Bookademy Awards

Whoo Academy Awards! If there’s anything else I love other than books and video games (and baking and reading…), it’s definitely watching movies. So imagine my excitement every year when I turn to my friend and start watching as many of the award-nominated movies as possible in order to cast in our own predictions of which movie will rake in the gold.

Well, considering tonight IS Academy Award night, I figure I could do a list of “Bookademy” Awards to commemorate it. Because, heck, this blog is largely book-related, right? I suppose I *could* throw in my movie predictions as well, but I can throw that in at the end. Um. Maybe.

So yes. Books. For the sake of saving time and not having to go back to all of my favorite reads, I’m going to be basing this year’s Bookademy Awards to what I’ve personally read in 2016.

2017 Bookademy Awards

Best Male Protagonist

I talk of Kell in the second book because he’s become much more multi-faceted after his showdown with Holland. Plus, he pretty much went into an entire spectrum of emotions in this book, considering the situations he’s had to deal with.

HONORARY NOMINEES:
Kaladin Stormblessed (The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson)
James Fraser (Outlander by Diana Gabaldon)
Parzival (Ready Player One by Ernest Cline)
Khalid Ibn al-Rashid (The Rose & and the Dagger by Renee Ahdieh)

Best Female Protagonist

It’s always difficult to just pick one female protag amidst the plethora of female main characters I’ve been reading about in books. They’re all so friggin’ awesome in their roles! Yelena, though, remains my favorite of 2016, because she has undergone so much throughout the Study books, and at the prime of her power, she still remains adamant in her quest to continue learning. Plus, while she’s probably one of the few fantasy females I know who is shown to balance both her work and love life well.

HONORARY NOMINEES:
Cress (Cress by Marissa Meyer)
Maika Halfwolf (Monstress by Marjorie Liu)
Lada (And I Darken by Kiersten White)
Shahrzad Al-Khayzuran (The Wrath & the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh),

Best Secondary Male

Four books of sass-mouthing and motivational speeches. I don’t even need to say anything else.

HONORARY NOMINEES:
Scorpius Malfoy (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by John Tiffany)
Murtagh (Outlander by Diana Gabaldon)
Warren (Fire Touched by Patricia Briggs)
Alucard Emery (A Gathering of Shadows by V.E. Schwab)

Best Secondary Female

Limelight Ladies galore! Reagan takes the cake because of her dialogue. She’s pretty much that character that prods and goads the protagonist into action for the most part, and honestly, she made me laugh way too much throughout Fangirl.

HONORARY NOMINEES:
Iko (Cress by Marissa Meyer)
Ivy Tamwood (Dead Witch Walking by Kim Harrison)
Minny (The Help by Kathryn Stockett)
Ilsa Flynn (This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab)

Best Villainous Villains

I’ve mushed together male and female villains, because honestly only one of them took the cake. Astrid friggin’ Dane. I would have also put her brother here, but honestly, I remember Astrid much more because she’d been crueler, subtler, and more conniving with her actions. Athos was pretty straightforward cruel. Astrid, on the other hand, was straight-up psychotic.

HONORARY NOMINEES:
Naughty John (The Diviners by Libba Bray)
Eli Ever (Vicious by V.E. Schwab)
Queen Levana (Winter by Marissa Meyer)
Pernicia (Spindle’s End by Robin McKinley)

Best Graphic Novel/Manga

The first volume of this female-centric graphic novel packed such a punch that everything else paled in comparison.

HONORARY NOMINEES:
Saga, Vol. 5 by Brian K. Vaughan
Deadman Wonderland, Vol. 3 by Jinsei Kataoka
The Way of Shadows: The Graphic Novel by Brent Weeks
The Exile: An Outlander Graphic Novel by Diana Gabaldon

Best Adaptation of a Book

I still love watching The Help movie whenever I can. It was done so well.

HONORARY NOMINEES:
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
Neil Patrick Harris: Choose Your Own Autobiography by Neil Patrick Harris
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
The Wrath & the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh

Best Retelling

It was a tight race between Ahdieh’s The Wrath and the Dawn and Cress, but Cress won out because the tale stayed true to the fairy tale amidst a science fiction world.

HONORARY NOMINEES:
Winter by Marissa Meyer
The Wrath & the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh
Spindle’s End by Robin McKinley
William Shakespeare’s The Jedi Doth Return by Ian Doescher

Best in Magical Systems

Was there any question? Sanderson has always been stellar at telling the story and creating in-depth magical systems. And heck, he doesn’t just make one. Oh, no. Sometimes books will have multiple magical systems.

HONORARY NOMINEES:
The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde
Blood of the Earth by Faith Hunter
A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab
Magic Study by Maria V. Snyder

Best in Worldbuilding

Same vein as the above category. His worlds are superbly vivid, and his descriptions have often made it so easy to get transported into the middle of the scene.

HONORARY NOMINEES:
The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde
Monstress, Vol. 1 by Marjorie Liu
The Wrath & the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh
A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

Best “Must Buy” Author

Seriously, Schwab. Just stahp.

HONORARY NOMINEES:
Renee Ahdieh
Patricia Briggs
Marissa Meyer
Brandon Sanderson

Best Books of a Humorous Nature

I believe Whil Wheaton’s narration had a lot to do with me finding the story geeky and adorable, but yes, I did laugh a lot with this book.

HONORARY NOMINEES:
William Shakespeare’s The Jedi Doth Return by Ian Doescher
Neil Patrick Harris: Choose Your Own Autobiography by Neil Patrick Harris
Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins
Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Best Books of an OMG Nature

Alright, so there are just going to be those books that have the flair for the dramatics. Fire Touched was pretty much a turning point for Mercy and her family, and for that, the book takes the cake on dramatic events.

HONORARY NOMINEES:
Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
Fair Game by Patricia Briggs
Vicious by V.E. Schwab
Dark Matter by Blake Crouch

Best Squee-Worthy Book

I still sigh and squee over this duology. The first book had some of the best lines, though let it be said that I also squeed lots over its sequel.

HONORARY NOMINEES:
A Gathering of Shadows by V.E. Schwab
Winter by Marissa Meyer
Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
Magic Study by Maria V. Snyder

And as a bonus, my Academy Award movie predictions.

Best Picture – La La Land

Best Actor (Leading Role) – Denzel Washington, Fences

Best Actor (Supporting Role) – Mahershala Ali, Moonlight

Best Actress (Leading Role) – Emma Stone, La La Land

Best Actress (Supporting Role) – Viola Davis, Fences

Best Animated Feature – Zootopia

Best Cinematography – Linus Sandgren, La La Land

Best Costume Design – Madeline Fontaine, Jackie

Best Directing – Damien Chazelle, La La Land

Best Documentary Feature – O.J.: Made in America

Best Documentary Short – Joe’s Violin

Best Film Editing – Hacksaw Ridge

Best Foreign Language Film – The Salesman

Best Makeup and Hairstyling – Star Trek Beyond

Best Original Score – La La Land

Best Original Song – “City of Stars,” La La Land

Best Production Design – La La Land

Best Live Action Short – Ennemis Interieurs

Best Animated Short – Piper

Best Sound Editing – Hacksaw Ridge

Best Sound Mixing – Hacksaw Ridge

Best Visual Effects – Kubo and the Two Strings

Best Adapted Screenplay – Fences

Best Original Screenplay – La La Land

Do you have anyone you would have awarded Bookademy Awards to? And how about movies? Do you have an Academy Award prediction?