News

The National Book Foundation (NBF) announced on September 8 that Nancy Pearl, a renowned librarian and former executive director of the Washington Center for the Book at Seattle Public Library, is the 2021 recipient of its Literarian Award for Outstanding Service to the American Literary Community.

The Romance Writers of America (RWA) has again found itself embroiled in controversy. This time, the association gave one of its new Vivian awards to At Love’s Command by Karen Witemeyer, a historical romance that most observers saw as glorifying the genocide of Lakota people at the Wounded Knee Massacre in 1890.

The creative problem solving that allowed Anaheim Public Library to weather the pandemic while meeting pre-pandemic goals have earned it the 2021 Gale/LJ Library of the Year award.

I never imagined that we would find ourselves honoring a second class of Movers & Shakers at a distance owing to the pandemic—albeit now with an end, perhaps, in sight.

Librarians Elaine R. Hicks, Stacy Brody, and Sara Loree have been named LJ's 2021 Librarians of the Year for their work with the Librarian Reserve Corps, helping the World Health Organization manage the flood of COVID-19 information.

The 71st National Book Award ceremony, held on November 18 and hosted by Jason Reynolds, was completely virtual. And rather than holding court at Cipriani, National Book Foundation Board Chair David Steinberger and Executive Director Lisa Lucas broadcast from elegant—and appropriate—locations at their respective home bases: Steinberger from the Trustees’ Room at the New York Public Library and Lucas from the Los Angeles Public Library’s Central Library.

Going virtual in a pandemic year, the National Book Awards reveals that writing matters more than ever. 

Rhode Island's Cranston Public Library, promoting equity and cohesion in a rapidly changing city through its deep involvement in civic life, wins the 2020 Jerry Kline Community Impact Prize, developed in partnership with the Gerald M. Kline Family Foundation.

The Central Arkansas Library System, Georgia's Gwinnett County Library System, and South Carolina's Union County Library System demonstrate the focus on equity, social justice, and the health of their communities that has earned them Honorable Mention for the 2020  Jerry Kline Community Impact Prize.