Put 16 of the best books in front of 15 of the best writers in the US and what do you get?

You get BATTLE OF THE KIDS’ BOOKS!

SLJ’s annual head-to-head has announced their shortlist of 16 heavyweight titans who will battle it out:

As Easy As Falling Off The Earth -  Lynn Rae Perkins
The Cardturner - Louis Sachar
A Conspiracy of Kinds - Megan Whalen Turner
Countdown -  Deborah Wiles
The Dreamer - Pam Munoz Ryan
The Good, The Bad and the Barbie - Tanya Lee Stone
Hereville: How Mirka Got Her Sword - Barry Deutsch
Keeper - Kathi Appelt
The Odyssey - Gareth Hinds
One Crazy Summer - Rita Williams-Garcia
The Ring of Solomon - Jonathan Stroud
Sugar Changed the World - Marc Aronson and Marina Budhos
A Tale Dark and Grimm - Adam Gidwitz
The Called Themselves the KKK- Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Trash - Andy Mulligan
Will Grayson, Will Grayson - John Green and David Levithan