NAACP Image Awards Winners and Nominees

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The NAACP Image Awards nominates five books in nine categories for Outstanding Literature. You may print a list of all the award-winning and nominated books. Learn more at the NAACP Image Awards website.

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Fiction Nonfiction Poetry Debut Author Biography/Autobiography Children Youth/Teens Instructional Graphic Novel

39 Image Award Winning and Nominated Books for 2012

Winner – Biography/Autobiography

My Song: A Memoir

My Song: A Memoir

by Harry Belafonte and Michael Shnayerson

Nominee – Biography/Autobiography

No Higher Honor: A Memoir of My Years in Washington

No Higher Honor: A Memoir of My Years in Washington

by Condoleezza Rice

Nominee – Biography/Autobiography

A Singular Woman: The Untold Story of Barack Obama’s Mother

A Singular Woman: The Untold Story of Barack Obama’s Mother

Nominee – Biography/Autobiography

The John Carlos Story: The Sports Moment That Changed the World

The John Carlos Story: The Sports Moment That Changed the World

by Dave Zirin and John Wesley Carlos

Winner – Children

You Can Be a Friend

You Can Be a Friend

Nominee – Children

Acoustic Rooster And His Barnyard Band

Acoustic Rooster And His Barnyard Band

by Kwame Alexander, Illustrated by Tim Bowers

Nominee – Children

White Water

White Water

by Michael S. Bandy and Eric Stein, Illustrated by Shadra Strickland

Nominee – Children

Before There Was Mozart: The Story of Joseph Boulogne, Chevalier de Saint-George

Before There Was Mozart: The Story of Joseph Boulogne, Chevalier de Saint-George

by Lesa Cline-Ransome

Nominee – Children

Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans

Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans

by Kadir Nelson, Illustrated by Kadir Nelson

Winner – Debut Author

The Strawberry Letter: Real Talk, Real Advice, Because Bitterness Isn’t Sexy

The Strawberry Letter: Real Talk, Real Advice, Because Bitterness Isn’t Sexy

by Shirley Strawberry

Nominee – Debut Author

2Grieve 2Gether: A Journal from the Heart Helping Survivors and Supporters Navigate the Healing Process

2Grieve 2Gether: A Journal from the Heart Helping Survivors and Supporters Navigate the Healing Process

by Denise Hall Brown

Nominee – Debut Author

The Loom

The Loom

by Shella Gillus

Nominee – Debut Author

Defining Moment: Barack Obama: The Historical Journey to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue

Defining Moment: Barack Obama: The Historical Journey to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue

by Patricia Duncan

Nominee – Debut Author

We the Animals

We the Animals

by Justin Torres

Winner – Fiction

Say Amen, Again

Say Amen, Again

by ReShonda Tate Billingsley

Nominee – Fiction

Boundaries

Boundaries

by Elizabeth Nunez

Nominee – Fiction

The Plot Against Hip Hop: A Novel (A D Hunter Mystery)

The Plot Against Hip Hop: A Novel (A D Hunter Mystery)

by Nelson George

Nominee – Fiction

Silver Sparrow

Silver Sparrow

by Tayari Jones

Nominee – Fiction

A Silken Thread (Thorndike Press Large Print African American Series)

A Silken Thread (Thorndike Press Large Print African American Series)

by Brenda Jackson

Winner – Instructional

The T.D. Jakes Relationship Bible: Life Lessons on Relationships from the Inspired Word of God

The T.D. Jakes Relationship Bible: Life Lessons on Relationships from the Inspired Word of God

Nominee – Instructional

A Year to Wellness and Other Weight Loss Secrets

A Year to Wellness and Other Weight Loss Secrets

by Bertice Berry

Nominee – Instructional

Living My Dream: An Artistic Approach to Marketing

Living My Dream: An Artistic Approach to Marketing

by Synthia SAINT JAMES

Nominee – Instructional

Too Important To Fail: Saving America’s Boys (Tavis Smiley Reports)

Too Important To Fail: Saving America’s Boys (Tavis Smiley Reports)

by Tavis Smiley

Nominee – Instructional

Our Difficult Sunlight: A Guide to Poetry, Literacy, & Social Justice in Classroom & Community

Our Difficult Sunlight: A Guide to Poetry, Literacy, & Social Justice in Classroom & Community

by Georgia A. Popoff and Quraysh Ali Lansana

Winner – Nonfiction

The Wealth Cure: Putting Money In Its Place

The Wealth Cure: Putting Money In Its Place

Nominee – Nonfiction

Sister Citizen: Shame, Stereotypes, And Black Women In America

Sister Citizen: Shame, Stereotypes, And Black Women In America

by Melissa V. Harris-Perry

Nominee – Nonfiction

The Cosmopolitan Canopy: Race And Civility In Everyday Life

The Cosmopolitan Canopy: Race And Civility In Everyday Life

by Elijah Anderson

Nominee – Nonfiction

Who’s Afraid Of Post-Blackness?: What It Means To Be Black Now

Who’s Afraid Of Post-Blackness?: What It Means To Be Black Now

Nominee – Nonfiction

Super Rich: A Guide To Having It All

Super Rich: A Guide To Having It All

by Russell Simmons and Chris Morrow

Winner – Poetry

Afro Clouds & Nappy Rain: The Curtis Brown Poems

Afro Clouds & Nappy Rain: The Curtis Brown Poems

by James B. Golden

Nominee – Poetry

Intimate Thoughts

Intimate Thoughts

by Darrin DeWitt Henson

Nominee – Poetry

Honoring Genius: Gwendolyn Brooks: The Narrative of Craft, Art, Kindness and Justice

Honoring Genius: Gwendolyn Brooks: The Narrative of Craft, Art, Kindness and Justice

by Haki Madhubuti

Nominee – Poetry

Head Off & Split: Poems

Head Off & Split: Poems

by Nikky Finney

Nominee – Poetry

Last Seen (Felix Pollak Prize In Poetry)

Last Seen (Felix Pollak Prize In Poetry)

by Jacqueline Jones LaMon

Winner – Youth/Teens

Jesse Owens: I Always Loved Running (African-American Biographies (Enslow))

Jesse Owens: I Always Loved Running (African-American Biographies (Enslow))

by Jeff Burlingame

Nominee – Youth/Teens

Kick

Kick

by Walter Dean Myers

Nominee – Youth/Teens

Eliza’s Freedom Road: An Underground Railroad Diary

Eliza’s Freedom Road: An Underground Railroad Diary

by Jerdine Nolen

Nominee – Youth/Teens

Camo Girl

Camo Girl

by Kekla Magoon

Nominee – Youth/Teens

Planet Middle School

Planet Middle School

by Nikki Grimes