The Quill Award was an American literary award that ran for three years in 2005-2007. It was a "consumer-driven award created to inspire reading while promoting literacy." The Quills Foundation, the organization behind the Quill Award, was supported by a number of notable media corporations, including Reed Business Information, then parent of Publishers Weekly, and NBC Universal Television Stations, along with Parade Magazine, Borders, Barnes & Noble and the American Booksellers Association.
Reed Business Information announced plans to dissolve the awards program in February 2008 and distribute the remaining Foundation funds to non-profit organizations First Book and Literacy Partners. Reed declined to give reasons for the suspension, but the awards had produced little effect on book sales, and the televised ceremonies were criticised for being too long and poorly planned.
Winners were selected through a two-part process involving nomination by industry experts and final selection by consumer votes. To be eligible for nomination, a book had to be published in English during the previous year and be included in at least one industry or sponsor listing. Readers selected the winners from among the five nominees selected by the board for each category. However, for the 2007 edition, the choice by public vote was restricted to book of the year, and winners in other categories were chosen by retailers and librarians.
Book of the year: Angels Fall, Nora RobertsDebut author of the year: Diane Setterfield, The Thirteenth TaleAudio book: To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee, (read by Sissy Spacek)Children's illustrated book: Flotsam, David WiesnerChildren's chapter book/middle grade: The Invention of Hugo Cabret, Brian SelznickYoung adult/teen: Sold, Patricia McCormickGeneral fiction: The Road, Cormac McCarthyGraphic novel: Making Comics: Storytelling Secrets of Comics, Manga and Graphic Novels, Volume 7, Scott McCloudMystery/suspense/thriller: What the Dead Know, Laura LippmanPoetry: For the Confederate Dead, Kevin YoungRomance: Angels Fall, Nora RobertsScience fiction/fantasy/horror: The Name of the Wind, Patrick RothfussReligion/spirituality: Religious Literacy: What Every American Needs to Know - And Doesn't, Stephen ProtheroBiography/memoir: Einstein: His Life and Universe, Walter IsaacsonBusiness: The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn't, Robert I. SuttonCooking: Joy of Cooking: 75th Anniversary Edition, Irma S. Rombauer, Marion Rombauer Becker, and Ethan BeckerHealth/self-improvement: How Doctors Think, Jerome Groopman, M.D.History/current events/politics: The Assault on Reason, Al GoreHumor: I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence, Amy SedarisSports: The Kings of New York: A Year Among the Geeks, Oddballs and Geniuses Who Make Up America's Top High-School Chess Team, Michael WeinrebBook of the Year: Don't Make a Black Woman Take off Her Earrings: Madea's Uninhibited Commentaries on Love and Life, Tyler PerryDebut Author of the Year: Julie Powell for work in Julie & Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment KitchenAudio Book: Marley & Me: Life and Love with the World's Worst Dog, John GroganChildren's Illustrated Book: If You Give a Pig a Party, Laura Joffe NumeroffChildren's Chapter Book/Middle Grade: The Penultimate Peril, Lemony SnicketYoung Adult/Teen: Eldest, Christopher PaoliniGeneral Fiction: A Dirty Job: A Novel, Christopher MooreGraphic Novel: Naruto, Volume 7, Masashi KishimotoMystery/Suspense/Thriller: Twelve Sharp, Janet EvanovichPoetry: Amazing Peace: A Christmas Poem, Maya AngelouRomance: Blue Smoke, Nora RobertsScience Fiction/Fantasy/Horror: A Breath of Snow and Ashes, Diana GabaldonReligion/Spirituality: Mama Made the Difference, T. D. JakesBiography/Memoir: Marley & Me: Life and Love with the World's Worst Dog, John GroganBusiness: The Girl's Guide to Being a Boss (Without Being a Bitch): Valuable Lessons, Smart Suggestions, and True Stories for Succeeding as the Chick-in-Charge, Caitlin Friedman and Kimberly YorioCooking: Rachael Ray 365: No Repeats: A Year of Deliciously Different Dinners, Rachael RayHealth/Self Improvement: It's Not Easy Being Green: And Other Things to Consider, Jim HensonHistory/Current Events/Politics: An Inconvenient Truth, Al GoreHumor: Don't Make a Black Woman Take off Her Earrings: Madea's Uninhibited Commentaries on Love and Life, Tyler PerrySports: Get Your Own Damn Beer, I'm Watching the Game!: A Woman's Guide to Loving Pro Football, Holly Robinson PeeteVariety Blockbuster Book to Film: The Devil Wears Prada and its film adaptation, author Lauren Weisberger and director David Frankel.Book of the Year: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, J.K. Rowling, Mary GrandPré (Illustrator)Debut Author of the Year: Elizabeth Kostova for The HistorianAudio Book: The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Presents America: A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, Jon Stewart and the Writers of the Daily ShowChildren's Illustrated Book: Runny Babbit: A Billy Sook, Shel SilversteinChildren's Chapter Book/Middle Grade: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, J.K. Rowling, Mary GrandPré (Illustrator)Young Adult/Teen: Girls in Pants: The Third Summer of the Sisterhood, Ann BrasharesGeneral Fiction: The Mermaid Chair, Sue Monk KiddGraphic Novel: Marvel 1602 Volume I, Neil Gaiman, Andy Kubert and Richard IsanoveMystery/Suspense/Thriller: Eleven on Top, Janet EvanovichPoetry: Let America Be America Again: And Other Poems, Langston HughesRomance: 44 Cranberry Point, Debbie MacomberScience Fiction/Fantasy/Horror: The Stupidest Angel: A Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror, Christopher MooreReligion and Spirituality: Peace is the Way: Bringing War and Violence to an End, Deepak ChopraBiography/Memoir: Chronicles, Vol. 1, Bob DylanBusiness: Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything, Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. DubnerCooking: Rachael Ray's 30-Minute Get Real Meals: Eat Healthy Without Going to Extremes, Rachael RayHealth and Self-Improvement: He's Just Not That Into You: The No-Excuses Truth to Understanding Guys, Greg Behrendt and Liz TuccilloHistory/Current Events/Politics: 1776, David McCulloughHumor: The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Presents America: A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, Jon Stewart and the Writers of the Daily ShowSports: Faithful: Two Diehard Boston Red Sox Fans Chronicle the Historic 2004 Season, Stewart O'Nan and Stephen KingThe foundation awarded a Quills Corporate Literacy Award to Verizon for its support of literacy programs in the United States.
