Are you looking for the perfect gift for the readers on your list? Look no further! We have compiled a list of some of our favorite Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards winning titles for every reader, from fiction fans to history lovers, there is something in the AWBA canon for everyone!
The New-to-AWBA Explorer
People who want an approachable starting place—accessible reads that open the door to the canon.
Memorial Drive by Natasha Trethewey (AWBA Nonfiction 2021):
In this sublime memoir, our Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards jury chair reckons with the murder of her mother at the hands of her stepfather. The poetic prose will grip you as Trethewey masterfully revisits the deeply segregated South, miscegenation laws, and the life she built in the wake of trauma.
As the first graphic novel to win an Anisfield-Wolf Book Award, this text is perfect for the reader who values a visual story.Former AWBA winner and current AWBA juror Peter Ho Davies writes, “Tessa Hulls’ graphic memoir, Feeding Ghosts, is a compendious multi-generational epic combining a sweeping history of twentieth century China with an intimate, extraordinary family story. Feeding Ghosts crosses oceans, continents and decades to make whole a family, restore a home and as readers we are privileged to join a journey told in such richly expressive images and vivid prose.”
The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson (AWBA Nonfiction 2011):
Through narrative storytelling, Wilkerson writes a definitive account of the Great Migration—a period in history when six million Black citizens migrated from the South to the North and the West in search of greater opportunity. Wilkerson’s masterwork sheds light on a six-decade period of “unrecognized immigration” within the United States, documenting a legacy of citizens who left home to follow their dreams.
The one who says, “just one more chapter,” stays up way too late, and always needs another great read queued up.
Colored Television by Danzy Senna (AWBA Fiction 2025):
This satirical novel follows Jane Gibson, a middle-aged writer whose latest book project “her mulatto War and Peace” never makes it to market and puts her tenure-track into question. Desperately seeking economic stability for her family, she descends into the underbelly of Hollywood. This page-turning text is full of Jane’s questionable decisions, unexpected plot twists, and Senna’s brilliant commentary on race and class in a post-post-racial America.
Deacon King Kong by James McBride (AWBA Fiction 2021):
If an elderly deacon marching out of a housing project in South Brooklyn and shooting the most ruthless drug dealer in the first paragraph doesn’t get you to binge read this novel, I’m not sure what will. McBride weaves humor and gripping prose to create a portrait of a working-class neighborhood grappling with poverty, compassion, and faith.
The Association of Small Bombs by Karan Mahajan (AWBA Fiction 2017):
Mahajan’s second novel starts with Chapter 0—the detonation of a bomb in the Lajpat Nagar market in New Delhi. This explosive beginning is followed by a riveting account of the aftershocks of a terrorist attack. Written in third person, Mahajan writes with psychological empathy for both the victims and the perpetrators, complicating our understanding of violence and sympathy. Read this before his third novel comes out in March 2026.
Looks for literature that illuminates injustice, elevates marginalized voices, and inspires action.
“A Problem From Hell”: America and the Age of Genocide by Samantha Power (AWBA Nonfiction 2003):
In this groundbreaking text now over 20 years old, Power analyzed U.S. foreign policy in the 20th century to explain the repeated failure to act in the face of genocide. Documenting the U.S.’ position in Cambodia, Iraq, Bosnia, Rwanda, Kosovo and beyond, Power’s text questions pragmatism in the face of atrocity. The perfect choice for a social justice seeker grappling with contemporary questions around genocide, U.S involvement, foreign policy, and morality.
Bunk: The Rise of Hoaxes, Humbug, Plagiarists, Phonies, Post-Facts, and Fake News by Kevin Young (AWBA Nonfiction 2018):
“Bunk is an essential book. It unpacks myriad hoaxes embedded in American history, from Spiritualism to the fake news espoused by Donald Trump. As Kevin Young explores these hoaxes, he finds that there is darkness at the heart of our country, a malignant seed, that finds expression in fakery. Young writes with humor and wit, and during this moment when alternative facts are sanctioned and willful ignorance is celebrated, this is a necessary read.” – Jesmyn Ward on Bunk
Deaf Republic by Ilya Kaminsky (AWBA Poetry 2020):
Kaminsky’s second poetry collection is set in an occupied territory during a time of political unrest. In the first poem of Act One, a solider shoots and kills a young deaf boy and it renders the entire town deaf. This 76-page urgent elegy lifts a mirror up to our collective silences in the face of atrocity and forces us to face what it means to live in a peaceful country.
The Gay Revolution: The Story of the Struggle by Lillian Faderman (AWBA Nonfiction 2016):
Faderman’s archival research and 150+ first-person interviews resulted in her 2016 landmark text—The Gay Revolution. Starting from the 1950s when the law classified gays, lesbians, and trans people as criminals and working her way up to the fight for marriage equality under Obama’s presidency, Faderman documents the gay-rights movement. As the ACLU tracks 616 anti-LGBTQ bills in the United States as of September 2025, revisiting this text and filling in the ten-year gap between the time of its publication might be critical to understanding where we came from and where we’re heading in the fight for gay rights.
For readers who love literature that transports them across cultures, borders, and identities.
Aké: The Years of Childhood by Wole Soyinka (AWBA Nonfiction 1983):
In 1986, Wole Soyinka was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature making him the first African laureate. Three years prior, the first installment of his memoir, Aké, won the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award for nonfiction. Here, Soyinka documents his childhood living in a Yoruba village in western Nigeria from ages 4-11. Pick up this text for a chance to experience pre-World Word II Nigeria from a curious and always-questioning child-eye’s view.
The Old Drift by Namwali Serpell (AWBA Fiction 2020):
Serpell’s debut novel, which took nearly two decades to craft, centers on a fateful 1904 incident near the Old Drift, a colonial settlement on the Zambezi River just a few miles from Victoria Falls. In the aftermath of this tragic incident, Serpell follows three generations as they collide over the course of a century. Former Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards juror Rita Dove writes, “The Old Drift” is “a phenomenal accomplishment, nothing less than a retelling/reimagining of the creation and ‘history’ of Zambia. The writing is exquisite; her descriptions of water – Victoria Falls, Lake Malawi, even rain – are awesome.”
If you’re looking for a single book to take you around the world, look no further than The Boat by Nam Le. Le’s debut is a collection of seven different short stories set in Colombia, Japan, Iran, Australia and the United States. Spanning different points of view and different time periods, think of each short story as a trip to a new place. On each stop you’ll meet new characters, each faced with an urgent threshold they must cross over.
Drawn to narratives—fiction or nonfiction—that uncover untold truths, cultural histories, or lived experience.
The US Governed by Six Hundred Thousand Despots: A True Story of Slavery by Jonathan D. S. Schroeder (AWBA Nonfiction 2025):
In this groundbreaking text,Schroeder uncovered the 1855 first-person slave narrative written by John Swanson Jacobs—brother of Harriet Jacobs—in an Australian newspaper. Reproduced in full, this narrative, written by an ex-slave and ex-American, inserts a new 19th century global slave narrative. In the second half of the book, Schroeder writes a full biography on Jacobs’ life, adding context by an esteemed literary historian.
Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly (AWBA Nonfiction 2017):
Shetterly’s debut novel tells the story of four black women mathematicians working at NASA beginning in 1948. Their calculations during the Space Race era allowed the country to successfully send astronauts into orbit, to the moon and back. “The title of the book is something of a misnomer,” Shetterly writes in her acknowledgements. “The history that has come together in these pages wasn’t so much hidden as unseen—fragments patiently biding their time in footnotes and family anecdotes and musty folders.”
Horse is for the historical fiction fans. When Brooks’ learned that the Smithsonian had recently received a donation of the skeleton remains of the 19th century thoroughbred horse Lexington, she was intrigued. She would go on to uncover the critical role Black horseman played in building the thoroughbred industry. This novel is the story of that legendary Pre-Civil War racehorse, Lexington, and his Black groomer, Jarret. Not only does Brooks paint a picture of race relations at the cusp of national division, she brings the legacy of enslavement into the modern day with a contemporary storyline that makes you question just how far we’ve come.
Explore thoughtful book discussion questions, exclusive author content, and thoughts on the winning books from AWBA program director, jurors and partners each month through our Anisfield-Wolf Book Club!
Whether you are hosting your next book club or would simply like some questions to guide your reading, program director of the Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards, Kortney Morrow, has curated a selection of questions to consider while you read Colored Television.
Did you like Colored Television? If so, we recommend the following books to add to your reading list!
Caucasia, Danzy Senna
Come and Get It, Kiley Reid
Audition, Katie Kitamura
Swing Time, Zadie Smith
The Black Notebooks, Toi Derricotte
Quicksand, Nella Larsen
The Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards (AWBA), the only national juried prize for literature that addresses racism and diversity, proudly marks its 90th anniversary with a citywide celebration September 19–20, 2025. The anniversary weekend will bring award-winning authors to Cleveland for a series of thought-provoking conversations and readings that honor nine decades of Anisfield-Wolf awardees—writers who shaped our understanding of race, culture, and identity.
“As we mark the 90th anniversary of the Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards, we celebrate not only this year’s remarkable winners but also the enduring vision of Edith Anisfield Wolf,” said Kortney Morrow, Program Director, Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards. “This milestone year brings together past and present voices in a dynamic new setting—designed to spark urgent conversations and honor a legacy that continues to expand how we see, understand, and shape the world around us.”
Founded in 1935 by poet and philanthropist Edith Anisfield Wolf, the Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards remain a critical force in the literary world. For nine decades, the Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards have set the intellectual table for conversations on race and cultural differences. Past winners include Zora Neale Hurston, Langston Hughes, Martin Luther King Jr., Nadine Gordimer, Wole Soyinka, Toni Morrison, Isabel Wilkerson, and Colson Whitehead— writers whose work has shaped discourse on race and identity.
Anisfield Wolf, who died in 1963, asked the Cleveland Foundation in a bequest to sustain her passion and vision for the awards for the “purpose of stimulating the writing of more and better books upon the general subject of race relations.” The Cleveland Foundation continues to steward the awards today.
“For nine decades, the Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards have championed literature that confronts injustice and sparks critical, consequential conversations about our world and humanity,” said AWBA jury chair Natasha Trethewey, poet, memoirist, and Board of Trustees Professor of English at Northwestern University. “It is a profound honor to celebrate this year’s winners and the extraordinary legacy of the awards during its 90th anniversary weekend – at a time when these voices are more important than ever.”
The Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards are part of Cleveland Book Fest, a month-long showcase of literary excellence in Northeast Ohio.
Friday, September 19: City Club of Cleveland Forum and the 90th Anniversary Awards Ceremony
The weekend begins with a special City Club of Cleveland Friday Forum at 11:30 a.m. featuring literary scholars Jonathan D. S. Schroeder(AWBA 2025) and Vincent Brown (AWBA 2021) in conversation on Rediscovering Resistance: John Swanson Jacobs and 600,000 Despots. The forum will be held at the City Club of Cleveland (1317 Euclid Ave.) and is open to the public ($30 members / $45 nonmembers).
That evening, the 90th Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards Ceremony will take place at the Maltz Performing Arts Center (1855 Ansel Rd.) beginning at 6:30 p.m. A public reception with book signings, food, and drinks will follow at the Ballroom at Park Lane.
Saturday, September 20: The 90th Anniversary Celebration – Events Free and Open to the Public
Morning: Author Panels and Community Conversations
The celebration continues Saturday morning at the Cleveland Public Library’s MLK Jr. Branch with two dynamic panels. Doors open at 9 a.m.
Humanity on the Line: Resisting Dehumanization, Erasure, and Atrocity Amidst Divides (9:45 a.m.): A fireside chat with George Makari(AWBA 2022) and David Livingstone Smith (AWBA 2012)
Light in the Ruins: A Poetry Reading Featuring Past Anisfield-Wolf Book Award Winners (10:30 a.m.): A poetry reading featuring Adrian Matejka (AWBA 2014), Ilya Kaminsky (AWBA 2020), Victoria Chang (AWBA 2021), Monica Youn (AWBA 2024), and Marilyn Chin (AWBA 2015)
Book sales and signings will follow, hosted by Mac’s Backs. Featured canon members as well as AWBA jurors – Natasha Trethewey (AWBA 2021), Peter Ho Davies (AWBA 2017), Charles King (AWBA 2020), Tiya Miles (AWBA 2022), Deesha Philyaw, and Luis Alberto Urrea – will be available.
Afternoon: Author In-Community Events
Spend the afternoon in Ohio City with a series of intimate, author-led conversations and performances that bring literature into the heart of the community. Each event is hosted in a unique neighborhood venue, offering attendees the chance to engage with award-winning writers in relaxed, creative settings. Events are all within walking distance.
Central Hub: Bookhouse Brewing
Enjoy discounted food and drinks, browse signed books, and connect with fellow attendees between sessions.
Beyond Representation: Fiction that Moves, Challenges and Illuminates the Complexity of Identity. Guests will enjoy a lively conversation about how narrative driven fiction infused with humor can challenge the way we see ourselves and the world around us.
2:00–2:45 PM | Transformer Station | Tessa Hulls (AWBA 2025) x Maxine Hong Kingston (AWBA Lifetime Achievement 2024)
Drawn from Memory: The Role of Art in Shaping Identity Moderated by author Peter Ho Davies (AWBA 2017). Tessa Hulls’ visual panels will be projected on the gallery walls, enriching the experience.
3:00–3:45 PM | St. John’s Episcopal Church | Jonathan D. S. Schroeder (AWBA 2025) x Karamu House Revival: A Slave Narrative Reawakened In partnership with Karamu House, actors will perform dramatic readings from the 1855 slave narrative of John Swanson Jacobs, reinterpreted through a modern lens.
4:00–4:45 PM | Ohio City Farm | Janice N. Harrington (AWBA 2025)
Yard Show: Poetry of Belonging, Nature, and Black Creative Placemaking Guests will enjoy a live poetry reading, reflections on the cultural and ecological significance of Black creative placemaking, and guided tours of the grounds.
All events are free unless otherwise noted. For more information and to receive event updates, visit Anisfield-Wolf.org.
The Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards recognize books that have made important contributions to our understanding of racism and human diversity. Established in 1935 by poet and philanthropist Edith Anisfield Wolf, the awards are the only national juried prize for literature that confronts racism and celebrates diversity. The Anisfield-Wolf Book awards are administered by the Cleveland Foundation. For more information, visit Anisfield-Wolf.org, and follow us on Facebook, X and Instagram.
Cleveland Book Week has been transformed into Cleveland Book Fest, a month-long showcase of literary excellence in Northeast Ohio. This year’s festival is slated to draw in thousands of book lovers, writers, and residents through author talks, poetic-inspired exhibits, dynamic readings, writing workshops, and publishing panels.
Cleveland Book Fest Schedule
Rock & Read: Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo
Tuesday, Sept. 3 | 6 p.m.
Cleveland Public Library Martin Luther King Jr. Branch
Join us for a rockin’ family event celebrating My Grandma and Grandpa Rock! by legendary duo Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo. Enjoy a lively discussion moderated by the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s own Dr. Jason Hanley. Presented in partnership with the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Sourcebooks Publishing and Loganberry Books.
Free copies of the book to the first 300 attendees.
Cleveland Public Library Martin Luther King Jr. Branch
Hosted by Lake Erie Ink, Writers in Residence, CHARP EDucation and Sparrows Fortune
This FREE event is open to all teens, in grades 7th-12th in the Greater Cleveland community, and will include local guest poets, pizza, giveaways of books and other cool stuff. Teens will write in response to prompts and share work in an open mic. If you’re a teen, stop in and do some writing, sharing and listening. If you’re an adult, stop in and listen to what Cleveland teens have to say.
Literary Cleveland’s Inkubator Writing Conference is the largest free writing conference in the country. Three days of virtual events Sept. 8-10 with nationally renowned authors lead to a two-day in-person conference Sept. 12-13 featuring 40 events and 80 authors at the Cleveland Public Library. The in-person conference includes writing workshops, craft talks, panel discussions, an open mic, a book fair with regional literary presses and organizations, plus a keynote by bestselling author and Cleveland native Celeste Ng. All free!
Drawn Together: Jewish Women and Graphic Novels A Conversation with Terri Libeson, Sara Phoebe Miller, and Samantha Baskind
Wednesday, Sept. 17 | 7 p.m.
Mishkan Or 26000 Shaker Blvd, Beachwood, OH 44122
Step into the world of graphic novels with creators Terri Libenson and Sara Phoebe Miller and art history professor Samantha Baskind. In this lively conversation, they’ll discuss the power of combining images and words, the influence of Jewishness, and connecting with readers through storytelling.
Terri Libenson is the creator of The Pajama Diaries and the best-selling middle-grade graphic novel series Emmie & Friends (book 9, Entirely Emmie, appeared earlier this year).
Sara Phoebe Miller is the author of the young adult graphic novel You Belong Here. After working at DC Comics for more than a decade, she recently became the Editorial Director at BOOM! Studios.
Samantha Baskind is Distinguished Professor of Art History at Cleveland State University. She co-edited the landmark book The Jewish Graphic Novel: Critical Approaches and is the author of six books on Jewish art and artists, including the forthcoming Moses Jacob Ezekiel: Jewish, Confederate, Expatriate Sculptor. She also serves on the board of the Siegel and Shuster Society.
Join The City Club in learning from two Anisfield-Wolf Book Award winners, Jonathan D. S. Schroeder and Vincent Brown, as they discuss the importance of amplifying hidden narratives and what uncovering stories of resistance can teach us about today.
The Nature of Our Times – Exhibit Opening and Poetry Reading
Friday, Sept. 19 | 3:00-5:00 p.m.
Cleveland Public Library (Main)
Join us for a special opening event and poetry reading for the exhibit, The Nature of Our Times at Cleveland Public Library, featuring Ohio poets and coeditors Luisa A. Igloria, Aileen Cassinetto, and David Hassler and Phillip Levin, director of United By Nature.
Published by Paloma Press in collaboration with the Wick Poetry Center and Poets for Science, The Nature of Our Times: Poems on America’s Lands, Waters, Wildlife, and Other Natural Wonders is a companion to the United By Nature Initiative, a first-of-its-kind, national assessment of U.S. lands, waters, and wildlife.
The annual Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards ceremony returns to the Maltz Performing Arts Center for a fourth consecutive year to honor the 2025 winners as they join the esteemed canon of America’s only juried book prize focusing on works that address racism and diversity. A reception, book sale and author signing will follow the ceremony. Tickets are free but registration is required. A livestream option will be available for those who cannot attend in person.
Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards 90th Anniversary Celebration
Saturday, Sept. 20 | 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
AWBA author panels, book signings and in-community events at the Cleveland Public Library – Martin Luther King Jr. Branch in the morning and various venues across Ohio City in the afternoon.
Samin is a cook, teacher, and author of the James Beard award-winning cookbook, Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking. She was named one of Time’s 100 Most Influential People in the World and Chef of the Year by Eater. She is the co-host of the Home Cooking podcast and host of the Netflix original documentary series based on her book Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat.
Author Jill Lepore will discuss her latest book, We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution.
Each ticket ($35 +fees) includes a seat at the author’s talk, a copy of We the People, and a donation to the Cuyahoga County Public Library Foundation.
Jill Lepore is the David Woods Kemper ’41 Professor of American History at Harvard University and Professor of Law at Harvard Law School. She is also a staff writer at The New Yorker. Her many books include the international bestseller, These Truths: A History of the United States.
Cuyahoga County Public Library South Euclid-Lyndhurst Branch
Join us for the book launch event for Dan Chaon’s One of Us.
Dan Chaon is the author of several books, including Ill Will, a national bestseller that was named one of the 10 best books of the year by Publishers Weekly. Other works include the short story collection Stay Awake, a finalist for the Story Prize; the national bestseller Await Your Reply; and Among the Missing, a finalist for the National Book Award. Chaon’s fiction has appeared in the Best American Short Stories, the Pushcart Prize Anthologies, and the O. Henry Collection. He has been a finalist for the National Magazine Award in Fiction and the Shirley Jackson Award, and he was the recipient of an American Academy of Arts and Letters Award in Literature. Chaon lives in Cleveland.
John Scalzi is one of the most popular science fiction authors of his generation. His debut, Old Man’s War, won him the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer. His New York Times bestsellers include The Last Colony, Fuzzy Nation, Redshirts (which won the Hugo Award for Best Novel), The Last Emperox, The Kaiju Preservation Society, and Starter Villain. Material from his blog, Whatever, has earned him two other Hugo Awards. He lives in Ohio with his wife and daughter.
Marie Vibbert at the Cuyahoga County Public Library
Thursday, Sept. 25 | 7-8 p.m.
Cuyahoga County Public Library South Euclid-Lyndhurst Branch
Local author Marie Vibbert visits to discuss her latest novel, Andrei and the Hellcats.
Hugo- and Nebula-nominated author Marie Vibbert’s short fiction has appeared over 90 times in top magazines like Nature, Analog, and Clarkesworld, and been translated into Czech, Chinese and Vietnamese. Her debut novel, Galactic Hellcats, was long listed by the British Science Fiction Award and her work has been called “everything science fiction should be” by the Oxford Culture Review. She also writes poetry, comics, and computer games. By day she is a computer programmer in Cleveland.
Ian McEwan’s literary works have earned him worldwide critical acclaim. His first collection of short stories, First Love, Last Rites, won the Somerset Maugham Award in 1976. McEwan was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize for Fiction numerous times before winning the award for Amsterdam in 1998. His novel, Atonement, received the WH Smith Literary Award in 2002 and was made into an Oscar-winning film featuring Keira Knightley and James McAvoy. His new book, What We Can Know, will be published on September 18, 2025. Single tickets go on sale Wednesday, September 3rd.
Cleveland Public Library Martin Luther King Jr. Branch
The Eighth Annual Great Lakes African American Writers Conference (GLAAWC, pronounced “glossy”) features a nationally renowned author, Diane McKinney-Whetstone (the Langston Hughes Literary Keynote), and Kim Martin-Sadler (the Alice Dunbar Nelson Professional Keynote), a publishing industry expert, to share insights with authors and aspiring writers throughout the region. Accompanied by in-depth panel discussions, opportunities to network with esteemed literary minds, and be equipped with trending literary tactics, this event is a must-attend for all literary creatives and lovers of African American literature.
Join us for our annual day-long conference where Black literary creatives are celebrated and highlighted for their work in Cleveland and beyond. Learn from influential publishing industry professionals to obtain and enhance your writing objectives.
Save the date for Saturday, Sept. 27 from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. at the Cleveland Public Library-MLK Branch! While this event is free and open to the public, Ms. McKinney-Whetsone’s latest novel, Family Spirit, will be available for purchase as a bundled ticket. Do take advantage of the bundled ticket and secure Ms. McKinney-Whetsone’s autograph during her book signing.
Also, on Friday, Sept. 26., GLAAWC, in partnership with the Case Western Reserve University English Department and the Baker-Nord Center, will host the Alice Dunbar-Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award honoring Cleveland’s own beloved and distinguished poet, Julie Patton. Additional details forthcoming.
Mark your calendars for a distinguished weekend of literature and camaraderie in celebration of the 90th Anniversary of the Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards. This two-day festival-style celebration will feature intimate conversations between past AWBA winners, jury and author book signings, and in-community author events showcasing the AWBA Class of 2025.
2025 Awards Ceremony
Sept. 19, 6:30 p.m.
Maltz Performing Arts Center
Tickets will be available to reserve later this summer.
90th Anniversary Celebration
Sept. 20, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
AWBA author panels, book signings and in-community events at the Cleveland Public Library – Martin Luther King Jr. Branch and various venues across Ohio City
Full schedule forthcoming – watch our social channels and website for updates.
CLEVELAND — Four groundbreaking works have been named winners of the 2025 Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards, the nation’s only endowed juried prize dedicated to literature that deepens our understanding of race and diversity.
The Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards jury, chaired by Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Natasha Trethewey, selected this year’s distinguished group of winners:
Fiction:Colored Television by Danzy Senna
Nonfiction:The United States Governed By Six Hundred Thousand Despots: A True Story of Slavery; A Rediscovered Narrative, with a Full Biography by John Swanson Jacobs, edited by Jonathan D. S. Schroeder
Memoir:Feeding Ghosts by Tessa Hulls
Poetry:Yard Show by Janice N. Harrington
Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Yusef Komunyakaa will also receive the Lifetime Achievement Award, recognizing his profound impact on American literature. Known for his lyrical explorations of war, memory, and race, Komunyakaa has shaped contemporary poetry with a voice that is both unflinching and deeply evocative.
Founded in 1935 by poet and philanthropist Edith Anisfield Wolf, the Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards remain a critical force in the literary world. Past winners include Toni Morrison, James Baldwin, Isabel Wilkerson, Jesmyn Ward, and Colson Whitehead — writers whose work has shaped discourse on race and identity in America.
Anisfield Wolf, who died in 1963, asked the Cleveland Foundation in a bequest to sustain her passion and vision for the awards for the “purpose of stimulating the writing of more and better books upon the general subject of race relations.” The Cleveland Foundation continues to steward the awards today.
“For 90 years, the Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards have championed fearless, groundbreaking literature that challenges the status quo, ignites dialogue, and shapes a more just and inclusive world,” said Lillian Kuri, president and CEO of the Cleveland Foundation. “This year’s winners unearth buried histories, redefine cultural narratives, and demand our attention — at a moment when these voices are more vital than ever.”
A Landmark Win for the Graphic Memoir Genre
For the first time in its 90-year history, the Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards have honored a graphic memoir: Feeding Ghosts by Tessa Hulls.
Through stunning visuals and powerful storytelling, Hulls unearths her family’s multigenerational journey from China to America, confronting trauma, migration, and resilience in a format that redefines the boundaries of memoir.
A Prize with National and Global Impact
Now in its 90th year, the Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards continue to elevate authors whose work ignites national and global conversations on identity, history, and justice.
“This year’s winners add new dimensions to the Anisfield-Wolf legacy,” said jury chair Trethewey. “From a rediscovered first-person slave narrative to a searing portrait of modern racial identity, these books demand to be read and discussed.”
Trethewey is joined on the jury by esteemed AWBA-winning novelist Peter Ho Davies; bestselling AWBA-winning writer and scholar Charles King; AWBA-winning writer and American historian Tiya Miles; and critically acclaimed author and National Book Awards finalist Deesha Philyaw.
The 2025 Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards ceremony will take place September 19 in Cleveland — honoring the winners in a celebration of literature’s power to confront the past and shape the future. This event will be part of multi-week celebration of books, literature and writing in Cleveland with other local literary partners. Additional details will be announced soon.
CLEVELAND – The Cleveland Foundation announced 10 finalists for the 2025 Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards (AWBA), marking 90 years of honoring literature that confronts racism and explores diversity.
The announcement of finalists marks an expansion from past practice. In previous years, only the winning books have been revealed for categories that include fiction, nonfiction, poetry and lifetime achievement.
“Every year, the hardest part of our job as judges is choosing the winners from a finalist pool of incredible and compelling books,” says Natasha Trethewey, Pulitzer-Prize winning author and chair of the Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards jury, which considered more than 300 submissions this year. “The decision to share the finalists allows us to lift up the important works of more of these talented authors to a broader audience.”
Founded in 1935 by poet and philanthropist Edith Anisfield Wolf, AWBA remains the only national endowed juried prize recognizing books that contribute to our understanding of racism and foster an appreciation of cultural diversity.
Anisfield Wolf, who died in 1963, asked the Cleveland Foundation in a bequest to sustain her passion and vision for the awards for the “purpose of stimulating the writing of more and better books upon the general subject of race relations.” The Cleveland Foundation continues to steward the awards today.
This year’s extraordinary finalists span fiction, nonfiction, poetry and memoir/autobiography, reflecting the richness and complexity of the global conversation on identity, history and justice:
Janice Harrington, Yard Show
Tessa Hulls, Feeding Ghosts
John Swanson Jacobs/edited by Jonathan D. S. Schroeder, The United States Governed by Six Hundred Thousand Despots: A True Story of Slavery; A Rediscovered Narrative, with a Full Biography
Sarah Lewis, The Unseen Truth: When Race Changed Sight in America
Susan Muaddi Darraj, Behind You Is the Sea
Emily Raboteau, Lessons for Survival: Mothering Against “the Apocalypse”
Kiley Reid, Come and Get It
Danzy Senna, Colored Television
Adam Shatz, The Rebel’s Clinic: The Revolutionary Lives of Frantz Fanon
Danez Smith, Bluff
“Art is such a powerful tool—it inspires us, challenges us and leads us to ask the critical questions that drive society in the direction of its best self,” says Lillian Kuri, president and CEO of the Cleveland Foundation. “For 90 years, the Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards have amplified voices in pursuit of a more just and inclusive world, not only in literature but in life.”
The finalist list of 10 titles was chosen by the 2025 AWBA jury. Trethewey is joined by esteemed AWBA-winning novelist Peter Ho Davies; bestselling AWBA-winning writer and scholar Charles King; AWBA-winning writer and American historian Tiya Miles; and National Book Award finalist Deesha Philyaw. The selection process reflects the award’s deep commitment to literary excellence and social relevance.
“This year’s finalists embody the Anisfield-Wolf legacy of fearless writing that compels us to reckon with history and reimagine the future,” says Trethewey. “These books are urgent, profound and necessary.”
The winners will be announced on April 10 at the William N. Skirball Writers Center Stage Series presented by the Cuyahoga County Public Library Foundation and its academic partner Case Western Reserve University in the Maltz Performing Arts Center in Cleveland, Ohio. Tommy Orange, former AWBA winner for his 2018 debut novel, There There, will announce the winners following a conversation with fellow writer Kaveh Akbar. Live stream (and limited in-person) tickets are available at writerscenterstage.org.
The winners will also be honored at the upcoming annual Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards ceremony this fall in Cleveland.
About the Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards The Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards recognize books that have made important contributions to our understanding of racism and human diversity. Established in 1935 by poet and philanthropist Edith Anisfield Wolf, the awards are the only national endowed juried prize for literature that confronts racism and celebrates diversity. The Anisfield-Wolf Book awards are administered by the Cleveland Foundation.
About the Cleveland Foundation Established in 1914, the Cleveland Foundation is the world’s first community foundation – and one of the largest today. Through the generosity of donors, the foundation improves the lives of residents of Cuyahoga, Lake and Geauga counties by building community endowment, addressing needs through grantmaking and providing leadership on vital issues. Our vision is a vibrant Northeast Ohio where no Clevelander is left behind. For more information, visit ClevelandFoundation.org and follow us on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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