This year's Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards have been awarded to a handful of acclaimed authors, showcasing diverse works of literature, poetry and more.
Teju Cole, Ned Blackhawk and Monica Youn were all recognized by the Cleveland-based awards. Maxine Hong Kingston earned the lifetime achievement award.
“It is a great pleasure to recognize this year’s winners, who have used their unique voices and experiences to spark critical conversations,” said Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards jury chair Natasha Trethewey in a statement. “This class joins past recipients, who include literary luminaries and contemporary thought leaders, in leveraging the power of words to explore and confront some of the most challenging topics facing us today.”
This year marks the 89th year for the awards, which are a part of The Cleveland Foundation.
Cole earned the award in the fiction category, for 2023's Tremor, his third novel, which follows a West African photography teacher who balances ethics in the arts through his everyday life.
For his book The Rediscovery of America, Blackhawk won in the nonfiction category. The book, which also won a National Book Award, documents a history of Indigenous people in America.
Youn's fourth collection From From earned the writer the award in the poetry category. In this series of poems, the Korean American writer digs into the question "Where are you from?"
The Anisfield-Wolf Book Award's lifetime achievement award goes to writer and teacher Maxine Hong Kingston, who penned the influential books The Woman Warrior (which previously won an Anisfield-Wolf Book Award), China Men and more.
Read more about this year's winners at anisfield-wolf.org.
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