Books Honored by the National Book Foundation

National Book Award Medals

The mission of the National Book Foundation is to celebrate the best of American literature, to expand its audience, and to enhance the cultural value of great writing in America. National Book Awards are given five categories: Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, Translated Literature, and Young People’s Literature.

Here we highlight the winners of African descent. The first African-American writer to win a National Book Award was Ralph Ellison, in 1953, for Invisible Man.

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4 Books Honored by the National Book Foundation in 1972

Finalist - Children’s Books

The Planet Of Junior Brown (2006)
by Virginia Hamilton

Publication Date: May 01, 2006
List Price: $8.99
Format: Paperback, 224 pages
Classification: Fiction
Target Age Group: Young Adult
ISBN13: 9781416914105
Imprint: Aladdin
Publisher: Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Parent Company: KKR & Co. Inc.

Read a Description of The Planet Of Junior Brown (2006)


Finalist - Children’s Books

His Own Where
by June Jordan

    Publication Date: May 01, 2010
    List Price: $11.95
    Format: Paperback, 112 pages
    Classification: Fiction
    Target Age Group: Middle Grade
    ISBN13: 9781558616585
    Imprint: The Feminist Press
    Publisher: The Feminist Press
    Parent Company: The Feminist Press

    Read a Description of His Own Where


    Finalist - Nonfiction

    Harlem Renaissance
    by Nathan Huggins

      Publication Date: May 02, 2007
      List Price: $19.95
      Format: Paperback, 390 pages
      Classification: Nonfiction
      ISBN13: 9780195063363
      Imprint: Oxford University Press
      Publisher: Oxford University Press
      Parent Company: University of Oxford

      Read a Description of Harlem Renaissance


      Finalist - Poetry

      Words in the Mourning Time: Poems
      by Robert Hayden

      Hardcover Unavailable for Sale from AALBC
      (Check with Amazon  )


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        Publication Date: Jun 28, 1970
        List Price: Unavailable
        Format: Hardcover
        Classification: Poetry
        ISBN13: 9780807901618
        Imprint: October House
        Publisher: October House
        Parent Company: October House

        Read a Description of Words in the Mourning Time: Poems