And…It's Time for the 17th Annual Reader Poll!!

Doldrums from the holidays setting in yet? Too much snow or rain or just too cold to go outside? Nothing new on TV? Well, what better way to start off 2013 than by voting in the AAR Annual Poll? Yes, it’s that time of year again and we want you to let us know which stories, authors and characters you loved from books published in 2012. Today we are thrilled to be opening our 17th AAR Annual Reader Poll.

The Annual Reader Poll is very special here at AAR. The poll is a way for AAR readers to let us – and authors and publishers – know which books you feel deserve honors (and maybe those that don’t). We know that several AAR readers keep spreadsheets, Goodreads/Librarything shelves, or charts in some form or another and hopefully those will help you in filling out the poll. If you haven’t kept a spreadsheet or reading chart (and there are just as many readers who don’t), you can always use the Power Search function at AAR to search for reviews from the 2012 reading year. In Power Search you can search by genre, reviewer, year published, grade, and other categories which should help you in filling out your ballot.

The poll will be open for just two weeks starting today and will close at 12:00 midnight U.S. Eastern Standard Time on Sunday, January 20th, 2013. We encourage all our AAR readers to participate in this poll.

There are now 22 different categories listed on the ballot but remember, for your ballot to be valid, you only have to vote in a minimum of six (6) categories. The average AAR reader votes in about 10 categories but some readers vote in all categories.

We have a new category this year, as suggested by many readers in a post here last month. Based on the results, we have added “Best Inspirational Romance” to the AAR Annual Poll.

For Best Debut Author and Best Chick Lit/Women’s Fiction suggestions, we published two posts here recently that you may find helpful: 2012 Reading Year So Far: Chick Lit and Women’s Fiction and 2012 Reading Year So Far: Debut Romance Authors. Both columns offer lots of suggestions but they do not list absolutely every debut or chick lit book published in 2012, so if you have a debut author or chick lit book that are not in these posts, please let us know by voting for it. Don’t forget to check the boards, too (Forums/Discussion Lists), as many AAR readers have lots to say about favorite books, authors, their 2012 reading year, etc.

Also, please remember that “Best Category Romance Book” refers to series books from publishers like Harlequin, Entangled and Mills & Boon.

Three of us tabulate your votes, and we hope to finish within a week or so after the January 20th deadline. Look for the results to be posted at AAR in February. Ready to vote? Click here.

– Cindy Smith, Lee Brewer, and LinnieGayl Kimmel