Edgar Nominees Announced by Mystery Writers of America

On Edgar Allan Poe’s 198th birthday, the Mystery Writers of America have announced the 2007 nominees for their annual awards. The Best Novel nominees are: The Pale Blue Eye, by Louis Bayard The Janissary Tree, by Jason Goodwin Gentleman and Players, by Joanne Harris The Dead Hour, by Denise Mina The Virgin of Small Plains, by Nancy Pickard The Liberation Movements, by Olen Steinhauer. The nominees for a Best First Novel by an American author are: The Faithful Spy, by Alex Berenson Sharp Objects, by Gillian Flynn King of Lies, by John Hart Holmes on the Range, by Steve Hockensmith A Field of Darkness, by Cornelia Read. Awards are presented in categories including Best Paperback Original, Best Fact Crime, Best Young Adult, and Best Juvenile, among others. Award winners will be announced on April 26 in New York. I’m never sure if an award nomination is a good reason to select a book for the library’s collection (maybe not,) but it’s a good reason to consider the book, and awards can make a great theme for an in-library display. We’d love to see pictures–and publish them–of any displays on mysteries or on Edgar Allan Poe.