Books...

Countless awards recognize outstanding literary works on an annual basis. We’ve previously written about Pulitzer Prize-winning novels, but there are also other prestigious prizes, such as the National Book Award, the Women’s Prize for Fiction, and the Booker Prize. If you’re looking for your next unforgettable read, checking out past winners (and nominees!) is a great place to start. The National Book Award has been around since 1950 and honors the best works of fiction, nonfiction, translated literature, young people’s literature, and poetry published in the United States each year. A longlist of 10 books is cut down to five finalists by a panel of judges, who then select a winner. In 2024, the award expanded its eligibility to include authors who don’t hold U.S. citizenship. Meanwhile, the Women’s Prize for Fiction highlights — you guessed it — the female author of the best novel written in English and published in the United Kingdom. First instituted in 1996, the award kicks off with the announcement of a longlist of nominees early in the year, typically around March, with a shortlist following soon after. Then the winner is picked by a board of “five leading women,” which could include actors, authors, journalists, etc. In 2024, the Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction was introduced as a sister prize. The Booker Prize is conferred each year to a work of fiction written in English and published in either the U.K. or Ireland. The award is named after Booker, McConnell Ltd., which began sponsoring it upon its inauguration in 1969. The winner is chosen from a shortlist by a five-person panel made up of authors, journalists, publishers, politicians, and those who work in the entertainment industry. yeremiah@aol.com Yeremiah Hardt