Since 1980, the Los Angeles Times has awarded a set of annual book prizes. The Los Angeles Times Book Prize currently has nine categories: biography, current interest, fiction, first fiction (the Art Seidenbaum Award added in 1991), history, mystery/thriller (category added in 2000), poetry, science and technology (category added in 1989), and young adult fiction (category added in 1998). In addition, the Robert Kirsch Award is presented annually to a living author with a substantial connection to the American West. [1] It is named in honor of Robert Kirsch, the Los Angeles Times book critic from 1952 until his death in 1980 whose idea it was to establish the book prizes.
The Book Prize program was founded by Art Seidenbaum, a Los Angeles Times book editor from 1978 to 1985. An award named for Seidenbaum was added a year after his death in 1990. Works are eligible during the year of their first US publication in English, and may be written originally in languages other than English. The author of each winning book and the Kirsch Award recipient receives a citation and $1,000. The prizes are presented the day before the annual Los Angeles Times Festival of Books.
Year | Author | Title | Publisher | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2009 | David Mazzucchelli | Asterios Polyp | Pantheon | |
2010 | Adam Hines | Duncan the Wonder Dog: Show One | AdHouse Books | |
2011 | Carla Speed McNeil | Finder: Voice | Dark Horse | |
2012 | Sammy Harkham | Everything Together: Collected Stories | PictureBox | |
2013 | Ulli Lust | Today is the Last Day of the Rest of Your Life | Fantagraphics | |
2014 | Jaime Hernandez | The Love Bunglers | Fantagraphics | |
2015 | Riad Sattouf | Arab of the Future: A Childhood in the Middle East, 1978–1984 | Metropolitan Books | |
2016 | Nick Drnaso | Beverly | Drawn & Quarterly | |
2017 | Leslie Stein | Present | Drawn & Quarterly | |
2018 | Tillie Walden | On A Sunbeam | First Second Books | |
2019 | Eleanor Davis | The Hard Tomorrow | Drawn & Quarterly | |
2020 | Bishakh Kumar Som | Apsara Engine | [6] | |
2021 | R. Kikuo Johnson | No One Else | Fantagraphics | [9] |
Year | Author | Ref. |
---|---|---|
1980 | Wallace Stegner | |
1981 | Wright Morris | |
1982 | Ross Macdonald | |
1983 | M. F. K. Fisher | |
1984 | Christopher Isherwood | |
1985 | Janet Lewis | |
1986 | Kay Boyle | |
1987 | Paul Horgan | |
1988 | Thom Gunn | |
1989 | Karl Shapiro | |
1990 | Czeslaw Milosz | |
1991 | Ken Kesey | |
1992 | Diane Johnson | |
1993 | Carolyn See | |
1994 | Brian Moore | |
1995 | Stephen J. Pyne | |
1996 | Gary Snyder | |
1997 | Ray Bradbury | |
1998 | John Sanford | |
1999 | Ursula K. Le Guin | |
2000 | Lawrence Ferlinghetti | |
2001 | Tillie Olsen | |
2002 | Larry McMurtry | |
2003 | Ishmael Reed | |
2004 | Tony Hillerman | |
2005 | Joan Didion | |
2006 | William Kittredge | |
2007 | Maxine Hong Kingston | |
2008 | Robert Alter | |
2009 | Evan S. Connell | |
2010 | Beverly Cleary | |
2011 | Rudolfo Anaya | |
2012 | Kevin Starr | |
2013 | Susan Straight | |
2014 | TC Boyle | |
2015 | Juan Felipe Herrera | |
2016 | Thomas McGuane | |
2017 | John Rechy | |
2018 | Terry Tempest Williams | |
2019 | Walter Mosley | [12] |
2020 | Leslie Marmon Silko | |
2021 | Luis J. Rodriguez | [9] |
2022 | James Ellroy | [10] |
Year | Author | Ref. |
---|---|---|
2009 | Dave Eggers | |
2010 | Powell's Books, bookstore | |
2011 | Figment, self-publishing platform | |
2012 | Margaret Atwood | |
2013 | John Green | |
2014 | LeVar Burton | |
2015 | James Patterson | |
2016 | Rueben Martinez | |
2017 | Glory Edim | |
2018 | Library of America | |
2019 | WriteGirl | [12] |
2020 | Book Industry Charitable Foundation | [6] |
2021 | Reginald Dwayne Betts | [9] |
2022 | Freedom to Read Foundation | [10] |
The Los Angeles Times – Christopher Isherwood Prize for Autobiographical Prose has been awarded in partnership with the Christopher Isherwood Foundation since April 2017 (for 2016). [17]
Year | Author | Title | Publisher | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2016 | Wesley Lowery | "They Can't Kill Us All": Ferguson, Baltimore, and a New Era in America's Racial Justice Movement | [17] | |
2017 | Benjamin Taylor | The Hue and Cry at Our House: A Year Remembered | [17] | |
2018 | Kiese Laymon | Heavy: An American Memoir | [17] | |
2019 | Emily Bernard | Black is the Body: Stories from My Grandmother's Time, My Mother's Time, and Mine | [12] [17] | |
2020 | Andrew O'Hagan | Mayflies | [6] [17] | |
2021 | Deborah Levy | Real Estate: A Living Autobiography | Bloomsbury | [9] |
2022 | Javier Zamora | Solito: A Memoir. | Hogarth Press | [10] |
Year | Author | Title | Publisher | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2019 | Marlon James | Black Leopard, Red Wolf | [18] | |
2020 | Stephen Graham Jones | The Only Good Indians | [6] | |
2021 | Zen Cho | Spirits Abroad: Stories | Small Beer | [9] |
The National Book Awards (NBA) are a set of annual U.S. literary awards. At the final National Book Awards Ceremony every November, the National Book Foundation presents the National Book Awards and two lifetime achievement awards to authors. The National Book Awards were established in 1936 by the American Booksellers Association, abandoned during World War II, and re-established by three book industry organizations in 1950. Non-U.S. authors and publishers were eligible for the pre-war awards. Since then they are presented to U.S. authors for books published in the United States roughly during the award year.
Andrew O'Hagan is a Scottish novelist and non-fiction author. Three of his novels have been nominated for the Booker Prize and he has won several awards, including the Los Angeles Times Book Award.
Susan Straight is an American writer. She was a National Book Award finalist for the novel Highwire Moon in 2001.
The Art Seidenbaum Award for First Fiction, established in 1991, is a category of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize awarded to authors' debut books of fiction. It is named for the Los Angeles Times' critic Art Seidenbaum who was also an author and editor. Works are eligible during the year of their first US publication in English, though they may be written originally in languages other than English.
Victoria Chang is an American poet, writer, editor, and critic.
The John Leonard Prize for Best First Book, established in 2013, is an annual literary award presented by the National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) for authors' first books in any genre. Unlike other NBCC awards, recipients are selected by members, not the board.
The Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Fiction, established in 1980, is a category of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Works are eligible during the year of their first US publication in English, though they may be written originally in languages other than English.
Deesha Philyaw is an American author, columnist, and public speaker. Her debut short story collection, The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, was a finalist for the 2020 National Book Award in fiction and won The Story Prize. Her personal essay writing topics include race, sex, gender, and pop culture.
Anna Elizabeth Moschovakis is a Greek American poet, author, and translator.
Punching the Air is a young adult novel-in-verse by Ibi Zoboi and Dr. Yusef Salaam, published September 1, 2020 by Balzer + Bray.
The National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry, established in 1975 is an annual American literary award presented by the National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) to promote "the finest books and reviews published in English." Awards are presented annually to books published in the U.S. during the preceding calendar year in six categories: Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, Memoir/Autobiography, Biography, and Criticism.
Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Biography, established in 1981, is a category of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Works are eligible during the year of their first US publication in English, though they may be written originally in languages other than English.
The Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Current Interest, established in 1980, is a category of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Works are eligible during the year of their first US publication in English, though they may be written originally in languages other than English.
The Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Mystery/Thriller, established in 2000, is a category of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Works are eligible during the year of their first US publication in English, though they may be written originally in languages other than English.
The Los Angeles Times Book Prize for History, established in 1980, is a category of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Works are eligible during the year of their first US publication in English, though they may be written originally in languages other than English.
The Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Poetry, established in 1980, is a category of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Works are eligible during the year of their first US publication in English, though they may be written originally in languages other than English.
The Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Science and Technology, established in 1980, is a category of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Works are eligible during the year of their first US publication in English, though they may be written originally in languages other than English.
The Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Young Adult Novel, established in 1998, is a category of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Works are eligible during the year of their first US publication in English, though they may be written originally in languages other than English.
The Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Graphic Novel/Comics, established in 2009, is a category of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Works are eligible during the year of their first US publication in English, though they may be written originally in languages other than English.
Leila Mottley is an American novelist and poet. She is The New York Times bestselling author of Nightcrawling, which was a nominated for numerous awards, including the Booker Prize, making her the youngest author to have been nominated for the award. In 2018, at age 16, she was named the Youth Poet Laureate of Oakland, California.