WE CAST A SHADOW by Maurice Carlos Ruffin has been longlisted for the Dublin Literary Award. The book was nominated by the Chicago Public Library, who deem it "a piercing exploration of the harrowing experience of being Black in America. Ruffin uses the backdrop of a near-future Southern city where an unnamed black narrator is trying to protect his mixed-race son. This dystopian satire is sharply observed and employs unsettling humor to explore the deep scourge of racism in America." The winner of the award will be announced May 20, 2021. One World published the book on January 29, 2019.

Brian Castleberry’s NINE SHINY OBJECTS has been longlisted for the 2021 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction. They call the book a "luminous debut," and quote author Jenny Offill, who writes: “In this extraordinary novel, Castleberry brilliantly hopscotches from person to person, from era to era, while somehow making all this fancy footwork look effortless and essential.” Custom House published the book on June 30, 2020.

THE BLOSSOM AND THE FIREFLY by Sherri L. Smith is a finalist for the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators Golden Kite Award for Young Adult Fiction. Smith’s novel is among the five books chosen by a panel of well-regarded authors from the thousand titles submitted to the award. G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers published the book on February 18, 2020.

Rachel Beanland’s debut novel FLORENCE ADLER SWIMS FOREVER is the winner of the 2020 National Jewish Book Award’s Goldberg Prize, which honors a debut work of fiction each year. The novel has also been a Barnes & Noble Book Club pick, a New York Times Editors’ Choice, and a USA Today’s “Best Books of 2020.” Simon & Schuster published the hardcover edition on July 7, 2020, and will publish the paperback edition on June 1, 2021.

David S. Reynolds’ ABE: ABRAHAM LINCOLN IN HIS TIMES is a finalist for the 2021 Gilder Lehrman Lincoln Prize. The Prize has been awarded annually to a work that enhances the general public’s understanding of the Civil War era. The winner will be announced on Friday, February 12 – the 212th anniversary of President Lincoln’s birthday. Penguin Press published the book on September 29, 2020.

Amina Cain’s INDELICACY has been longlisted for the Rathbones Folio Prize. This year’s judges are the T.S. Eliot Prize-winning poet Roger Robinson, the Irish writer, editor and broadcaster Sinéad Gleeson, and novelist and short story writer Jon McGregor. The shortlist will be announced on February 10th, and the winner on March 24th. Farrar, Straus, and Giroux published the book on February 11, 2020.

David Goodwillie’s novel KINGS COUNTY is a finalist for the Gotham Book Prize. The annual award was created to encourage and honor writing about New York City in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Avid Reader Press published the book on July 28, 2020.

Namwali Serpell’s STRANGER FACES is a finalist for the 2020 National Book Critics Circle Award in the Criticism category. The winners will be announced on March 25, 2021. Transit Books published the book on October 20, 2020.

Cathy Park Hong’s MINOR is a finalist for the 2020 National Book Critics Circle Award in the Autobiography category. The winners will be announced on March 25, 2021. One World published the book February 25, 2020.

David Goodwillie’s second novel, KINGS COUNTY, has been short-listed for The Gotham Book Prize. The new annual award was “created to encourage and honor writing about New York City in light of the Covid-19 pandemic.” Avid Reader Press published the book on July 28, 2020.