Over the course of this week, we will be introducing, by category, the candidates for the 2011 800-CEO-READ Business Book Awards. Even though only one of the candidates can win the big prize, good business books deserve an audience, and perhaps one on this list will be the winning book..to you.

Today, we take a look at the candidates in the Creativity/Innovation & Marketing/Sales category.

Creativity and Innovation:

• Nanovation: How a Little Car Can Teach the World to Think Big and Act Boldby Kevin & Jackie Freiberg and Dain Dunston | Thomas Nelson
• StandOut: The Groundbreaking New Strengths Assessment from the Leader of the Strengthsby Marcus Buckingham | Thomas Nelson
• Blah Blah Blah: What to Do When Words Don’t Workby Dan Roam | Portfolio/Penguin US
• Best Practices Are Stupid: 40 Ways to Out-Innovate the Competitionby Stephen M. Shapiro | Portfolio/Penguin US
• The Accidental Creative: How to Be Brilliant at a Moment’s Noticeby Todd Henry | Portfolio/Penguin US
• The Innovator’s DNA: Mastering the Five Skills of Disruptive Innovatorsby Jeff Dyer, Hal Gregersen, Clayton M. Christensen | Harvard Business Review Press
• Disciplined Dreaming: A Proven System to Drive Breakthrough Creativityby Josh Linkner | Jossey-Bass, An Imprint of Wiley
• Open Services Innovation: Rethinking Your Business to Grow and Compete in a New Eraby Henry Chesbrough | Jossey-Bass, An Imprint of Wiley
• The Idea Hunter: How to Find the Best Ideas and Make Them Happenby Andy Boynton, Bill Fischer | Jossey-Bass, An Imprint of Wiley
• The Two-Second Advantage: How We Succeed by Anticipating the Future‚ Just Enoughby Vivek Ranadive, Kevin Maney | Crown Publishing Group, Crown Business
• Big Wave Surfing: Extreme Technology Development, Management, Marketing and Investing by Kenneth J. Thurber, PhD | Beavers Pond Press

Marketing and Sales:

• The Challenger Sale: Taking Control of the Customer Conversationby Matthew Dixon, Brent Adamson | Portfolio/Penguin US
• The Mackay MBA of Selling in the Real Worldby Harvey Mackay | Portfolio/Penguin US
• Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actionsby Guy Kawasaki | Portfolio/Penguin US
• Users, Not Customers: Who Really Determines the Success of Your Businessby Aaron Shapiro | Portfolio/Penguin US
• The Ultimate Question 2.0: How Net Promoter Companies Thrive in a Customer-Driven Worldby Fred Reichheld with Rob Markey | Harvard Business Review Press
• The Power of Foursquare: 7 Innovative Ways to Get Your Customers to Check In Wherever They Areby Carmine Gallo | McGraw-Hill Professional
• Likeable: How to Delight Your Customers, Create an Irresistible Brand, and Be Generally Amazingby Dave Kerpen | McGraw-Hill Professional
• Brand Relevance: Making Competitors Irrelevantby David A. Aaker | Jossey-Bass, An Imprint of Wiley
• The Third Screen: Marketing to Your Customers in a World Gone Mobileby Chuck Martin | Nicholas Brealey Publishing
• Brandwashed: Tricks Companies Use to Manipulate Our Minds and Persuade Us to Buyby Martin Lindstrom, Morgan Spurlock (Foreword) | Crown Publishing Group, Crown Business
• Brand Resilience: Managing Risk and Recovery in a High-Speed Worldby Jonathan R. Copulsky | Palgrave Macmillan
• We First: How Brands and Consumers Use Social Media to Build a Better World by Simon Mainwaring | Palgrave Macmillan