SLJ's eighth annual riff on March Madness has begun! Author judge Michael Buckley kicked off the virtual elimination tournament today, deciding between Phillip Hoose's The Boys Who Challenged Hitler and Neal Shusterman's Challenger Deep. Dubbed Battle of the Kids' Books (BOB), the literary contest matches up 16 of the best books for young people from the previous year. Styled after The Morning News’ Tournament of Books, the competition is judged by notable children’s and young adult authors, who make their decisions based on literary merit, kid appeal, and overall design. BOB fans all over the country participated in the event's Undead Poll, which ran on the blog from February 29 to March 6. The eliminated book that receives the most votes will go on to compete against the two remaining titles in the final round. The "Zombie" pick will be announced on March 29. Award-winning author Ann M. Martin (aka “The Closer”) will then choose among the final three titles that remain standing. Downloadable graphics and brackets, created by SLJ creative director Mark Tuchman, are available, and fans can follow along via Twitter (#sljbob and @SLJsBOB) and Pinterest. Comments, photos, and tweets will be highlighted in weekly Peanut Gallery blog posts. One title down, 15 more to go. Who will take the crown? We'll just have to wait and see. See also:

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