May 17, 2019
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Winners will be announced in July, awards presented at Ohio Statehouse on October 17
Columbus, OH – May 17, 2019 —The Ohioana Library has announced the finalists for the 2019 Ohioana Book Awards. First given in 1942, the awards are the second oldest state literary prizes in the nation and honor outstanding works by Ohio authors in five categories: Fiction, Poetry, Juvenile Literature, Middle Grade/Young Adult Literature, and Nonfiction. The sixth category, About Ohio/Ohioan, may also include books by non-Ohio authors.
Among the literary honors this year’s finalists have previously received are the National Book Award, the Newbery Medal, the Coretta Scott King Book Award, the Cleveland Arts Prize, the Edgar Award, and the Pushcart Prize. Two authors have had books made into major motion pictures, while another was a writer for MTV’s iconic 1990s series Beavis and Butt-head. Four authors are finalists for their debut books, while six are past Ohioana Award winners.
Winners will be announced in July, and the 2019 Ohioana Book Awards will be presented at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus on Thursday, October 17. The finalists are:
Fiction
Felver, Brad. The Dogs of Detroit: Stories, University of Pittsburgh Press.
Ford, Jeffrey. Ahab’s Return: or, The Last Voyage, William Morrow.
Markley, Stephen. Ohio: A Novel, Simon & Schuster.
Rothman-Zecher, Moriel. Sadness is a White Bird, Atria Books.
Sittenfeld, Curtis. You Think It, I’ll Say It: Stories, Random House.
Umrigar, Thrity. The Secrets Between Us, Harper.
Nonfiction
Giffels, David. Furnishing Eternity, Scribner.
Haygood, Wil. I, Too, Sing America: The Harlem Renaissance at 100, Rizzoli Electa.
Kuusisto, Stephen. Have Dog, Will Travel, Simon & Schuster.
Macy, Beth. Dopesick, Little, Brown and Company.
Orlean, Susan. The Library Book, Simon & Schuster.
About Ohio or an Ohioan
Congdon, Jane. How the “Wild” Effect Turned Me into a Hiker at 69, Bettie Youngs Books.
Haygood, Wil. Tigerland, Knopf.
Hazelgrove, William. Wright Brothers, Wrong Story, Prometheus Books.
Jackson, Lawrence P. Chester B. Himes: A Biography, W.W. Norton & Company.
Van Haaften, Julia. Berenice Abbott: A Life in Photography, W.W. Norton & Company.
Poetry
Barngrover, Anne. Brazen Creature, University of Akron Press.
Bentley, Roy. Walking with Eve in the Loved City, University of Arkansas Press.
Jackson, Marcus. Pardon My Heart, Triquarterly.
Nezhukumatathil, Aimee. Oceanic, Copper Canyon Press.
Wiley, Rachel. Nothing is Okay, Button Poetry.
Juvenile Literature
Campbell, Marcy. Illus. by Corinna Luyken. Adrian Simcox Does NOT Have a Horse, Dial Books.
Fleming, Denise. This is the Nest That Robin Built, Beach Lane Books.
Genshaft, Carole Miller. Aminah’s World, Ohio University Press Distributed Titles.
Mora, Oge. Thank you, Omu!, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.
Woodson, Jacqueline. lllus. by Rafael Lopez. The Day You Begin, Nancy Paulsen Books.
Middle Grade/Young Adult Literature
Arnold, David. The Strange Fascinations of Noah Hypnotik, Viking Books for Young Readers.
Draper, Sharon M. Blended, Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books.
Houts, Michelle. Count the Wings: The Life and Art of Charley Harper, Ohio University Press.
Klages, Ellen. Out of Left Field, Viking Books for Young Readers.
Woodson, Jacqueline. Harbor Me, Nancy Paulsen Books.
Ohioana will profile all the finalists in the coming weeks. Beginning late in May, it will present “31 Books, 31 Days,” a special feature on the library’s Facebook page in which one finalist is highlighted each day.
In June, the public will have the opportunity to vote online for their favorite title from among the finalists for Ohioana’s 4th annual Readers Choice Award. Keep watching for more information on Facebook and Twitter!