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On January 31, in a virtual event produced by Wildbound Live, the National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) announced 30 finalists in six categories—autobiography, biography, criticism, fiction, general nonfiction, and poetry—for the best books of 2022. In addition, finalists were announced for the John Leonard Prize for Best First Book, nominated by the organization’s regular members, and winners were announced for several annual prizes.

Brooklyn Public Library's Nick Higgins, Amy Mikel, Karen Keys, Jackson Gomes, and Leigh Hurwitz have been named LJ's 2023 Librarians of the Year for their work on Books Unbanned, providing free ebook access to teens and young adults nationwide to help defy rising book challenges across the country.

Virginia Cononie, assistant librarian/coordinator of reference and research at the University of South Carolina Upstate Spartanburg Library, was named one of Library Journal’s 2022 Movers & Shakers for her library advocacy work. LJ recently reached out to Cononie to learn more about her Share Your Story campaign, a collection of success stories from libraries in South Carolina that were compiled into a book and sent to South Carolina lawmakers.

Elisandro Cabada has worn many hats during his career at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: Assistant professor for the university library, interim head of the Mathematics Library, and 3-D printing project coordinator, among others. His commitment to developing and using technology for library service and outreach won him a 2022 Movers & Shakers award. Library Journal recently reached out to learn more about his innovative work.

Conscious inclusiveness has earned Cedar Rapids Public Library the 2022 Jerry Kline Community Impact Prize. Honorable mentions go to New York’s Patchogue-Medford Library and Columbia, SC’s Richland Library.

Lorisia MacLeod, currently learning services librarian at the Alberta Library, Canada, previously worked as an instruction librarian at NorQuest College, Edmonton. A member of the James Smith Cree Nation, MacLeod realized early in her career that there was a major problem with properly citing Native and Indigenous sources in academic papers. The work she set in motion to correct this issue led to her being named a Library Journal 2022 Mover & Shaker. LJ recently caught up with her to learn more about her efforts.

The six-person marketing department at Nashville Public Library is made up of enthusiastic collaborators—willing to listen, iterate, contribute to each other’s strengths, and involve the rest of the library in coming up with great ideas—with a strong leader who inspires creativity and teamwide respect. Los Angeles and Virginia Beach received honorable mentions.

On September 7, American Library Association executive director Tracie D. Hall was awarded the National Book Foundation (NBF) Literarian Award for 2022. The annual award celebrates an individual “for a lifetime of achievement in expanding the audience for books and reading,” the NBF website states. This marks the second year that the honor has gone to a librarian; 2021’s award was given to Nancy Pearl.

Jillian Rudes didn’t grow up reading manga. But when she discovered it in her first year as a school librarian, she realized that it is a critical format for teaching, cultivating a love of reading, and giving kids what they want, and took a deep dive in, reading everything she could get her hands on.