Frequently Asked Questions

 

The Garden State Teen Book Award is a project of the Young Adult Section of the New Jersey Library Association (www.njla.org). The section represents libraries from throughout the state, and selected nominees are based on teen appeal and quality of writing of teen fiction and nonfiction published during the previous year (i.e. the final 2015 GSTBA ballot is completed in early 2014 and contains titles published in 2012). Ballots are composed of a maximum of 20 nominations in three categories: fiction for grades 6-8, fiction for grades 9-12, and nonfiction for grades 6-12. The section seeks to expose teens to books that are appealing and well written, and which accurately display the diversity found in the state of New Jersey. Ballots are made available primarily to New Jersey school and public librarians.

Members of the Young Adult Section of NJLA who have elected to act as “readers” are assigned titles by the YA Section Executive Board. The section will be notified as a whole when readers and titles are matched up. Readers read their assigned titles, and then meet with the section to discuss which titles should be chosen for the ballot. Under normal circumstances, each of the categories are discussed at three separate meetings. At the conclusion of each discussion, a ballot with a maximum of 20 nominations is created. The full ballot of no more than 20 titles in each category is completed following the discussion of the last category. Voting usually extends from this time through the end of December.

Readers! You must be a member of the Young Adult Section of the New Jersey Library Association or New Jersey Association of School Librarians (NJASL) in order to be a reader, and being a reader entitles you to vote! Any section member can attend meetings and discussions but ONLY READERS CAN VOTE for the final ballot.

 

The Members-at-Large of the section are responsible for compiling, posting, and printing the final ballot and list of annotations, as well as for assigning readers and working with the GSTBA Committee to organize the master list of nominations.

If you are a current member interested in participating in the creation of the GSTBA ballot, please contact one of the section Members-at-Large. If you are only interested in reading for one or two of the categories, please indicate this preference to the Members-at-Large.

Reader assignments are typically made following the September meeting. The section begins discussions in January.

Printable ballots will be available here when completed. Print ballots are also available the NJLA Annual Spring Conference and the Youth Services Forum. There is also online voting.

New Jersey teens! This is an award for teen readers, voted on by teen readers.