The first finalists for the Amelia Elizabeth Walden Book Award have been announced.  The award recognizes an author whose work shows “a positive approach to life, widespread teen appeal, and literary merit.”  The award is sponsored by ALAN (The Assembly on Literature for Adolescents) and is unique in its emphasis on a positive point of view towards life. 

Here are the finalists:

After Tupac and D Foster by Jacqueline Woodson

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

Me, the Missing, and the Dead by Jenny Valentine

My Most Excellent Year by Steve Kluger