NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� Lorrie Moore, Naomi Klein and the Egyptian writer Ahmed Naji are among the finalists for National Book Critics Circle awards. Honorary prizes are going to Judy Blume and to a longtime ally of Blume's in the fight against book bans, the American Library Association.
On Thursday, the critics circle announced nominees in seven competitive categories, ranging from fiction to debut book to best translation. Winners will be announced March 12.
Moore is a finalist for fiction, cited for 鈥淚 Am Homeless if This Is Not My Home,鈥� one of the few novels from an author best known for short stories. The other fiction nominees are Justin Torres' 鈥淏lackouts,鈥� winner of the National Book Award last fall; Teju Cole's 鈥淭remor,鈥� Daniel Mason's 鈥淣orth Woods鈥�; and Marie NDiaye's 鈥淰engeance Is Mine,鈥� translated from the French by Jordan Stump.
Klein's 鈥淒oppelganger: A Trip into the Mirror World,鈥� her exploration of the Internet and the spread of misinformation, is a finalist for criticism. Also nominated were Grace E. Lavery's 鈥淧leasure and Efficacy: Of Pen Names, Cover Versions, and Other Trans Techniques,鈥� Tina Post's 鈥淒eadpan: The Aesthetics of Black Inexpression,鈥� Nicholas Dames' 鈥淭he Chapter: A Segmented History from Antiquity to the Twenty-First Century鈥� and Myriam Gurba's "Creep: Accusations and Confessions," essays by the author who became a prominent critic of the lack of diversity in publishing.
Naji, convicted in Egypt in 2016 for 鈥渧iolating public modesty鈥� in his novel 鈥淯sing Life,鈥� is a finalist in autobiography for 鈥淩otten Evidence: Reading and Writing in an Egyptian Prison," translated by Katharine Halls. Naji's imprisonment led to international criticism and to his receiving the Freedom to Write Award from PEN America. His conviction was overturned the following year, and he left the country in 2019, eventually settling in the U.S. The other nominees are Safiya Sinclair's acclaimed memoir 鈥淗ow to Say Babylon,鈥� Matthew Zapruder's 鈥淪tory of a Poem,鈥� Susan Kiyo Ito's 鈥淚 Would Meet You Anywhere," and David Mas Masumoto's 鈥淪ecret Harvests,鈥� with artwork by Patricia Wakida.
In biography, the nominees were Jonathan Coe's Martin Luther King book, 鈥淜ing"; Gregg Hecimovich, The Life and Times of Hannah Crafts"; Yunte Huang's 鈥淒aughter of the Dragon: Anna May Wong鈥檚 Rendezvous with American History鈥�; Rachel Shteir's 鈥淏etty Friedan,鈥� and Jonny Steinberg's 鈥淲innie and Nelson,鈥� about the Mandelas.
The poetry finalists were Saskia Hamilton's 鈥淎ll Souls,鈥� Kim Hyesoon's 鈥淧hantom Pain Wings,鈥� Romeo Oriogun's 鈥淭he Gathering of Bastards," Robyn Schiff's 鈥淚nformation Desk鈥� and Charif Shanahan's 鈥淭race Evidence.鈥�
In translation, Kareem Abdulrahman was nominated for his translation from the Kurdish of Bachtyar Ali's 鈥淭he Last Pomegranate Tree, and Natascha Bruce for her translation from the Chinese of Dorothy Tse's 鈥漁wlish." The other finalists were Don Mee Choi's translation from the Korean of Kim Hyesoon's 鈥淧hantom Pain Wings,鈥� Todd Fredson's translation from the French/B茅t茅 of Azo Vauguy's 鈥淶akwato & Logl锚dou鈥檚 Peril,鈥� Maureen Freely鈥檚 translation from the Turkish of the late Tezer 脰zl眉's 鈥淐old Nights of Childhood" and Tiffany Tsao鈥檚 translation from the Indonesian Norman Erikson Pasaribu's 鈥滺appy Stories, Mostly."
Nominees for the John Leonard Prize for Best First Book, named for the late critic and co-founder of the critics circle, are Ariana Benson's 鈥淏lack Pastoral,鈥� Emilie Boone's 鈥淎 Nimble Arc,鈥� Victor Heringer's 鈥淭he Love of Singular Men,鈥� Tahir Hamut Izgil's 鈥淲aiting to Be Arrested at Night," Donovan X. Ramsey's 鈥淲hen Crack Was King鈥� and Martin J. Siegel's 鈥淛udgment and Mercy.鈥�
Besides Blume and the library association, honorary awards will be presented to Washington Post critic Becca Rothfield for excellence in reviewing and to Marion Winik of NPR's 鈥淎ll Things Considered鈥� for service to the literary community.
The book critics circle, founded in 1974, consists of hundreds of reviewers and editors from around the country.
Hillel Italie, The Associated Press
