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Oregon Book Award Finalists reading from their works

Tune in to OPB on Monday, June 22nd at 7:00 for “The 2020 Oregon Book Awards” a special from Literary Arts: The Archive Project. The episode will be broadcast on OPB Radio (where to listen). This special, statewide broadcast will celebrate the finalists and announce the winners of the 2020 Oregon Book Awards. It will be hosted, as originally planned, by writers Omar El Akkad and Elena Passarello.

We are thrilled to be able to celebrate these awards in a way that is accessible to even more people, and grateful for our partnership with OPB, which helps bring the work of writers to tens of thousands of Oregonians year-round.

Buy the finalists books from Broadway Books!

We are happy to share these excerpts, from each of the Oregon Book Awards finalists, read by the authors. Winners in each category will be announced on Oregon Public Broadcasting on Monday, June 22nd, on a special episode of the Archive Project.

KEN KESEY AWARD FOR FICTION  
Judges: Natashia Deón, Brandon Hobson, Rick Moody

Kesha Ajoshe Fisher, reading from No God Like the Mother
Kimberly King Parsons reading from Black Light: Stories
Peter Rock reading from The Night Swimmers
Karen Thompson Walker reading from The Dreamers
Gabriel Urza reading from The White Death: An Illusion

STAFFORD/HALL AWARD FOR POETRY
Judges: Megan Fernandes, Nick Flynn, Marcus Wicker 

Carl Adamshick reading from Birches
Shaindel Beers reading from Secure Your Own Mask
Lynn Otto reading from Real Daughter
Allan Peterson reading from This Luminous: New and Selected Poems
Ashley Toliver reading from Spectra

FRANCES FULLER VICTOR AWARD FOR GENERAL NONFICTION 
Judges: Amy Bhatt, Thor Hanson, Sophfronia Scott 

Carol Barrett reading from Pansies
George Estreich reading from Fables and Futures: Biotechnology, Disability, and the Stories We Tell Ourselves
Barry Lopez reading from Horizon
Julian Smith reading from Aloha Rodeo: Three Hawaiian Cowboys, the World’s Greatest Rodeo, and a Hidden History of the American West
David Wolman reading from Aloha Rodeo: Three Hawaiian Cowboys, the World’s Greatest Rodeo, and a Hidden History of the American West

SARAH WINNEMUCCA AWARD FOR CREATIVE NONFICTION 
Judges:  Lacy M. Johnson, Nishta J. Mehra, Rob Spillman

Beth Alvarado reading from Anxious Attachments
Debra Gwartney reding from I am a Stranger Here Myself
Rebecca Lawton reading from The Oasis This Time: Living and Dying with Water in the West
Liz Prato reading from Volcanoes, Palm Trees, and Privilege: Essays on Hawai’i 
Wendy Willis reading from These Are Strange Times, My Dear: Field Notes from the Republic

ELOISE JARVIS MCGRAW AWARD FOR CHILDREN’S LITERATURE
Judges: Pablo Cartaya, Amy Pattee, Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich

Cathy Camper reading from Lowriders: Blast from the Past
Deborah Hopkinson reading from Carter Reads the Newspaper
Jody Little reading from Mostly the Honest Truth
Rosanne Parry reading from Wolf Called Wander
Rebecca Stefoff reading from Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species

LESLIE BRADSHAW AWARD FOR YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE 
Judges: Susan Campbell Bartoletti, David Gill, Traci L. Jones

Deborah Hopkinson reading from How I Became A Spy: A Mystery of WWII London
April Henry reading from The Lonely Dead
Connie King Leonard reading from Sleeping in My Jeans
Rosanne Parry reading from Last of the Name
Nancy Richardson Fischer reading from When Elephants Fly

AWARD FOR GRAPHIC LITERATURE
Judges:  Adrienne Celt, Jason Lutes, MariNaomi

Graphic literature finalists discuss their nominated books in the links below:

Cat Farris talks about My Boyfriend is a Bear
Maria Capelle Franz discusses The Chancellor and the Citadel
Greg Means discusses Penny Nichols
M.K. read discusses Penny Nichols

Dylan Meconis discussing Queen of the Sea will be posted soon!

Aron Nels Steinke discusses Mystery Club (Mr. Wolf’s Class #2)

These three additional special awards recognize significant contributions to Oregon’s literary culture. These individuals and organizations were nominated by community members and selected by the Oregon Book Awards & Fellowships Advisory Council.

Walt Morey Young Readers Literary Legacy Award Reading Results of Portland

The Stewart H. Holbrook Literary Legacy Award 
Write Around Portland of Portland

Charles Erskine Scott Wood Distinguished Writer Award Lawson Fusao Inada of Ashland


Congratulations to all of the finalists! Due to the ongoing public health crisis, the Oregon Book Awards cannot take place in person, however finalists will be celebrated and winners will be announced on OPB radio at 7:00 p.m. on Monday, June 22.

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