Sunday, December 30, 2007

The 2007 PODBRAM Awards


I am not an award sort of person. I never watch award shows on television. I have never entered any of my books or other writings into contests. I particularly abhor the many contests with entry fees that equal the royalties from about twenty-five book sales touted monthly by iUniverse. If you want to spend your marketing dollars that way, that's your business. I have certainly found many of my own ways in which to squander money trying to promote my books.

Anyway, everybody else seems to like awards, so here they are. Since iUBR began in July 2006, with only a handful of books reviewed that year, the books reviewed in the second half of 2006 will be included with 2007. There is officially no such thing as a 1964 Mustang, a 1983 Corvette, or a 2006 iUBR Award Winner. Here come The First (and Maybe the Last) Annual PODBRAM Book Awards for 2007!

Cover Design: The Pict by Jack Dixon

The map of the Scottish Highlands delicately etched into the foggy grey sky over the title pushed it over the top. You can just imagine The Picts living in this quiet, remote terrain. The design elements of this cover all blended well together and correctly led me to the material contained inside.

Proofreading: Mr. Touchdown by Lyda Phillips

Lyda's second book, as well as books with much higher page counts by several other authors, approached the low error quotient of Lyda's first novel, but by the sheer error count of zero, or nearly zero, as I was not keeping notes back then to accurately remember from more than a year ago, Mr. Touchdown centered the goal posts!

Daring Subject: Romance, Riches, and Restrooms by Tim Phelan

Tim Phelan's true story of love, money, and the trots gave me the opportunity to write what I think is the most fun to read review on this blog.

Original Storyline: The Milkman by Ian Healy

This little book is an explosion of originality in both its plotline and the selection of its characters. I would call its genre Science Fiction Humor. It's a jolly good time with a quick read.

Topicality: The Valley of Death by Gwynne Huntington Wales

Americans have always needed a really good red-white-and-blue counterpart to James Bond, and Mr. Wales has given us one with a character called Aardvark. I call a top-secret, nerve-gas operation in Iraq in November 2002 topical.

General Nonfiction: The iPINIONS Journal by Anthony Livingston Hall

Although several others vied for honor in this category, I have to give the nod to Mr. Hall for the sheer depth of his professionalism, from the elegant cover to the carefully composed and topical subject matter within.

Character Development: Dream Dancing by J. J. Lair

J. J. Lair has composed an ordinary little slice of everyday, American, blue-collar lifestyle. Where the author excels is the way he makes the reader care about a few sleazebuckets who may or may not be somewhat unscrupulous, and there lies the tail, revolving around a pole in a strip joint.

Dialogue: The Traitor's Wife by Susan Higginbotham

The category selected here may be somewhat misleading. Susan excels at telling a complex story through the words and actions of numerous characters, and the reader is always shown, not told.

Plotting: The Thief Maker by David H. Schleicher

Mr. Schleicher's twisted plot development is simply unparalleled. If you love plot twists and turns among seemingly unrelated characters, you'll love The Thief Maker!

Pleasurable Read: Distant Cousin by Al Past

Whatever it is that Spielberg has at the movies, Al Past has in his Distant Cousin series. Show me the magic!

2 comments:

Ian said...

Thanks for the award, Tabitha! Have a Happy New Year!

Ian

Susan Higginbotham said...

Thanks, Tabitha!