National Book Award for Fiction

National Book Award for Fiction
Awarded for Outstanding literary work by U.S. citizens.
Location New York City
First awarded 1950
Website National Book Foundation

The National Book Award for Fiction is one of four annual National Book Awards, which recognize outstanding literary work by United States citizens. Since 1987 the awards have been administered and presented by the National Book Foundation, but they are awards "by writers to writers".[1] The panelists are five "writers who are known to be doing great work in their genre or field".[2]

General fiction was one of four categories when the awards were re-established in 1950. For several years beginning 1980, prior to the Foundation, there were multiple fiction categories: hardcover, paperback, first novel or first work of fiction; from 1981 to 1983 hardcover and paperback children's fiction; and only in 1980 five awards to mystery fiction, science fiction, and western fiction.[3] When the Foundation celebrated the 60th postwar awards in 2009, all but three of the 77 previous winners in fiction categories were in print.[4] The 77 included all eight 1980 winners but excluded the 1981 to 1983 children's fiction winners.[5]

The award recognizes one book written by a U.S. citizen and published in the U.S. from December 1 to November 30. The National Book Foundation accepts nominations from publishers until June 15, requires mailing nominated books to the panelists by August 1, and announces five finalists in October. The winner is announced on the day of the final ceremony in November. The award is $10,000 and a bronze sculpture; other finalists get $1000, a medal, and a citation written by the panel.[6]

Authors who have won the award more than once include such noted figures as William Faulkner, John Updike, William Gaddis, and Philip Roth, each having won the award on two occasions along with numerous other nominations.

National Book Awards for Fiction

From 1935 to 1941 there were six annual awards for general fiction and the "Bookseller Discovery" or "Most Original Book" was sometimes a novel. From 1980 to 1985 there were six annual awards to first novels or first works of fiction. In 1980 there were five awards to mystery, western, or science fiction. There have been many awards to fiction in the Children's or Young People's categories.[3]

Finalists, general fiction

This list covers only the post-war awards (pre-war awards follow) to general fiction for adult readers: one annual winner from 1950 except two undifferentiated winners 1973 to 1975, dual hardcover and paperback winners 1980 to 1983.

For each award, the winner is listed first followed by the finalists. Unless otherwise noted, the year represents the year the award was given for books published in the prior year. Thus, the award year 1950 is for books published in 1949.

1950 to 1959

1950: Nelson AlgrenThe Man with the Golden Arm[7]

No runners up were recognized. There were five honorable mentions in the non-fiction category only.[8][9]

1951: William FaulknerCollected Stories of William Faulkner[10]

No runners up were recognized.[11]

1952: James JonesFrom Here to Eternity[12]

1953: Ralph EllisonInvisible Man[13]

1954: Saul BellowThe Adventures of Augie March[14]

No runners up were recognized.[15]

1955: William FaulknerA Fable[16]

1956: John O'HaraTen North Frederick[17]

1957: Wright MorrisThe Field of Vision[18]

1958: John CheeverThe Wapshot Chronicle[19]

1959: Bernard MalamudThe Magic Barrel[20]

1960 to 1969

1960: Philip RothGoodbye, Columbus[21][22]

1961: Conrad RichterThe Waters of Kronos[23]

1962: Walker PercyThe Moviegoer[24]

1963: J. F. PowersMorte d'Urban[25]

1964: John UpdikeThe Centaur[26]

1965: Saul BellowHerzog[27]

1966: Katherine Anne PorterThe Collected Stories of Katherine Anne Porter[28]

1967: Bernard MalamudThe Fixer[29]

1968: Thornton WilderThe Eighth Day[30]

1969: Jerzy KosińskiSteps[31]

1970 to 1979

1970: Joyce Carol Oatesthem[32]

1971: Saul BellowMr. Sammler's Planet[33]

1972: Flannery O'ConnorThe Complete Stories[34]

The Complete Stories was named the "Best of the National Book Awards"[35] as part of the Fiction Award's 60th anniversary celebration in 2009, by internet visitors voting on a ballot of the best six award winners selected by writers associated with the Foundation.[4]

1973: John BarthChimera[36][37][38][lower-alpha 1]

1973: John Edward WilliamsAugustus[39][38][37][lower-alpha 1]

1974: Thomas PynchonGravity's Rainbow[40][41][lower-alpha 1]

1974: Isaac Bashevis SingerA Crown of Feathers and Other Stories[41][42][43][44][lower-alpha 1]

1975: Robert StoneDog Soldiers[45][46][lower-alpha 1]

1975: Thomas WilliamsThe Hair of Harold Roux[46][47][48][lower-alpha 1]

1976: William GaddisJ R[49]

1977: Wallace StegnerThe Spectator Bird[50]

1978: Mary Lee SettleBlood Tie[51]

1979: Tim O'BrienGoing After Cacciato[52]

1980 to 1989

For 1980 to 1983 this list covers the paired "Fiction (hardcover)" and "Fiction (paperback)" awards in that order. Hard and paper editions were distinguished only in these four years; none of the paperback winners were original; in their first editions all had been losing finalists in 1979 or 1981.

From 1980 to 1985 there was also one award for first novel or first work of fiction and in 1980 there were five more awards for mystery, western, and science fiction.[3] None of those are covered here.

1980 hardcover: William StyronSophie's Choice [53][54]

1980 paperback: John IrvingThe World According to Garp[55][54]

1981 hardcover: Wright MorrisPlains Song: For Female Voices [56][57]

1981 paperback: John CheeverThe Stories of John Cheever[58][57]

1982 hardcover: John UpdikeRabbit is Rich[59][60]

1982 paperback: William MaxwellSo Long, See You Tomorrow[61][60]

1983 hardcover: Alice WalkerThe Color Purple[62][63]

1983 paperback: Eudora WeltyThe Collected Stories of Eudora Welty[64][63]

1983 entries were published during 1982; winners in 27 categories were announced April 13 and privately celebrated April 28, 1983.[65]

1984 entries for the "revamped" awards in three categories were published November 1983 to October 1984; eleven finalists were announced October 17.[66] Winners were announced and celebrated November 15, 1984.[67]

1984: Ellen GilchristVictory Over Japan: A Book of Stories[68]

1985: Don DeLilloWhite Noise[69]

1986: E.L. DoctorowWorld's Fair[70]

1987: Larry HeinemannPaco's Story[71]

1988: Pete DexterParis Trout[72]

1989: John CaseySpartina[73]

1990 to 1999

1990: Charles JohnsonMiddle Passage[74]

1991: Norman RushMating[75]

1992: Cormac McCarthyAll the Pretty Horses[76]

1993: E. Annie ProulxThe Shipping News[77]

1994: William GaddisA Frolic of His Own[78]

1995: Philip RothSabbath's Theater[79]

1996: Andrea BarrettShip Fever and Other Stories[80]

1997: Charles FrazierCold Mountain[81]

1998: Alice McDermottCharming Billy[82]

1999: Ha JinWaiting[83]

2000 to 2009

2000: Susan SontagIn America[84]

2001: Jonathan FranzenThe Corrections[85]

2002: Julia GlassThree Junes[86]

2003: Shirley HazzardThe Great Fire[87]

2004: Lily TuckThe News from Paraguay[88]

2005: William VollmannEurope Central[89]

2006: Richard PowersThe Echo Maker[90]

2007: Denis JohnsonTree of Smoke[91]

2008: Peter MatthiessenShadow Country[92]

2009: Colum McCannLet the Great World Spin[93]

2010 to date

2010: Jaimy GordonLord of Misrule[94]

2011: Jesmyn WardSalvage the Bones[95]

2012: Louise ErdrichThe Round House[96][97][98][99]

2013: James McBrideThe Good Lord Bird[100][101]

2014: Phil KlayRedeployment'[102][103][104]

2015: Adam JohnsonFortune Smiles[105]

2016: Colson WhiteheadThe Underground Railroad[106]

2017: Jesmyn WardSing, Unburied, Sing[107]

2018:[108]

Early awards for fiction

The National Book Awards for 1935 to 1940 annually recognized the "Most Distinguished Novel" (1935-1936) or "Favorite Fiction" (1937-1940). Furthermore, works of fiction were eligible for the "Bookseller Discovery" and "Most Original Book" awards; fiction winners are listed here.

There was only one National Book Award for 1941, the Bookseller Discovery, which recognized the novel Hold Autumn In Your Hand by George Perry;[109] then none until the 1950 revival in three categories including Fiction.

Most Distinguished Novel (1935-1936)

1935: Rachel Field, Time Out of Mind[110]

1936: Margaret Mitchell, Gone With the Wind[111]

Favorite Fiction (1937-1940)

1937: A. J. Cronin, The Citadel[112]

1938: Daphne Du Maurier, Rebecca[113]

1939: John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath[114]

1940: Richard Llewellyn, How Green Was My Valley[115]

Bookseller Discovery (1936 to 1941)

1936: Norah Lofts, I Met a Gypsy (short stories)[111]

1937: Lawrence Watkin, On Borrowed Time (novel)[113]

1938: see nonfiction

1939: Elgin Groseclose, Ararat (novel)[114]

  • Chard Powers Smith, Artillery of Time, I

1940: see nonfiction

1941: George Sessions Perry, Hold Autumn in Your Hand (novel)[109]

Most Original Book (1935 to 1939)

1935: Charles G. Finney, The Circus of Dr. Lao (novel)[111]

1936: see nonfiction

1937: see nonfiction

1938: see nonfiction

1939: Dalton Trumbo, Johnny Got His Gun (novel)[114]

Repeat winners

See Winners of multiple U.S. National Book Awards

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 The Fiction panels split the 1973, 1974, and 1975 awards. Split awards have been prohibited continuously from 1984.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Contemporary coverage by The New York Times lists four "close seconds" for the four awards, three of which were works of fiction. The third listed was nonfiction, but Nonfiction was the second listed award winner, so the allocation of "close seconds" to award categories is uncertain.

References

  1. "History of the National Book Awards". National Book Foundation. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
  2. "How the National Book Awards Work". National Book Foundation. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 "National Book Award Winners: 1950 – Present". National Book Foundation. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
  4. 1 2 "A Celebration of the 60th National Book Awards". National Book Foundation. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
  5. "60 Years of the National Book Awards – 79 Fiction Winners". National Book Foundation. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
  6. "National Book Award Selection Process". National Book Foundation. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
  7. "National Book Awards – 1950". National Book Foundation. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
  8. Rachel Kushner (June 18, 2009). "The Man with the Golden Arm". NBA Fiction Blog. Archived from the original on 2009-09-12.
  9. "Book Publishers Make 3 Awards: Nelson Algren, Dr. Ralph L. Rusk and Dr. W. C. Williams Receive Gold Plaques". New York Times. March 17, 1950. p. 21.
  10. "National Book Awards – 1951". National Book Foundation. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
  11. Harold Augenbraum (June 18, 2009). "The Collected Stories of William Faulkner". NBA Fiction Blog. Archived from the original on 2009-09-13. The Book of National Book Awards Apocrypha says that when told he had won the National Book Award in Fiction for 1951, just 15 months after receiving the Nobel Prize in Literature, William Faulkner said, “I could have written a cookbook this year and they would have given me the National Book Award.”
  12. "National Book Awards – 1952". National Book Foundation. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
  13. "National Book Awards – 1953". National Book Foundation. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
  14. "National Book Awards – 1954". National Book Foundation. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
  15. Nathaniel Rich (July 9, 2009). "The Adventures of Augie March". NBA Fiction Blog. Archived from the original on 2017-08-29.
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  17. "National Book Awards – 1956". National Book Foundation. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
  18. "National Book Awards – 1957". National Book Foundation. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
  19. "National Book Awards – 1958". National Book Foundation. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
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  38. 1 2 Eric Pace (April 11, 1973). "2 Book Awards Split for First Time". New York Times. p. 38. Archived from the original on 18 March 2018. Additional archives: 2018-03-18.
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  54. 1 2 "National Book Awards – 1980". National Book Foundation. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
  55. Deb Caletti (August 9, 2009). "The World According to Garp". NBA Fiction Blog. Archived from the original on 2017-08-18.
  56. Patricia Smith (August 19, 2009). "Plains Song". NBA Fiction Blog. Archived from the original on 2017-08-15.
  57. 1 2 "National Book Awards – 1981". National Book Foundation. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
  58. Willie Perdomo (August 18, 2009). "The Stories of John Cheever". NBA Fiction Blog. Archived from the original on 2017-08-18.
  59. Amity Gaige (August 22, 2009). "Rabbit Is Rich". NBA Fiction Blog. Archived from the original on 2017-08-18.
  60. 1 2 "National Book Awards – 1982". National Book Foundation. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
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  66. Edwin McDowell (October 18, 1984). "11 Nominated for American Book Awards". New York Times. p. C25. Archived from the original on 18 March 2018. Additional archives: 2015-05-24.
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  109. 1 2 "Neglected Author Gets High Honor: 1941 Book Award Presented to George Perry for 'Hold Autumn In Your Hand'". New York Times. February 2, 1942. p. 18.
  110. "Lewis is Scornful of Radio Culture: Nothing Ever Will Replace the Old-Fashioned Book, He Tells Booksellers". New York Times. May 12, 1936. Archived from the original on 18 March 2018.
  111. 1 2 3 "5 Honors Awarded on the Year's Books: Authors of Preferred Volumes Hailed at Luncheon of Booksellers Group". New York Times. February 26, 1937. Archived from the original on 18 March 2018.
  112. "Booksellers Give Prize to 'Citadel': Cronin's Work About Doctors Their Favorite--'Mme. Curie' Gets Non-Fiction Award". New York Times. March 2, 1938. p. 14.
  113. 1 2 "Book About Plants Receives Award: Dr. Fairchild's 'Garden' Work Cited by Booksellers". New York Times. February 15, 1939. p. 20.
  114. 1 2 3 "1939 Book Awards Given by Critics: Elgin Groseclose's 'Ararat' is Picked as Work Which Failed to Get Due Recognition". New York Times. February 14, 1940. p. 25.
  115. "Books and Authors". New York Times. February 16, 1941. p. BR12.
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