Colorado Book Awards

Are you ready to snuggle in with a good book? Whether it’s a steamy beach read, a heart-pounding thriller, or getting lost in poetry, Abby Kerstetter, Programs Coordinator for the Colorado Center for the Book has got you covered!

It’s time for the 2021 Colorado Book Awards winners to be announced! All month long Book Bar, Denver will be hosting virtual books readings and events to celebrate the winners in each category. You can attend live or on demand by registering at https://coloradohumanities.org/programs/colorado-book-awards/

 

Book categories and celebration dates are below, and be sure to come check back weekly as winners are announced: 

April 9 – Juvenile and Young Adult Literature- 

Juvenile Nominations:

  • Born Curious: 20 Girls Who Grew Up to Be Awesome Scientists written by Martha Freeman and illustrated by Katy Wu. 
  • When You Know What I Know by Sonja K. Solter. 
  • Midnight at the Barclay Hotel written by Fleur Bradley and illustrated by Xavier Bonet.

Young Adult Nominations:

  • 10 Things I Hate about Pinky by Sandhya Menon
  • Turtle under Ice by Juleah del Rosario
  • Offline by Donna Cooner

April 14 – Historical Fiction and Romance 

Historical Fiction

  • Creatures of Charm and Hunger by Molly Tanzer (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)

  • Fierce Dreamer: A Novel by Linda Lafferty (Linda Lafferty)

  • Across the Winding River by Aimie K. Runyan (Lake Union)

Romance

  • A Cowboy State of Mind: A Creedence Horse Rescue Novel by Jennie Marts (Sourcebooks Casablanca)

  • Shall We Dance? by Shelley Shepard Gray (Blackstone Publishing)

  • Custodian of the Spirits by Bronwyn Long Borne (The Wild Rose Press)

April 21 – General Nonfiction and History 

General Fiction

  • Wesley Yorstead Goes Outside by Stephanie Harper (Propertius Press)

  • Memories in the Drift: A Novel by Melissa Payne (Lake Union Publishing)

  • Other People’s Pets: A Novel by R.L. Maizes (Celadon Books)

History

  • Colorado’s Highest: The History of Naming the 14,000-Foot Peaks written by Jeri Norgren, photography by John Fielder (John Fielder Publishing)

  • Yanks Behind the Lines: How the Commission for Relief in Belgium Saved Millions from Starvation during World War I by Jeffrey B. Miller (Rowman & Littlefield)

  • The Bad Old Days of Colorado: Untold Stories of the Wild West by Randi Samuelson-Brown (Two Dot/Rowman & Littlefield)

April 28 – Anthology and Pictorial

Anthology

  • Stories That Need to Be Told 2020: A Tulip Tree Anthology edited by Jennifer Top (TulipTree Publishing)

  • Wild: Uncivilized Tales from Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers edited by Rachel Delaney Craft and Natasha Watts (RMFW Press)

  • Monsters, Movies & Mayhem edited by Kevin J. Anderson (WordFire Press)

Pictorial

  • The Aspen Cookbook: 100+ favorite recipes from local chefs and restaurants edited by Amanda Rae Busch, illustrated by Julia Bridgforth (Aspen Board of Realtors)

  • Chicana Activists of Colorado: Powerful Women Paper Dolls and Their Stories by Deborah Martinez Martinez, illustrated by Robert W. Pacheco (Vanishing Horizons)

  • The American West in Art edited by Thomas Brent Smith and Jennifer R. Henneman (5 Continents Edition)

May 4 @ 4:30 – Children’s Literature (in coordination with Children’s Book Week & BookBar Storytime)

Children’s Literature

  • Cow Boy Is NOT a Cowboy by Gregory Barrington (HarperCollins)

  • Flibbertigibbety Words: Young Shakespeare Chases Inspiration written by Donna Guthrie, illustrated by Åsa Gilland (Page Street Publishing)

  • I Will Dance written by Nancy Bo Flood, illustrated by Julianna Swaney (Simon & Schuster)

  • Snoozapalooza written by Kimberlee Gard, illustrated by Vivian Mineker (Families)

May 5 – General Fiction and Science Fiction/Fantasy 

General Fiction

  • Wesley Yorstead Goes Outside by Stephanie Harper (Propertius Press)

  • Memories in the Drift: A Novel by Melissa Payne (Lake Union Publishing)

  • Other People’s Pets: A Novel by R.L. Maizes (Celadon Books)

Science Fiction/Fantasy

  • Tower of the Four: The Champions Academy Episodes 1-3 by Todd Fahnestock (F4 Publishing)

  • White Trash Warlock by David R. Slayton (Blackstone Publishing)

  • Once Again: A Novel by Catherine Wallace Hope (Alcove Press/Crooked Lane Books)

May 12 – Biography and Creative Nonfiction 

Biography

  • Chasing Excellence: The Remarkable Life and Inspiring Vigilosophy of Coach Joe I. Vigil by Pat Melgares (Soulstice Publishing)

  • Heartbreak Kennel: The True Story of Max and His Breeder by Cary Unkelbach (Walden Resources Press)

  • The Scholar and the Struggle: Lawrence Reddick’s Crusade for Black History and Black Power by David A. Varel (University of North Carolina Press)

Creative Nonfiction

  • The Unreality of Memory and Other Essays by Elisa Gabbert (Farrar Straus & Giroux)

  • Edge of the Map: The Mountain Life of Christine Boskoff by Johanna Garton (Mountaineers Books)

  • No Option But North: The Migrant World and the Perilous Path Across the Border written by Kelsey Freeman, photography by Tess Freeman (IG Publishing)

  • Bridging Worlds: A Sherpa’s Story by Pemba Sherpa and Jim McVey (Sherpa Publishing)

May 19 – Literary Fiction and Poetry 

Literary Fiction

  • St. Christopher on Pluto by Nancy McKinley (West Virginia University Press)

  • The Gringa: A Novel by Andrew Altschul (Melville House Press)

  • The Loneliest Band in France: A Novella by Dylan Fisher (Texas Review Press)

Poetry

  • A History of Kindness by Linda Hogan (Torrey House Press)

  • This Way to the Grand As-Is: New and Selected Poems by Aaron Anstett (Sagging Meniscus)

  • Anodyne by Khadijah Queen (Tin House)

May 26 – Mystery and Thriller 

Mystery

  • Death of a Car Salesman: A Novel by Collin Brantmeyer (Ready Demolition Books)

  • Shadow Ridge: A Jo Wyatt Mystery by M.E. Browning (Crooked Lane Books (The Quick Brown Fox & Company)

  • Gone to Darkness by Barbara Nickless (Thomas & Mercer)

Thriller

  • The Burn Patient: A Vega and Middleton Novel by Sue Hinkin (Literary Wanderlust)

  • Winter Counts: A Novel by David Heska Wanbli Weiden (Ecco/HarperCollins)

  • Her Perfect Life: A Novel by Rebecca Taylor (Sourcebooks Landmark)

 

Reader’s Bonus!
Be sure to check out Lora and Abby’s top book selections and email Lora your top choices to be included on her Best Of book list! Lora@loracheadle.com

Young Adult: Revolution, Jennifer Donnelly

Historical Fiction: This Tender Land, William Kent Kruger. Anything by Ken Follett, especially the Knightsbridge series.

History: Heartbeat of Wounded Knee, David Treuer

Anthology: Family Resemblance: An Anthology and Exploration of 8 Hybrid Literary Genres, Edited by Marcela Sulak and Jacqueline Kolosov

 

Poetry: “When the Light of the World Was Subdued, Our Songs Came Through: A Norton Anthology of Native Nations Poetry”. United States Poet Laureate Joy Harjo. Dante’s Iliad and Odyssey

 

Childrens: The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish, by Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean and Wolves in the Walls.

 

Science fiction/Fantasy: The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue V. E. Schwab, 

Graphic Novels: The Monstrous book series by MarcyKate Connolly

Biography: His Truth Is Marching on: John Lewis and the Power of Hope, by Jon Meacham and Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants, by Robin Wall Kimmerer

 

Mystery/Thriller: Winter Counts, by David Heska Wanbli Weiden and Carry: A Memoir of Survival on Stolen Land, by Toni Jensen

 

General Nonfiction Finalists 

Lean & Strong: Eating Skills, Psychology, and Workouts by Josh Hillis (On Target Publications)

Caregiving Done Differently: A Commonsense Approach for Families, Caregivers, and Seniors by Loretta J. Gilbert and Nancy E. Walker (The Common Sense Approach)

Glitter Up the Dark: How Pop Music Broke the Binary by Sasha Geffen (The University of Texas Press) 

 

History Finalists 

Colorado’s Highest: The History of Naming the 14,000-Foot Peaks written by Jeri Norgren, photography by John Fielder (John Fielder Publishing)

Yanks Behind the Lines: How the Commission for Relief in Belgium Saved Millions from Starvation during World War I by Jeffrey B. Miller (Rowman & Littlefield)

The Bad Old Days of Colorado: Untold Stories of the Wild West by Randi Samuelson-Brown (Two Dot/Rowman & Littlefield) 

 

With thanks to our partner, BookBar, and sponsors, Outskirts Press, and The Colorado Sun, winners will be announced and read briefly at a celebration event June 26, 2021. Register at coloradohumanities.org/programs/colorado-book-awards/

Learn more about the Colorado Center for the Book at coloradohumanities.org