First Annual Essence Literary Awards

February is coming up fast, and along with it the celebration of Black History Month. At this time of year we are especially aware of the achievements of African-American authors and may decide to sample some of their newest works. Essence Magazine's Essence Books is an excellent source of information on African-American literature.

As part of its outstanding efforts to promote African-American writers, Essence has named the finalists in all nine categories of its first annual Essence Literary Awards. I am indebted to Claire Kirsch of Publishers Weekly for most of the information in this post.

Essence readers may vote on Essence.com among the top five finalists in the Storyteller of the Year category.

The winners in the other eight categories below will be selected by a panel of publishing experts and announced at an awards ceremony, to be held on February 7, 2008. Author Terry McMillan will receive a Lifetime Achievement Award that evening.

FICTION
Red River, Lalita Tademy (Grand Central)Casanegra, Blair Underwood, Steven Barnes, and Tananarive (Atria)The Pirate’s Daughter, Margaret Cezair-Thompson (Unbridled)New England White, Stephen L. Carter (Knopf)Knots, Nuruddin Farah (Riverhead)
MEMOIR
Brother, I’m Dying, Edwidge Danticat (Knopf)The Women Who Raised Me, Victoria Rowell (Morrow)Alek, Alek Wek (Amistad)One Drop, Bliss Broyard (Little, Brown)A Long Way Gone, Ishmael Beah (FSG)
INSPIRATION
Reposition Yourself, TD Jakes (Atria)From the Heart, Robin Roberts (Hyperion)Quiet Strength, Tony Dungy (Tyndale)Do You!, Russell Simmons (Penguin)How Strong Women Pray, Bonnie St. John (Faith Words)
NON-FICTION
The Bond, Sampson Davis, George Jenkins and Rameck Hunt (Riverhead)Friends: A Love Story, Angela Bassett and Courtney B. Vance (Harlequin)I Got Your Back, Eddie and Gerald Levert (Harlem Moon)Foreigners, Caryl Phillips (Knopf)Supreme Discomfort, Michael Fletcher and Kevin Merida (Doubleday)
CURRENT AFFAIRS
Come on People, Bill Cosby (Thomas Nelson)The Covenant in Action, Tavis Smiley (Smiley Books)An Unbroken Agony, Randall Robinson (Basic Civitas)Know What I Mean?, Michael Eric Dyson (Perseus)Twice As Good, Marcus Mabry (Modern Times)
PHOTOGRAPHY
Daufuskie Island, Jeanne Moutoussamy-Ashe (Univ. of South Carolina Press)Pop, Carol Ross (Stewart, Tabori & Chang)Jimi Hendrix, Janie Hendrix (Atria)Let Your Motto Be Resistance, Deborah Willis, ed. (Smithsonian)Jewels, Michael Cunningham and Connie Briscoe (Little, Brown)
CHILDREN’S BOOKS
Henry’s Freedom Box, Ellen Levine, illustrated by Kadir Nelson (Scholastic )Sugar Cane: A Caribbean Rapunzel, Patricia Storace and Raul Colon (Jump at the Sun)Marvelous World, Troy Cle (S&S Children’s)The Shadow Speaker, Nnedi Okorafor-mbachu (Jump at the Sun)Salli Gal and the Wall-a-Kee Man, Sheila P. Moses (Scholastic)
POETRY
Duende by Tracy K. Smith (Graywolf)Acolytes by Nikki Giovanni (Morrow)Totem by Gregory Pardlo (American Poetry Review)
STORYTELLER OF THE YEAR
(voted on by Essence readers at Essence.com)
Eric Jerome DickeyLori Bryant-WoolridgeTrisha R. ThomasL.A. BanksTananarive Due