This year, Books are My Bag is to hold its first every BAMB Readers Awards, giving the public the chance to vote on their favourites in each category of fiction, non-fiction, biography & autobiography, children’s, and breakthrough author.

The shortlist for the inaugural awards has been released this week and voting is open, with more than thirty authors to choose from. Voting will remain open until 14th November and anyone can mark their vote for each category. It’s time to show your love for the books you’ve loved this year, and have your say in the BAMB Readers Awards.

Here’s a rundown of the shortlists for each category, and a link on the bottom if you’d like to vote.

Fiction:

The Green Road – Anne Enright
Grief is a Think with Feathers – Max Porter
The Loney – Andrew Hurley
The Muse – Jessie Burton
This Must Be the Place – Maggie O’Farrell
The Trouble with Goats and Sheep – Joanna Cannon

Non-Fiction:

Reasons to Stay Alive – Matt Haig
SPQR – Mary Beard
Landmarks – Robert Macfarlane
The Silk Roads – Peter Frankopan
When Breath Becomes Air – Paul Kalanthi
It’s All in Your Head – Suzanne O’Sullivan

Biography & Autobiography

Fingers in the Sparkle Jar – Chris Packham
The Last Act of Love – Cathy Rentzenbrink
The Road to Little Dribbling – Bill Bryson
At the Existentialist Café – Sarah Bakewell
The Invention of Nature – Andrea Wulf
Alive Alive Oh! – Diana Athill

Children’s

One – Sarah Crossan
The Rest of Us Just Live Here – Patrick Ness
Beetle Boy – M. G Leonard
The Day the Crayons Came Home – Drew Daywalt
The Bear and the Piano – David Litchfield
The Detective Dog – Julia Donaldson

Breakthrough Author

Abi Elphinstone for The Shadow Keeper
Amy Liptrot for The Outrun
Andrew Michael Hurley for the Loney
Han Kang for the Vegetarian
Joanna Cannon for The Trouble with Goats and Sheep
Kit de Waal for My Name is Leon
Lisa McInerney for The Glorious Heresies
Rowan Hisayo Buchanan for Harmless Like You

It’ll be hard to call the winners as lots of people are likely to vote, and if you’d like your say you can vote at The National Book Tokens site here.