Recently, after reading one of my blog posts, my father contacted me to say: "Will you write about awards lists? I use them for mysteries, sci-fi, lit in general. There are many, many awards whose lists are readily available." He is right that there are many books selected each year for national, state, and local recognition. From time to time I receive an email about the long list, short list, and winners of a variety of book awards which I often forward to him because I know he gathers the titles of many books he reads from these lists.
Other sites and blogs have extensive lists of book awards that can be searched online, so I don't want to repeat what has already been done, instead I would like to focus on a few of the awards for genres I read most and those I use to guide some of the buying I do for the students at my school.
The ones I am most familiar with and use for my own reading lists:
The Nebula Awards: This is one of my most eagerly anticipated lists because fantasy and science fiction are my two most-read genres. This award is decided on by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. I do wish the Nebulas would separate their YA and middle grade category into two separate awards. I think this would celebrate more books, but also, the titles really are quite different because of the age group they are written for.
The Hugo Awards: This is also an award for fantasy and science fiction, but a different group, the World Science Fiction Society chooses the award winners. Unlike the Nebulas, this award recognizes a graphic work as well as fan fiction. They administer the Lodestone Award for best YA book, but it is not a Hugo award.
The Edgar Award (named for Edgar Allan Poe): These are also close to my heart because I love mysteries. The Mystery Writers of America decide these. They include both YA and juvenile categories.
Those are the genre awards I seek. There are also awards for romance and horror that are of interest.
There are also awards for literary fiction. There is a good definition of what that is here. This is a controversial term because sometimes genre fiction and popular fiction are considered of lesser quality because they are less serious than literary fiction. (This is one idea that is argued.) There are authors (Jennifer Weiner is one.) who dispute this more eloquently than I whose thoughts can be searched online. The awards lists I most frequently consult are:
- National Book Award: These are presented by the National Book Foundation and include five categories - fiction, non-fiction, poetry, translated literature, and young people's literature. The 2020 awards will be announced on November 18th. The long-lists will be announced in mid-September.
- PEN/Faulkner: These are decided by the PEN/Faulkner foundation and include one award for fiction and one for short story.
- The Booker Prizes: These are presented by The Booker Prize Foundation and include a book published in English and an international prize for a book that has been translated into English. The long-list was released on July 28, and the short-list will be announced on September 15th.
- The Pulitzer Prizes: These awards were provided for in 1904 by the will of journalist Joseph Pulitzer and are today administered by the Pulitzer Prize Board. The 2020 winners listed by category can be found here.
- Nobel Prize in Literature: In addition to literature, there are Nobel Prizes awarded for chemistry, physics, medicine, economic sciences, and perhaps the most well-known, peace. But the literature prize may be the most controversial. The 2018 prize was delayed because of a sexual assault scandal in the Swedish Academy. Additional criticism has been levied because of the overwhelmingly white and male winners in the history of the award.
Every year, I watch the ALA Youth Media Awards on their live webcast that takes place at the ALA Mid-Winter meeting. Once I was even lucky enough to be there in person with hundreds of others cheering for the honor and award books. The awards are listed on the ALA site all of which I use to guide the collection development for my library. Though some of the awards like the Caldecott (for illustration) and the Newbery (for a middle-grade title) seem like they are not relevant for a teen audience, it is important to remember that high school students do not necessarily read at a high school level, and that picture books have universal messages appropriate for readers of all ages.
Many states have their own awards for books of all genres, but I focus on Virginia Readers Choice since my school is in VA. These books are chosen each year in four categories by a committee of librarians, teachers, reading specialists, and other educators from across Virginia. I served on the high school level committee for 4 years. In my district, we are encouraged to participate in the year-long program which promotes reading the selections and voting for a favorite in the spring.
Which are your favorite lists to peruse for titles to add to your TBR?
