unexpected Development; and Brent Hartinger, author of Last Chance Texaco.

Interviews with Gail and Brent also are available on my Web site, and Nikki–just FYI–is one of my best friends from law school. We stood up in each other’s weddings. She’s basically brilliant and beautiful, a total gem.

See also the Top Ten Quick Picks.