National Book Awards

About
The National Book Award was established in 1950 by the National Book Foundation. It is an American literary prize given to writers by writers. Each year twenty judges are selected by the foundation, five each in four award categories: Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, and Young People's Literature. The judges are published writers renowned for their excellent work (including previous finalists and winners of the award).

Books are nominated by publishers according to a set of guidelines and submitted by June 15. Eligible books for the award must be written by an American citizen and published by an American publisher between December 1 of the previous and November 30 of the current year.

The panel of judges read books for their category as submitted to them by the publishers. By September, the panels compile shortlists of five Finalists. On the day of the awards ceremony in mid-November, the panel choose the winners for their categories, which are then announced at the ceremony that evening.

Each Finalist receives $1,000, a medal, and a citation from the panel at a private Medal Ceremony. The Winners each receive $10,000 and a bronze sculpture, as well as the honor of being a National Book Award winning author.

Winners
A complete list of winners of the National Book Award can be found on the National Book Award Winners page, organized by category and year. A complete list of winners and finalists can be found on the National Book Award Winners and Finalists page.

Source
National Book Foundation