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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2 Books Honored by the National Book Foundation in 1982

Finalist - Children’s Books

Jambo Means Hello: Swahili Alphabet Book
by Muriel Feelings, Illustrated by Tom Feelings

Publication Date: Jul 15, 1992
List Price: $6.99
Format: Paperback, 56 pages
Classification: Nonfiction
Target Age Group: Early Reader
ISBN13: 9780140546521
Imprint: Puffin Books
Publisher: Penguin Random House
Parent Company: Bertelsmann

Read a Description of Jambo Means Hello: Swahili Alphabet Book


Longlist - Nonfiction

Russian Journal
by Andrea Lee

    Publication Date: Jun 20, 2006
    List Price: $16.00
    Format: Paperback, 256 pages
    Classification: Nonfiction
    ISBN13: 9780812976656
    Imprint: Random House Trade Paperbacks
    Publisher: Penguin Random House
    Parent Company: Bertelsmann

    Read a Description of Russian Journal