How do you choose a favourite?

I was in the very lucky position of judging the Prima Baby Awards the week before last.

One of the categories we were judging was books and of course it got me thinking - how do you decide on which book is best? Surely it is a very personal and subjective choice, based on your preferences?

They had some wonderful books but to decide which one was better than the others was for me, completely impossible. I love Hugless Douglas by David Melling but that was up against Debi Gliori Dragon Loves Penguin- how can you possibly decide? (They both got top marks from me!) The only book I did not give top marks to was an alphabet book- which was a lovely book but not phonically correct and I can't help myself; I think phonics have dripped into my blood- sad, I know.

That got me thinking about my favourite books- I could never have just one!

I'm a sucker for gorgeous illustrations as well as wonderful storytelling. Many of my favourite picture books combine both these aspects. I adore Quentin Blake and Lauren Child, not only for their great stories but also the illustrations. I'd love to have prints of their work on my walls.
I can't help myself, I do enjoy Guess How Much I love You by Sam McBratney - it seems to encapsulate my feelings for my children so exactly and the illustrations by Anita Jeram are just lovely. Then there are those picture books that take your breath away with the quality of the art work, like The Whale's Song by Dyan Sheldon and Gary Blythe. In fact my list would be almost endless!

For an older reader, I love the Anne of Green Gables books- the whole set. They are a part of my childhood and I have read them again and again. I have a lovely old set, they were my mother's and aunt's, and they are clearly loved and read-a-lot type of books.

Adult books are harder- one of my favourite authors is Guy Gavriel Kay. These books mix history (one of my great loves) with fantasy and they are always hauntingly beautiful.  'Under Heaven' set in ancient China has remained in my mind for a very long time and I'm looking forward to reading the next one.
I also loved The Power of One by Bryce Courtenay.  I certainly never thought I'd count a book about boxing as one of my favourites! (Don't read the sequel- it's nowhere like as good).

I feel I've barely scratched the surface with this thought- the more I pondered on my favourites the more books sprang to mind that I just had to consider. That lead me to thinking about developing a love of reading in children- one of the elements mentioned in the new National Curriculum. I can't remember anyone actually teaching me to love books, but I can remember many, many visits to the library. I can't remember learning to read but I can remember being read to. What I would want for my own children and for the children I teach, is that they have the same hard time trying to pick favourite books, because they have so many they absolutely love and they have that lasting pleasure in picking up a book and savouring it.