Photo credit: bookriot.com
Recently, the PEN Foundation revealed its finalists for various literary awards, which prominently feature a selection of nonfiction works. Among the accolades are several mixed genre awards including the PEN/Jean Stein Book Award and the PEN Open Book Award. Additionally, specific prizes are dedicated to nonfiction, such as the PEN/Diamonstein-Spielvogel Award for the Art of the Essay, the PEN/E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award, the PEN/Jacqueline Bograd Weld Award for Biography, and the PEN/John Kenneth Galbraith Award for Nonfiction.
This year’s selection boasts an impressive array of titles across various nonfiction categories. Noteworthy among them are Vengeance Feminism: The Power of Black Women’s Fury in Lawless Times by Kali Nicole Gross, Magically Black and Other Essays by Jerald Walker, and The Age of Deer: Trouble and Kinship with Our Wild Neighbors by Erika Howsare.
2025 State of America’s Libraries Report
The American Library Association (ALA) has released its 2025 State of America’s Libraries Report, highlighting significant issues related to censorship within educational spaces. The report notes there were 821 recorded attempts to censor materials and services across libraries, schools, and universities in 2024, indicating a trend driven more by external pressure groups or governmental influences rather than by parents or students themselves. With its engaging infographics and straightforward information, this report is a crucial read for anyone interested in the status of libraries today.
Melissa Febos’s Dry Season (Publisher’s Weekly)
Melissa Febos, a Lambda Literary Award finalist celebrated for her personal explorations of queer relationships and love, has generated buzz with her forthcoming book about a year spent in celibacy. Her prose is known for its beauty and depth, and anticipation builds among her readers. A notable feature in Publisher’s Weekly offers an Early glimpse into what Dry Season has to offer, underscoring the author’s signature insightfulness.
To Tell My Disabled Stories, I Needed to Unlearn Ableist Workshop Critiques (Electric Literature)
Writing from a marginalized position can be particularly challenging, and Sarah Fawn Montgomery addresses this struggle in her recent discussion about experiences as a disabled writer in traditionally non-disabled spaces. She reflects on the ableist critiques she faced in writing workshops, illustrating the barriers encountered when trying to share authentic narratives. Montgomery’s reflections led her to create Nerve: Unlearning Workshop Ableism to Develop Your Disabled Writing Practice, which calls for a more inclusive approach to writing workshops.
That wraps up our highlights for the week! For more discussions and insights, feel free to connect with me on my substack Winchester Ave or follow my updates on Instagram @kdwinchester. I welcome any messages or thoughts via email.
The following comes to you from the Editorial Desk.
This week’s highlight features a piece that stirred a great deal of discussion, especially among our editorial team regarding its impact even five years after its release. The piece delves into the contentious nature of American Dirt, which continues to spark debate among readers and critics alike. Here’s a glimpse of the discussion surrounding it.
Picture this: January 2020 in the United States. A book graced with a vibrant blue and white cover begins to circulate widely in the literary circles. The design features an intricate hummingbird pattern—a nod to Aztec mythology—against a backdrop that suggests both beauty and peril due to the imagery of barbed wire. The aesthetics hint at themes associated with migration and border experiences.
The narrative follows a bookstore owner in Acapulco, Mexico, who is forced to flee after a violent act leaves her family in tragedy. Alongside her young son, they become migrants, navigating a perilous journey to reach the United States, facing the ever-looming threat of the drug cartel. This book garnered immense attention and was not only a defining work of its time but also received endorsements from notable figures such as Oprah, positioning it as a crucial immigration narrative.
Even after five years, it remains a contentious topic and continues to evoke strong responses across the literary community.
Source
bookriot.com