2024 Nominees
Biography
The Ballad of Karla Faye Tucker by Mark Beaver
Fortune and Folly by Sara A. H Butler
Jumpman: The Making and Meaning of Michael Jordan by Johnny Smith
Punished for Dreaming: How School Reform Harms Black Children and How We Heal by Bettina L. Love
Through Her Eyes - One Family's Journey From Enslavement To The Great Migration by Arthur Vaughn
Unstoppable: A Story of Love, Faith, and the Power Couple Who Ignited the College Sports Broadcasting Boom by George Hirthler
Children’s Book
Bentley's Fantabulous Idea by Miki Taylor and Illustrated by Eunhye Shin
Danny Doesn't Quit by Dana Reid and Illustrated by Mike Motz
Elodie Meets Guber the Ghost by P. E. Waring and Illustrated by Matea Anic
When a Monster Dreams Written and Illustrated by Catherine Gayle
You So Black by Theresa Tha Songbird
Detective/Mystery & Science Fiction
Always Agnes by Michael Dubrow
Crypto: A John Wesley O'Toole Novel by William Rawlings
Double Trouble by Paul Sinor
False Claims by Katherine Nichols
LeAnn and the Clean Man by Jeff Shaw
Murder at the Book Fair by Lily Charles
Murder in Drury Lane by Vanessa Riley
Never Back Down by Christopher Swann
Pawprints, Prose & Murder by Kathy Manos Penn
Saint Simons Island: A Stella Bankwell Mystery by Ronda Rich
Self Rescue by Phillip Price
Skeleton in the Art Closet by Gail Karwoski
Trust the Terrier: A Coral Shores Veterinary Mystery by DL Mitchell
First Novel
Abounding Hope by Cindy Kay Stewart
All Is Now Lost by Laura Smith
Beneath the Smiling Moon by Devon Valdes
Breach of Trust by Helen Bradley
The Bystanders by Dawn Major
Even A Shepherd by Ronnie Jowers
Islands of Women by Eileen O'Hara
Nine Ways to Die: An Enneagram Murder Mystery by Kate Hallock
Red Clay Suzie by Jeffrey Dale Lofton
School of Sleuths by Matt Aiken
SECRETS OF ASH by Josh Green
Songs of Lost Things: Sonata for the Sun by Monica Gibbs Marsh
South of Happily by Gaby Anderson
Through the Veneer of Time by Vera Bell
History
Dynamic Design by Virginia Gardener Troy
Georgia Covered Bridges by Lisa Russell
The Georgia's Farmer's Strike by Lee Lancaster
The Last Laird of Sapelo by Mike Brown
Milledgeville's Sesquicentennial Murders by Susan Lindsley
Oconaluftee: The History of a Smoky Mountain Valley by Elizabeth Giddens
Poor Atlanta: Poverty, Race, and the Limits of Sunbelt Development by LeeAnn Lands
Inspirational
A Generous Beckoning: Accepting God's Invitation to a More Fulfilling Life by Peter Wallace
Captured by Love: Inspiring True Romance Stories of Vietnam POWs by Lee Ellis
Don't Look, Ethel! by Nicholas Doster
Hello Anxiety My Old Friend: Harness Your Invisible Superpower by Natalie Kohlhaas
Keep Moving Forward: An Interactive Survival Guide for Overcoming & Thriving by Melony Brown
Loving Me: After Abuse by Angela Williams
Moving Beyond: Journeying Through Life's Changes by Millicent Flake
Literary Fiction & Short Story Collection
A Last Serenade for Billy Bonney by Mark Warren
Apparitions by Sybil Baker
The Art of Her Life by Cynthia Newberry Martin
Bengal Hound by Rahad Abir, Edited by Kimberley Lim
Broken Things by Lori Duff
End Times by John Williams
Idioms by John Doriot
Legacy of Honor-The Air Warrior by Larry Freeland
Look Away No More by Carol Owens Campbell
Love Like This by Cynthia Newberry Martin
The Middle Daughter by Chika Unigwe
One Blood by Denene Millner
Queen of Exiles by Vanessa Riley
Romance World by Tamar Cantwell
The Say So by Julia Franks
Seven Islands of the Ocmulgee: River Stories by Gordon Johnston
So Long, Bobby by Lillah Lawson
Through the Dark by Brandon Daily
Until We Meet Again: The Life of Jennie Raffield Williams by Gillian Grable
Memoir
Be Prepared, We Are All Going To Die by B Jane Jones
The Book I Always Promised by Barbara Gomes Serafino
From Sorrows to Sapphires: Freedom from the Shame of Child Sexual Abuse by Angela Williams
How to Stay Married by Harrison Scott Key
The Killing Closet by V.L. Brunskill
More Than I Imagined: What a Black Man Discovered About the White Mother He Never Knew by John Blake
Swimming for Our Lives: A Naval Academy Graduate's Stories of an Adventurous Life by Jim Paulk
The Unfettered Urologist by Martha Boone
The Way from Me to Us by Mike Coleman
Who Turned Up the Silence by Andy Turner
The Wisdom of Winter: Reflections from the Journey by Jackie K. Cooper
Poetry Chapbook
AmerAsian: My Journey to Becoming Whole as a Mixed Korean-American by Kimberly McAfee
Celine: An Elegy by C.W. Bryan
Cold Remembered: and other poems by David R. Altman
Come Back for a Little Bit by Elle Warren
LIFE OF THE MIND by Julia Knowlton
The Miriam Poems by Eleanor Wolfe Hoomes
Poetry Full-Length Collection
The Anxiety Workbook by Christina Olson
Desire Museum by Danielle Cadena Deulen
Mountain Amnesia by Gale Thompson
Old Gods: Poems by Clifford Brooks
One Thousand Sheets of Rice Paper: Poems by Kevin Cantwell
The Savior and the Shadow Queen: A Fantastical Tale Told Through Sequential Poems by Kimberly McAfee
Slowly, I Grow by John Doriot
Tender Headed by Olatunde Osinaike
Unusually Grand Ideas by James May
Where "Here" Is Hard to Say: Poems by Gordon Johnston
With Access to Tools by Dana Wildsmith
Romance
A Laird without a Past by Jeanine Englert
A Tryst in Paris by Anne Armistead
The Case of the Forgotten Fragonard by Marilyn Baron
Christmas with a Cowboy by Pam Mantovani
Letter Late Than Never by Lauren Connolly
Once Upon A Christmas Family by Susan May
Reunited with the Children's Doc by Susan Carlisle
Second Chance for the Heart Doctor by Susan Carlisle
Sight Beyond the Sun by Melody Johnson
Wedding Date with Her Best Friend by Susan Carlisle
Specialty Book
Black on Black: On Our Resilience and Brilliance in America by Daniel Black
Celebrating Backyard Birds by Robert Meyers
Egg Rolls & Sweet Tea: Asian Inspired, Southern Style by Natalie Keng
Let Me Say This: A Dolly Parton Poetry Anthology by Julie E. Bloemeke
WHITETAIL SECRETS: Bachelor Life by Susan Lindsley
Why I Wrote This Poem by William Walsh
Zucchini Love by Cynthia Graubart
Young Adult
The 19 of Greene by Tony Barnhart
Blood Debts by Terry J. Benton-Walker
Blueberrians at the Gate by Duane Sohl
In Search of the Painted Bunting by Beverly Varnado
WINNER: Into the Light by Mark Oshiro
Just Gus by McCall Hoyle
Sabotage by Sherrilyn Kenyon
Underdog City by Chris Negron
2023 Nominees
CHILDREN’S BOOK
Abby the Crabby Tabby: Discovers Gratitude by Andrea Lane, Illustrated by Heather Bousquet
Drive-Thru Miracle by Dana Edwards
Impossible Moon by Breanna J. McDaniel, Illustrated by Tonya Engel
Gentle with Gertie by Will Pollock, Illustrated by Aljon Inertia & Nora Inertia
The Big Yawn by Robert Kenimer, Illustrated by Stacy Jordon
Maizie's Full Heart: an Adoption Story by Kate Seng, Illustrated by Cat Kahnle
Wombat Said Come In by Carmen Agra-Deedy, Illustrated by Brian Lies
Penny, the Engineering Tail of the Fourth Pig, by Kimberly Derting & Shelli R. Johannes, Illustrated by Hannah Marks
Faith’s Freckles: A Book to Build Self-Esteem by Baylei Hinds-Perry & Shermaine Perry-Knights
The Fairy Glen Adventure by Carol Bland Dolson, Illustrated by Elaine Hearn Rabon
Milton's Ears by Erich Worster, Illustrated by Kristine Ramsey
Nigel and the Moon by Antwan Eady, Illustrated by Gracey Zhang
Thunder the Wonder Donkey by Beverly Bruemmer, Illustrated by Stacy Jordon
COOKBOOK
Cook & Celebrate: A Collection of Southern Holiday & Party Culinary Traditions by Johnathon Scott Barrett
Eat Plants, B*tch: 91 Vegan Recipes That Will Blow Your Meat-Loving Mind by Pinky Cole
Our Fermented Lives: A History of How Fermented Foods Have Shaped Cultures & Communities by Julia Skinner
Fabulous Modern Cookies: Lessons in Better Baking for Next-Generation Treats by Paul Arguin & Chris Taylor
DETECTIVE/MYSTERY
Pay Dirt Road by Samantha Jayne Allen
The House That Wasn't There by Andrew Forrest Baker
Such a Pretty Smile: A Novel by Kristi DeMeester
Manhattan Mayhem by A. Shane Etter
The Devil Himself: A Novel by Peter Farris
Hush, Delilah by Angie Gallion
Killshot: A Rachel West Thriller by Lee Gimenez
A Face to Die For by Iris Johansen
A Brush with Murder: A Watercolor Mystery by Gail Langer Karwoski
Anywhere You Run: A Novel by Wanda M. Morris
The Unreliables: When The Only One You Trust Doesn’t Exist by Katherine Nichols
Pets, Pens & Murder: A Cozy English Animal Mystery by Kathy Manos Penn
In Danger of Judgment: A Thriller by David Rabin
Cofer Woods by Frank Reddy
The Corporate Lies by Donald Reichardt
Blackmail and White Lightnin' by Paul Sinor
Never Go Home: A Novel by Christopher Swann
Sanctuary: A Thornton Mystery by C.L. Tolbert
ESSAY
Sifting Artifacts: Essays by Kathy A. Bradley
Better to See You With: Perspectives on Flannery O’Connor, Selected and New by Marshall Bruce Gentry
A Month of Sundays: The New Mexico Columns by Harry Musselwhite
Everyday Leadership by Brian Unell
FIRST NOVEL
Sudden Death: A Novel by Carolyn Newton Curry
A Good Mourning by Brian DeLaney
The Maine Caper by John Frisbie
The Cicada Tree by Robert Gwaltney
A Lineage of Deception: A Southern Novel by Maryann Hopper
Mama Tried by Kathy Des Jardins
Salou by Morenike McFaal
Rough Draft: An Alabaster Cash Novel by Alex McRae
Tell It True: A Novel by John Pruitt
Hands of Gold: One Man’s Quest to Find the Silver Lining in Misfortune by Roni Robbins
Lakewood by William Walsh
Summer Solstice by Lynn Weathington
The Freedom Chronicles by John Yow
HISTORY
Ghosts of Athens and Beyond: History and Haunting of North Georgia by Tracy L. Adkins
Shakespeare's Sceptered Isle: Finding English National Identity in the Plays by Brian Carroll
A Road Running Southward: Following John Muir's Journey through an Endangered Land by Dan Chapman
Twenty-Two Cents an Hour: Disability Rights and the Fight to End Subminimum Wages by Doug Crandell
The Pursuit of the Atlanta Child Killer: Facts, Fibers, and Forensics by Joseph Drolet
Legacy of Honor: The Patriarch by Larry Freeland
The Three Death Sentences of Clarence Henderson: A Battle for Racial Justice at the Dawn of the Civil Rights Era by Chris Joyner
Against All Odds: A True Story of Ultimate Courage and Survival in World War II by Alex Kershaw
The North of the South: The Natural World and the National Imaginary in the Literature of the Upper South by Barbara Ladd
Oceans of Grain: How American Wheat Remade the World by Scott Reynolds Nelson
The Long Haul: Solving the Puzzle of the Pandemic's Long Haulers and How They Are Changing Healthcare Forever by Ryan Prior
The Columbus Stocking Strangler by William Rawlings
Proving Pregnancy: Gender, Law, and Medical Knowledge in Nineteenth-Century America by Felicity M. Turner
INSPIRATIONAL
Be Unexpected: Resetting Routines to Revolutionize the Future of Work by Marva Bailer
The Self Delusion: The New Neuroscience of How We Invent—and Reinvent—Our Identities by Gregory Berns
Thank You Bodie!: Diversity, Equity & Inclusion In Spaces Beyond Workplaces by Tracey Fisher
You're Only Human: How Your Limits Reflect God's Design and Why That's Good News by Kelly M. Kapic
The Simple Guide to a Successful You: Navigating Your Career After Life Gets Messy by Sarah Lebel
Bloom Where You Are by Deborah Malone
Develop Skills to Effectively Manage Money: A Practical Guide to Financial Self-Development by Myke Marshall
Daily Inspirations from the Unflappable Substitute by Susan May
Do the Best You Can't! by Bud Stumbaugh
Awakening Dignity: A Guide to Living a Life of Deep Fulfillment by Phakchok Rinpoche and Sophie Wu
LITERARY FICTION
The Gospel of Rot by Gregory Ariail
The Lost Book of Eleanor Dare by Kimberly Brock
Wingwalkers: A Novel by Taylor Brown
Obsidian Mirth by Thom Brucie
A Fair In August by Mandy L Cantrell
The Hollow Kind: A Novel by Andy Davidson
The Best Version of Alice by Merrill J. Davies
Dynasties by Anju Gattani
The Lottery Winner's Greatest Ride: A Millionaire, A Young Reporter . . . And A Journey To Find What Matters Most by Skip Johnson
Wildwood Flower: A Novel by Anne Lovett
The Truth Keepers: A Novel by June Hall McCash
Songs By Honeybird by Peter McDade
By Way of Moonlight by Elizabeth Musser
The Editor: How the Brewster Gazette Became the World’s First Metaphysical Newspaper by Thomas A. Williams PhD
Sister Mother Warrior: A Novel by Vanessa Riley
Return to Hardscrabble Road by George Weinstein
MEMOIR/BIOGRAPHY
Seeing Eye Girl: A Memoir of Madness, Resilience, and Hope by Beverly J. Armento
Odyssey: Young Charles Darwin, The Beagle, and The Voyage that Changed the World by Tom Chaffin
Bodies Out of Place: Theorizing Anti-blackness in U.S. Society by Barbara Harris Combs
Making It Home: I Set Out to See the World and Made It All the Way to Cleveland by R. Mark Giuliano
Justice in the Age of Judgment: From Amanda Knox to Kyle Rittenhouse and the Battle for Due Process in the Digital Age by Anne Bremner JD and Doug Bremner MD
Ocean of Stars and Dreams by Maday Martinez de Osaba
Samuel Elbert and the Age of Revolution in Georgia, 1740-1788 by Clay Ouzts
Feathers at my Feet by Barbara Pearson
Operation Tailwind: Memoirs of a Secret Battle in a Secret War by Barry Pencek
Be Home by Dark: How I Earned my Dime Store MBA by Dale K. Phenicie
The Flight by Cammie Wolf Rice
POETRY FULL LENGTH COLLECTION
unbridled by Shay Alexi
The Woman Who Lives Without Money by Rebecca Baggett
Face Cut Out for Locket by Jenn Blair
Straw Hat Stanzas by Mark Bromberg
Mother Medusa by Lucas Carpenter
Thrash by Michael Diebert
Black Swim by Nicholas Goodly
The Lost Thing: Poems by Sarah Gordon
The Color of Truth by Laura Anella Johnson
A Girl / Woman / Teacher / Poet by Candice Kelsey
Palabras que respiran / Words that Breathe by Cecilia Lee
Magicicada & Other Marvels by Kathleen Brewin Lewis
A Woman Somehow Dead by Amy Locklin
All the Blood Involved in Love by Maya Marshall
Call it in the Air by Ed Pavlić
Climbing an Unnamed Mountain by Michael Walls
Eden's Last Horizon: Poems for the Earth by Philip Lee Williams
POETRY CHAPBOOK
Poem at the Edge of the World by Julia Caroline Knowlton
Some Kind Of Black by Amber Moss
Amo e Canto by JC Reilly
It Felt Like Mississippi: Poems by Monica Lee Weatherly
ROMANCE
The Case of the Missing Botticelli by Marilyn Baron
Fire Magic & Ice Cream by Lauren Connolly
Stealing Ares by Kim Conrey
Eloping with the Laird by Jeanine Englert
Hyde and Zeke: Cutie and the Beast by Josh Langston
Racing to You by Susan May
SHORT STORY COLLECTION
Haints on Black Mountain: A Haunted Short Story Collection by Ann Hite
We'll Talk Some More: A Collection Of Southern Short Stories by Ed Nichols
Tower: Stories by Andy Plattner
Shadows in the South by Caroline Smith
The Westering Trail Travesties: Five little-known tales of the Old West that probably ought to a' stayed that way by Mark Warren
SPECIALTY
Ghostland America Stories and Photographs by James Calemine
Frankie Welch's Americana: Fashion, Scarves, and Politics by Ashley Callahan
Following the Tabby Trail: Where Coastal History Is Captured in Unique Oyster-Shell Structures by Jingle Davis, Photographer Benjamin Galland
Bigger Than Bravery: Black Resilience and Reclamation in a Time of Pandemic Edited by Valerie Boyd; Contributors: Alice Walker, Kiese Laymon, Deesha Philyaw, Jason Reynolds, Imani Perry, Emily Bernard, Destiny O. Birdsong, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Alexis Pauline Gumbs, Karen Good Marable, Honorée Fanonne Jeffers, Khadijah Queen
Coach: The Greatest Teachers in Sports and Their Lessons for Us All by Justin Spizman
Perfume (Object Lessons) by Megan Volpert
The Conversation Turns to Wide-Mouth Jars by Beth Gylys, Cathy Carlisi, and Jennifer Wheelock
The Encyclopedia of Self-Publishing by Thomas Williams
SPECIALTY
The Summer We Forgot by Caroline George
Does My Body Offend You? by Mayra Cuevas and Marie Marquardt
Omar Rising by Aisha Saeed
A Tale Twice Told by Mark Warren
Black Dove by Crystal Wilkins
2022 Nominees
BIOGRAPHY
Paige Bowers & David Montague, Overnight Code: The Life of Raye Montague, the Woman Who Revolutionized Naval Engineering
Margaret Coker, The Spymaster of Baghdad: A True Story of Bravery, Family, and Patriotism in the Battle Against ISIS
Laura Dabundo, Jane Austen: A Companion
Sandra E. Godwin, A White Liberal College President in the Jim Crow South: Guy Herbert Wells and the YWCA at Georgia State College for Women, 1934-1953
Jerry Grillo, The Music and Mythocracy of Col. Bruce Hampton: A Basically True Biography
Kaye Lanning Minchew, Jimmy Carter: Citizen of the South
John Lewis and Andrew Aydin, Illustrated by L. Fury and Nate Powell, Run: Book One
Charles Person, Buses Are a Comin': Memoir of a Freedom Rider
CHILDREN’S BOOK
Rosalind Bunn and Maggie Bunn, Illustrated by Keller Pyle, All Aboard, Georgia!
Reem Faruqi, Illustrated by Mikela Prevost, I Can Help
McCall Hoyle, Stella
Julie Lavender, Illustrated by Shahar Kober, Children's Bible Stories for Bedtime: To Grow in Faith & Love
Natalie Nelson, Dog's First Baby
Laurel Snyder, Illustrated by Emily Hughes, Charlie & Mouse Lost and Found
Deborah Wiles, Illustrated by Andrea Stegmaier, We Are All Under One Wide Sky
COOKBOOK
Cheryl Day, Cheryl Day's Treasury of Southern Baking
Cynthia Graubart, Strawberry Love: 45 Sweet and Savory Recipes for Shortcakes, Hand Pies, Salads, Salsas, and More
Rebecca Lang, Y'all Come Over: Charming Your Guests with New Recipes, Heirloom Treasures, and True Southern Hospitality
Chef Deborah VanTrece, The Twisted Soul Cookbook: Modern Soul Food with Global Flavors
DETECTIVE/MYSTERY
Stacey Abrams, While Justice Sleeps
Kimberly Belle, My Darling Husband
A. Shane Etter, The Prosaist and The Unholy Ghost
Joshilyn Jackson, Mother May I
Iris Johansen, The Bullet
Karin Slaughter, False Witness
C. Matthew Smith, Twentymile
Christopher Swann, A Fire in the Night
C. L. Tolbert, The Redemption
Karen White, The Attic on Queen Street
Kate Young, Reading Between the Crimes
ESSAY
Regina N. Bradley, Chronicling Stankonia: The Rise of the Hip-Hop South
Miriam C. Brown Spiers, Encountering The Sovereign Other: Indigenous Science Fiction
William S. Duffey, Jr., The Significant Lawyer: The Pursuit of Purpose and Professionalism
Janisse Ray, Wild Spectacle: Seeking Wonders in a World Beyond Humans
Loran Smith, Whaddaya Got, Loran?: Dispatches from Georgia
FIRST NOVEL
Benji Carr, Impacted
Anjali Enjeti, The Parted Earth
Larry A. Freeland, Chariots in the Sky: A Story About U.S. Assault Helicopter Pilots at War in Vietnam
Anju Kanwar, The Dark Side of the Moon
Robyn Lucas, Paper Doll Lina
Wanda M. Morris, All Her Little Secrets
Sanjena Sathian, Gold Diggers
Pamela Terry, The Sweet Taste of Muscadines
HISTORY
Carol Anderson, The Second: Race and Guns in a Fatally Unequal America
Christopher Blake, Reckless Misfortune: The Century We Inherited from the First World War
E. Culpepper Clark, The Birth of a New South: Sherman, Grady, and the Making of Atlanta
Andrew Feiler, Better Life for Their Children: Julius Rosenwald, Booker T. Washington, and the 4,978 Schools That Changed America
Da’Shaun L. Harrison, Belly of the Beast: The Politics of Anti-Fatness as Anti-Blackness
Christopher R. Lawton, Laura E. Nelson, and Randy L. Reid, Seen/Unseen: Hidden Lives in a Community of Enslaved Georgians
William Rawlings, Lighthouses of the Georgia Coast
Jan Slimming, Codebreaker Girls: A Secret Life at Bletchley Park
Carole Townsend, Peachtree Corners, Georgia: The History of an Innovative and Remarkable City, 1777-2020
Ben Wynne, Something in the Water: A History of Music in Macon, Georgia, 1823-1980
Neely Young, Georgia Made: The Most Important Figures Who Shaped the State in the Twentieth Century
INSPIRATIONAL
Laura Dabundo, When the Parallel Converge
John Lewis, Carry On: Reflections for a New Generation
Andrew M. Manis and Sandy Dwayne Martin (editors), Eavesdropping on the Most Segregated Hour: A City’s Clergy Reflect on Racial Reconciliation
Carl McColman, Eternal Heart: The Mystical Path to a Joyful Life
LITERARY FICTION
Kaia Alderson, Sisters in Arms: A Novel of the Daring Black Women Who Served During World War II
Mary Kay Andrews, The Newcomer
Mary Kay Andrews, The Santa Suit
Janet Hogan Chapman, MotherLove
Laura Morelli, The Stolen Lady: A Novel of World War II and the Mona Lisa
Thomas Mullen, Midnight Atlanta
Ane Mulligan, On Sugar Hill
Vanessa Riley, Island Queen
Zachary Steele, The Weight of Ashes
Mark Warren, Indigo Heaven
Mark Warren, Song of the Horseman
Karen White, The Last Night in London
Tiphanie Yanique, Monster in the Middle
MEMOIR
Richard Allen Anderson, For the Good Times: A Love Story
G. Wayne Clough, The Technological University Reimagined: Georgia Institute of Technology, 1994-2008
Justine Cowan, The Secret Life of Dorothy Soames
Paul Hornsby, Fix It in the Mix
Yusef Salaam, Better, Not Bitter: Living on Purpose in the Pursuit of Racial Justice
Danté Stewart, Shoutin' in the Fire: An American Epistle
POETRY CHAPBOOK
Katherine Fallon, Demoted Planet
Katie Farris, A Net to Catch My Body in Its Weaving
Andrea Jurjević, Nightcall
Kathryn Pratt Russell, Raven Hotel
A. Prevett, Still, No Grace
Federica Santini, Unearthed
POETRY FULL-LENGTH
Eugene C. Bianchi, Interbeing: New and Selected Poems on Ecological Spirituality
Mike Booth, A Cowboy Remembers: Western, Religious, & Patriotic Poetry
Rosemary Daniell, The Murderous Sky: Poems of Madness & Mercy
Jaydn DeWald, The Rosebud Variations
Gordon Johnston, Scaring the Bears
Aruni Kashyap, There Is No Good Time for Bad News
Aurielle Marie, Gumbo Ya Ya
Sam Rush, Swallow
Anya Krugovoy Silver, Saint Agnostica
Robert Simon, An Ode to Friendship
Jane Simpson, Psalm Sonnets
Carey Scott Wilkerson, Cruel Fever of the Sky
M.L. Williams, Game
William Wright, Grass Chapels: New & Selected Poems
ROMANCE
Marilyn Baron, The Romanov Legacy
Susan Carlisle, From Florida Fling to Forever
Susan Carlisle, Taming the Hot-Shot Doc
Lauren Connolly, Read Me
Jeanine Englert, The Highlander’s Secret Son
Jane Lewis, Home in Wylder
Colleen Oakley, The Invisible Husband of Frick Island
Wendy Wax, The Break-Up Book Club
YOUNG ADULT
Roshani Chokshi, The Bronzed Beasts
Caroline George, Dearest Josephine
Deron Hicks, The Crown Heist
Kimberly Jones & Gilly Segal, Why We Fly
Shanna Miles, For All Time
Chris Negron, The Last Super Chef
Nic Stone, Fast Pitch
Joey Weiser, Dragon Racer
2021 Nominees
CHILDREN’S BOOK
Beverly Bruemmer, illustrated by Seth Fitts, Moose Family Christmas
Bonnie Clark, illustrated by Todd Bright, Taste Your Words
Carmen Agra Deedy, illustrated by Pete Oswald, Rita and Ralph’s Rotten Day
Mike Lowery, Everything Awesome About Sharks and Other Underwater Creatures!
Malcolm Mitchell, illustrated by Michael Robertson, My Very Favorite Book in the Whole Wide World
Andy Runton, Owly: The Way Home
Miriam Udel (editor and translator), Honey on the Page: A Treasury of Yiddish Children’s Literature
DETECTIVE/MYSTERY
Kimberly Belle, Stranger in the Lake
Lily Charles, Murder at the Estate Sale
A. Shane Etter, World of Rage
David H. Hanks, Euphrates Yield
Iris Johansen, Chaos
Pat McKee, Ariel’s Island
Penny Mickelbury, You Can’t Die But Once
Brian Panowich, Hard Cash Valley
Paul Sinor, We’ll Meet Again
Karin Slaughter, The Silent Wife
Christopher Swann, Never Turn Back
Maggie Toussaint, Seas the Day
FIRST NOVEL
Kristine F. Anderson, Crooked Truth
Ginger Eager, The Nature of Remains
Tony Ray Morris, Deep River Blues
Veena Rao, Purple Lotus
Ernest Roberson Sr., Damnation
William R. Stone, Isaac and Junebug
Tori Whitaker, Millicent Glenn’s Last Wish
HISTORY
Paul Bolster, Saving the Georgia Coast: A Political History of the Coastal Marshlands Protection Act
Amy Paige Condon, A Nervous Man Shouldn’t Be Here in the First Place: The Life of Bill Baggs
George Barnett Johnston, Assembling the Architect: The History and Theory of Professional Practice
Anthony J. Martin, Tracking the Golden Isles: The Natural and Human Histories of the Georgia Coast
William Rawlings, Six Inches Deeper: The Disappearance of Hellen Hanks
Randy Roberts and Johnny Smith, War Fever: Boston, Baseball, and America in the Shadow of the Great War
Lisa M. Russell, Lost Mill Towns of North Georgia
Claudio Saunt, Unworthy Republic: The Dispossession of Native Americans and the Road to Indian Territory
Rona Simmons, The Other Veterans of World War II: Stories From Behind the Front Lines
Lars Spuybroek, Grace and Gravity: Architectures of the Figure
Dianne M. Stewart, Black Women, Black Love: America’s War on African American Marriage
Jaclyn Weldon White, Pure Evil: The Machetti Murders of Macon, Georgia
Victoria Wilcox, The World of Doc Holliday: History and Historic Images
INSPIRATIONAL
Kaitlin B. Curtice, Native: Identity, Belonging, and Rediscovering God
Robin Dance, For All Who Wander: Why Knowing God is Better Than Knowing It All
Patricia Martin Holt, Empower a Refugee: Peace of Thread & the Backyard Humanity Movement
Julie Lavender, 365 Ways to Love Your Child: Turning Little Moments into Lasting Memories
André and Jeff Shinabarger, Love or Work: Is It Possible to Change the World, Stay in Love, and Raise a Healthy Family?
Barbara Brown Taylor, Always a Guest: Speaking of Faith Far from Home
A. Williams, Lipstick Red! I Am Me!
Beth-Sarah Wright, Dignity: Seven Strategies for Creating Authentic Community
LITERARY FICTION
Armond Boudreaux, The Way Out
Taylor Brown, Pride of Eden
Dylan Fisher, The Loneliest Band in France
Joseph R. Jones, Magnolia Avenue
Terry Kay, The Forever Wish of Middy Sweet
Jenn Lyons, The Memory of Souls
Elizabeth Musser, The Promised Land
Peter Selgin, Duplicity
Philip Lee Williams, Far Beyond the Gates
MEMOIR
Arthur M. Blank, Good Company
Ann Hite, Roll the Stone Away: A Family’s Legacy of Racism and Abuse
Chris Jansen, We Can Be Heroes: A Rehab Memoir
Kristie Robin Johnson, High Cotton
Natasha Trethewey, Memorial Drive: A Daughter’s Memoir
Laura Valeri, After Life as a Human
POETRY FULL-LENGTH
Maggie Blake Bailey, Visitation
Julie E. Bloemeke, Slide to Unlock
Laura Davenport, Dear Vulcan
Shelley Feller, Dream Boat
Carlos Andrés Gómez, Fractures
John Charles Griffin, Junkyard Love Letters
Beth Gylys, Body Braille
Emily Lake Hansen, Home and Other Duty Stations
Martin Lammon, The Long Road Home
Cecilia Castro Lee, The Party Is Not Over/ La Fiesta No Ha Terminado
Sandra Meek, Still
Sally Stewart Mohney, eventide
Ed Pavlić, Let It Be Broke
JC Reilly, What Magick May Not Alter
William Walsh, Fly Fishing in Times Square
ROMANCE
Tanya Agler, A Ranger for the Twins
Tanya Agler, The Sheriff’s Second Chance
Sharina Harris, (Im)perfectly Happy
Sharina Harris, Judge’s Girls
Jane Lewis, The Lady Flyer
Colleen Oakley, You Were There Too
SPECIALTY
Stephen Doster, photographs by Benjamin Galland, Cumberland Island: Footsteps in Time
Asha Gomez and Martha Hall Foose, I Cook in Color: Bright Flavors from My Kitchen and Around the World
Karen Head and Collin Kelley (editors), Mother Mary Comes To Me: A Pop Culture Poetry Anthology
Travis Swann Taylor, 111 Places in Atlanta That You Must Not Miss
Suzanne Vizethann, Welcome to Buttermilk Kitchen
Megan Volpert (editor), Closet Cases: Queers on What We Wear
YOUNG ADULT
Mayra Cuevas, Salty, Bitter, Sweet
Chris Negron, Dan Unmasked
Laura Silverman, Recommended for You
Nic Stone, Dear Justyce
Deborah Wiles, Kent State
2020 Nominees
BIOGRAPHY
David Cady, Religion of Fear: The True Story of the Church of God of the Union Assembly
Tom Chaffin, Revolutionary Brothers: Thomas Jefferson, the Marquis de Lafayette, and the Friendship that Helped Forge Two Nations
Jamie H. Cockfield, A Giant from Georgia: The Life of U.S. Senator Walter F. George, 1878-1957
John D. Duncan & Sandra L. Underwood, The Showy Town of Savannah: The Story of the Architect William Jay
Leah Garcés, Grilled: Turning Adversaries into Allies to Change the Chicken Industry
Harvey Klehr, The Millionaire Was a Soviet Mole: The Twisted Life of David Karr
CHILDREN’S BOOK
Shelli R. Johannes & Kimberly Derting, Illustrations by Vashti Harrison, Cece Loves Science and Adventure
Mike Lowery, Everything Awesome About Dinosaurs and Other Prehistoric Beasts
Denene Millner, Illustrated by Gladys Jose, Fresh Princess
Sucheta Rawal, Illustrations by Alexandra Abagiu & Oana Vaida, Beato Goes to Brazil
Tanya Valentine, Illustrated by Jorge Martin, Little Taco Truck
COOKBOOK
Jim Auchmutey, Smokelore: A Short History of Barbecue in America
Nathalie Dupree with Cynthia Graubart, Nathalie Dupree’s Favorite Stories and Recipes
Whitney Otawka, The Saltwater Table: Recipes from The Coastal South
Chris Taylor & Paul Arguin, The New Pie: Modern Techniques for the Classic American Dessert
DETECTIVE/MYSTERY
Steve Berry, The Malta Exchange
Betty Jean Craige, Saxxons in Witherston: A Witherston Murder Mystery
A. Shane Etter, Devil’s Sympathy
Joshilyn Jackson, Never Have I Ever
Sharon Marchisello, Secrets of the Galapagos
Brian Panowich, Like Lions
William Rawlings, The Girl with Kaleidoscope Eyes: A Novel
Paul Sinor, Picture This: A Mystery Novel of Johnny Morocco, Dixie Detective
Paul Sinor, That Old Black Magic
Karin Slaughter, The Last Widow
Maggie Toussaint, Dreamed It
Karen White, The Christmas Spirits on Tradd Street
ESSAY
Genie Smith Bernstein, Skating on the Septic Tank
LaRue Cook, Man in the (Rearview) Mirror: That Time I Left Corporate America, Became An Uber Driver, and Lived to Write About It
Lori B. Duff, If You Did What I Asked in the First Place
Megan Volpert, Boss Broad
Larry Walker, Tales from Georgia’s Gnat Line
FIRST NOVEL
Jason Allen, The East End
Clay Anderson, The Palms
Jeanine Englert, Lovely Digits
Anissa Gray, The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls
Jessica Handler, The Magnetic Girl
Cynthia Newberry Martin, Tidal Flats
C.L. Tolbert, Out From Silence
Lorelai Watson, Ain’t Nothin’ but the Devil
HISTORY
Elizabeth Chamblee Burch, Mass Tort Deals: Backroom Bargaining in Multidistrict Litigation
Virginia E. Causey, Red Clay, White Water, and Blues: A History of Columbus, Georgia
G. Wayne Clough, Things New & Strange: A Southerner’s Journey Through the Smithsonian Collections
George D. N. Coletti, D.M.D., Presidential Fodder
Stephen Davis, Texas Brigadier to the Fall of Atlanta: John Bell Hood
Gary S. Hauk, Emory as Place: Meaning in a University Landscape
Stephen Hoy & William Smith, Camp Oglethorpe: Macon’s Unknown Civil War Prisoner of War Camp, 1862-1864
Andra Gillespie, Race and the Obama Administration: Substance, Symbols, and Hope
Akila Sankar McConnell, A Culinary History of Atlanta
Shani Robinson & Anna Simonton, None of the Above: The Untold Story of the Atlanta Public Schools Cheating Scandal, Corporate Greed, and the Criminalization of Educators
INSPIRATIONAL
Barbara Brown Taylor, Holy Envy: Finding God in the Faith of Others
Lerita Coleman Brown, Ph.D., When the Heart Speaks, Listen—Discovering Inner Wisdom
Tara Y. Coyt, Real Talk About LGBTQIAP
Melvin Konner, MD, Believers: Faith in Human Nature
Carl McColman, foreword by Brian D. McLaren, Unteachable Lessons: Why Wisdom Can’t Be Taught (And Why That’s Okay)
Robyn Spizman, foreword by Dawna Markova, Ph.D., Loving Out Loud: The Power of a Kind Word
LITERARY FICTION
Zoe Fishman, Invisible as Air
LeAnne Howe, Savage Conversations
Sarah Jones, Summer Squall
Soniah Kamal, Unmarriageable
Lillah Lawson, Monarchs Under the Sassafras Tree
Jack McDevitt, Octavia Gone
Mark Warren, Promised Land
Susan Rebecca White, We Are All Good People Here
Snowden Wright, American Pop
MEMOIR
Heather Christle, The Crying Book
Barry Goheen, foreword by Buster Olney, Buzzer Beaters and Memorial Magic: A Memoir of the Vanderbilt Commodores, 1987-1989
Candis Y. McDow, Half the Battle
Carl Ware, Portrait of an American Businessman: One Generation from Cotton Field to Boardroom
Beverly Willett, Disassembly Required: A Memoir of Midlife Resurrection
Jared Yates Sexton, The Man They Wanted Me to Be: Toxic Masculinity and a Crisis of Our Own Making
POETRY CHAPBOOK
Diana Anhalt, Walking Backward
F.S. Blake, Above the Gold Fields
Memye Curtis Tucker, A Net to Hold the Wind
J. Delayne Ryms, Before Dragonflies
Anna Harris-Parker, Dress
Kara Krewer, Born-Again Anything
Amy Pence, Your Posthumous Dress: Remnants from the Alexander McQueen Collection, circa 1992-20xx
Clela Reed, Silk
Ron Self, Art of War
POETRY FULL-LENGTH
Richard Allen Anderson, Winter Weeds
Ezekiel Black, Letters from the Junta
Jericho Brown, The Tradition
Alice Friman, Blood Weather
Karen Head, Lost on Purpose
Peter Junker, Things Will Get Worse
Ilya Kaminsky, Deaf Republic
Julia Caroline Knowlton, One Clean Feather
Nick Norwood, Eagle & Phenix
David Oates, The Deer’s Bandanna
Stephen Roger Powers, All Seats Fifty Cents
Chelsea Rathburn, Still Life with Mother and Knife
Clela Reed, Or Current Resident
Steven Owen Shields, Creation Story
Malcolm Tariq, Heed the Hollow
Dan Veach, Lunchboxes
Dana Wildsmith, One Light
Edward Wilson, In a Rich Country
Andrew Zawacki, Unsun: f/11
ROMANCE
Marilyn Baron, The Saffron Conspiracy: A Novel
Susan Carlisle, Highland Doc’s Christmas Rescue
Susan Carlisle, The Sheikh Doc’s Marriage Bargain
Pam Mantovani, The Christmas Baby Bargain
Tracy Solheim, Shot in the Dark
Wendy Wax, My Ex-Best Friend’s Wedding
YOUNG ADULT
Roshani Chokshi, Aru Shah and the Song of Death
Kimberly Jones & Gilly Segal, I’m Not Dying With You Tonight
Laura Silverman, You Asked for Perfect
Nic Stone, Jackpot
Deborah Wiles, Anthem
2019 Nominees
BIOGRAPHY
Vincent Coppola, Tommy Malone, Trial Lawyer: And the Light Shone Through…The Guiding Hand Shaping One of America’s Greatest Trial Lawyer
William Foege, The Fears of the Rich, The Needs of the Poor: My Years at the CDC
Ruby Lal, Empress: The Astonishing Reign of Nur Jahan
Mary Schmidt Campbell, An American Odyssey: The Life and Work of Romare Bearden
CHILDREN’S BOOK
Barbara Brown Taylor and Melanie Cataldo (Illustrator), Home by Another Way: A Christmas Story
Shanda McCloskey, DOLL-E 1.0
Lisa Stauffer and Angelika Scudamore (Illustrator), Two by Two
Deborah Wiles, A Long Line of Cakes
DETECTIVE/MYSTERY
Emily Carpenter, Every Single Secret
David H. Hanks, Black Waters
Linda Hughes, Secrets of the Island
Roger Johns, River of Secrets
Angie Lovell, Off the Dark Ledge
Trudy Nan Boyce, The Policeman’s Daughter
Linda Sands, Precious Cargo
Paul Sinor, Long Ago and Far Away
Paul Sinor, Sentimental Journey
Karin Slaughter, Pieces of Her
Maggie Toussaint, Confound It
ESSAY
Robin Conte, The Best of the Nest: Robin Nest Columns from the Reporter Newspapers
André Joseph Gallant, A High Low Tide: The Revival of a Southern Oyster
Lee St. John, She’s a Keeper! Cockamamie Memoirs from a Hot Southern Mess
Megan Volpert, Straight Into Darkness: One Tom Petty Redemption Song
FIRST NOVEL
Xhenet Aliu, Brass
Stephanie Baldi, Redemption
Robert Covel, Twilight of the Gods
Michael Dubrow, American Judas
Samantha Heuwagen, Dawn Among the Stars
Karen Lynn Nolan, Above the Fog
David Valdez, Eyes to the Mountains
Jamie Weisman, We Are Gathered
Julian Winters, Running with Lions
Spencer Wise, The Emperor of Shoes
HISTORY
Gina Caison, Red States: Indigeneity, Settler Colonialism, and Southern Studies
Joseph Crespino, Atticus Finch: The Biography
Duncan Dobie, Dawn of American Deer Hunting, Volume II
John Ferling, Apostles of Revolution: Jefferson, Paine, Monroe, and the Struggle Against the Old Order in America and Europe
Phil Hudgins and Jessica Phillips, Travels with Foxfire: Stories of People, Passions, and Practices from Southern Appalachia
Matthew H. Jennings and Gordon Johnston, Ocmulgee National Monument: A Brief History with Field Notes
Jared Knott, Tiny Blunders/Big Disasters
Gordon Lamb, Widespread Panic in the Streets of Athens, Georgia
Sidney Perkowitz and Eddy von Mueller, Frankenstein: How a Monster Became an Icon: The Science and Enduring Allure of Mary Shelley’s Creation
LITERARY FICTION
Cathy Adams, A Body’s Just as Dead
Raymond Atkins, Set List: A Novel
Thom Brucie, Children of Slate
Edward Cooper, The Okinawa We Lost
Jack McDevitt, The Long Sunset
Roberta George, The Day’s Heat
Tayari Jones, An American Marriage
Bob O’Kelley, Original Baby Boomers
Mark Warren, Born to the Badge: Wyatt Earp, An American Odyssey
Karen White, Dreams of Falling
MEMOIR
James C. Abbot, Jr., The Burdens of Aeneas: A Son’s Memoir of Duty and Love
Kelly Beard, An Imperfect Rapture
Julie Bragg, The Brothers of Bragg Jam: A Mother’s Memoir
Bruce Blackman, The Road to Moonlight Feels Right
Lawrence Carter, A Baptist Preacher’s Buddhist Teacher: how My Interfaith Journey with Daisaku Ikeda Made Me a Better Christian
Tena Clark, Southern Discomfort: A Memoir
Michael Coles and Catherine Lewis, Time to Get Tough: How Cookies, Coffee, and a Crash Led to Success in Business and in Life
Harrison Scott Key, Congratulations, Who Are You Again?
Michelle LeClair and Robin Gaby Fisher, Perfectly Clear: Escaping Scientology and Fighting for the Woman I Love
Linda Grant Niemann, Cosas: Folk Art Travels in Mexico
David Schaeffer, Another Five Big Mountains and Treks: A Regular Guy’s Guide to Climbing Mt. Rainer, Everest Base Camp, Mt. Fuji, the Inca Trail/Machu Picchu, and Cho Oyu
Dorin Schumacher, Gatsby’s Child
Michael Shaffer, In Memory of Self and Comrades: Thomas Wallace Colley’s Recollections of Civil War Service in the 1st Virginia Cavalry
Connie Tuttle, A Gracious Heresy: the Queer Calling of an Unlikely Prophet
POETRY CHAPBOOK
F.S. Blake, Terminal Leave
Katherine Fallon, The Toothmakers’ Daughters
Julia Knowlton, The Café of Unintelligible Desire
Jane Simpson, Blessings of the Beasts
Cynthia Robinson Young, Migration
POETRY FULL-LENGTH
Mario Chard, Land of Fire
Travis Denton, My Stunt Double
Rupert Fike, Hello to the House
Danielle Hanson, Fraying Edge of Sky
Eve Hoffman, Memory & Complicity: Poems
Karen Paul Holmes, No Such Thing as Distance
Joan Howard, Jack, Love and the Daily Grail
Alexander Johns, Darwin’s Book of Saints
Stephanie Kartalopoulos, Amulet
Collin Kelley, Midnight in a Perfect World
Jennifer Holley Lux, White Portals
Amy Pence, [It] Incandescent
Sara Pirkle Hughes, The Disappearing Acts: Poems
Matthew E. Silverman, The Floating Door
William Wright and Jesse Graves, Specter Mountain: Poems
ROMANCE
Marilyn Baron, The Siege: A Novel
Amber Brock, Lady Be Good
Sally Kilpatrick, Oh My Stars
Jane Lewis, The Barnstormer
Ricki Schultz, Switch & Bait
SHORT STORY COLLECTION
Sabrina Orah Mark, Wild Milk
Andy Plattner, Dixie Luck: Stories and the Novella Terminal
Laura Valeri, The Dead Still Here
Sandra Worsham and Letha Hawkins, Patterns: Stories
SPECIALTY BOOK
Jennifer Boles, Inspired Design: The 100 Most Important Interior Designers of the Past
Sarah Boykin and Susan Hunter, Southern Homes & Plan Books: The Architectural Legacy of Leila Ross Wilburn
Blake Burton and Jerry Hancock, Ponce City Market: The Rise, Fall, and Rebirth of Atlanta’s Largest Building
Jimmy Carter, The Paintings of Jimmy Carter
Staci Catron, Mary Ann Eaddy, and James R. Lockhart (Photographer), Seeking Eden: A Collection of Georgia’s Historic Gardens
Pano Karatassos and Francesco Tonelli (Photographer), Modern Greek Cooking: 100 Recipes for Meze, Main Dishes, and Desserts
Susan Lindsley, Wildlife in Persimmon Paradise
Todd Richards and Angie Mosier (Photographer), Soul: A Chef’s Culinary Evolution in 150 Recipes
YOUNG ADULT
Rachael Allen, A Taxonomy of Love
Matthew Laney, PRIDE WARS: The Spinner Prince
Kam Karem, Ranger Nader & The Sunstruck Phantom
Nic Stone, Odd One Out
Lisa Lewis Tyre, Hope in the Holler
Will Walton, I Felt a Funeral in My Brain
2018 Nominees
CHILDREN’S BOOK
Carla “Rae” Abshire, Andi’s Perfect Toy
Illustrated by Kelsey Wilson
Janet Farrar Byington, I Don’t Wanna Wear a Crown!
Illustrated by Cheryl Riner Hodge
Dan Carlton, Ollie and the Wise Owl
Illustrated by Debbie Byrd
Sarah Cash, Squeaky and the Stinky Mouse
Illustrated by Jason Smith
Alana Dorrell, Grandpa? I Wanted to Ask…
Illustrated by Joan Coleman
Vickie McEntire, Little Bird & Myrtle Turtle
Illustrated by Christie Vergona
Sucheta Rawal, Beato Goes To Indonesia
Illustrated by Alexandra Abagiu & Oana Cocheci
DETECTIVE/MYSTERY
Marilyn Baron, The Vampire Next Door
Blue Cole, Evil Upriver
Steven Cooper, Desert Remains
Betty Jean Craige, Dam Witherston
Doug Dahlgren, The Traveler
Lee Gimenez, FBI Code Red: A J.T. Ryan Thriller
Lynn Hesse, Another Kind of Hero
Linda Hughes, Secrets of the Asylum
Roger Johns, Dark River Rising
Josh Langston, Oh Bits!
Gene Powers, You Must Be Present to Win
Larissa Reinhart, 16 Millimeters: Maizie Albright Star Detective #2Z
Linda Sands, Grand Theft Cargo
Paul Sinor, Dancing in the Dark
Paul Sinor, Fair Game
Jason B. Sheffield, Son of a Bitch
Maggie Toussaint, Dadgummit
Jaclyn Weldon White, The Witch of Ben Hill County
Bob Young, The Hand of the Wicked
FIRST NOVEL
Charlene Ball, Dark Lady: A Novel of Emilia Bassano Lanyer
Janice Bearden, Chigger Ridge
Ernie Bowling, Coal Blooded
Lindsey P. Brackett, Still Waters
Christy Breedlove, When Lightning Strikes
T.M. “Mike” Brown, Sanctuary
Christina Kelly, Good Karma: A Novel
Penny Lewis, Bearing Crosses
Peter McDade, The Weight of Sound
Matthew W. Quinn, The Thing in the Woods
Winnfred Smith, Murder Finds a Home: A John Stone Mystery
Christopher Swann, Shadow of the Lions
Mark Warren, Adobe Moon: Wyatt Earp, An American Odyssey
HISTORY/BIOGRAPHY
Mehrsa Baradaran, The Color of Money: Black Banks and the Racial Wealth Gap
Vincent Joseph Dooley, Samuel Norman Thomas, Jr., The Legion’s Fighting Bulldog: The Civil War Correspondence of William Gaston Delony, Lieutenant Colonel of Cobb’s Georgia Legion Cavalry, and Rosa Delony, 1835-1863
Frederick L. Downing, Clarence Jordan: A Radical Pilgrimage in Scorn of the Consequences
Karen Head, Disrupt This! MOOCs and the Promises of Technology
Richard Jay Hutto, The Kaiser’s Confidante: Mary Lee, the First American-Born Princess
Joel McMahon, Our Good and Faithful Servant: James Moore Wayne and Georgia Unionism
Charles McNair, Play It Again, Sam: The Notable Life of Sam Massell, Atlanta’s First Minority Mayor
Wade Padgett, From Court in the Wilderness to Court in the Metropolis: A History of the Augusta Judicial Circuit
Dawn Peterson, Indians in the Family: Adoption and the Politics of Antebellum Expansion
William Rawlings, The Strange Journey of the Confederate Constitution and Other Stories from Georgia’s Historical Past
Carol Ruckdeschel, A Natural History of Cumberland Island, Georgia
J.P. Telotte, Animating the Science Fiction Imagination
David Williams, Georgia’s Civil War: Conflict on the Home Front
INSPIRATIONAL
Chip R. Bell, Kaleidoscope: Delivering Innovative Service That Sparkles
Steven Marx Celestin, MD, Tell it to Me Straight, Doc
Children’s Advocacy Centers of Georgia, Words of Hope and Healing: Encouragement and Empowerment for Survivors of Child Abuse
Kerry Hemms, Teacher’s Field Guide
Nakita Jackson, Alphabet Motivation
Karli Land, Made to Move
Candace L. Long, The Ancient Path to Creativity and Innovation: Where Left and Right Brains Meet
Deborah Malone, Blooming in Broken Places
Dan Parker, Prisoners of Hope in Incarceration Nation: Good News to People in Bondage
C.K. Sharpe, Miracles of Jesus: A 40-Day Devotional
Nancy Vason, The Dance of the Sandpipers
Peter M. Wallace, Getting to Know Jesus (Again): Meditations for Lent
Ty Wheeler, Todd Trainer, Ken Harriss, Dawn’s Early Light
LITERARY FICTION
Nancy Brandon, Show Me a Kindness
Diane Michael Cantor, When Nighttime Shadows Fall
Michael Dew, The Land of Silence
Barbara D. Duffey, Of Grace and Courage: Thornhill Veterans Hospital
Nandita Godbole, Not For You: Family Narratives of Denial & Comfort Foods: Book One
Jeff Haws, The Solitary Apocalypse
John House, Uncommon Bond
Penny Garden Lewis, Microwave is Dead
D.B. Martin, Mother
Man Martin, The Lemon Jell-O Syndrome
Albert Norton, Jr., Rough Water Baptism
Anna Schachner, You and I and Someone Else
Katie Hart Smith, Hope Never Rests
Daren Wang, The Hidden Light of Northern Fires
MEMOIR
Jonathon Scott Barrett, Cook & Tell: Recipes and Stories from Southern Kitchens
Christopher Blake, And Half the Seed of Europe: A Genealogy of the Great War, 1914-1918
Stephen Corey, Startled at the Big Sound: Essays Personal, Cultural, and Literary
Ann Lovvorn Douglass, Snippets
Christopher Martin, This Gladdening Light: An Ecology of Fatherhood and Faith
Habiba N. Shaw, Marks behind the Stones
Susie TenEyck, Abandoned
POETRY CHAPBOOK
Joan M. Howard, Death and Empathy: My Sister Web
K.B. Kincer, After the Transplant
Ron Self, Requiem for the Unconvinced
Jane Simpson, On the Porch, Under the Eave
POETRY FULL-LENGTH BOOK
Clifford Brooks, Athena Departs: Gospel of a Man Apart
Danielle Hanson, Ambushing Water
Ron Jones, The Ill Lines of an Ill Mind
Andrea Jurjevic, Small Crimes
D.B. Martin, Y—Dark Tales & Poetry
Heidi Lynn Nilsson, For the Fire from the Straw
Anya Krugovoy Silver, Second Bloom
Kimberly J. Simms, Lindy Lee: Songs on Mill Hill
Charles Wanager, Sixteen Windows
ROMANCE
Tori Bailey, Love Made from Scratch: A Coming Home Novel, Book Three
Marilyn Baron, The Alibi
Sally Kilpatrick, Bless Her Heart
Bobbi Kornblit, Red Carpet Rivals
Jane Lewis, Love at Five Thousand Feet
SHORT STORY COLLECTION
Michael Bishop, Other Arms Reach Out to Me: Georgia Stories
Susan Lindsley, Emperor of the United American States and Other Stories
Susan Lindsley, Whitetails and Tall Tales
D.B. Martin, Terror Tales Vol. 1
Jennifer Wallace, Side By Side: A Patchwork Portrait of My Southern Family
Janie Dempsey Watts, Mothers, Sons, Beloveds, and Other Strangers
SPECIALTY BOOK
Tripp Bowden, All the Memorable Rounds: Golf Adventures and Misadventures, from Augusta National to Cypress Point and Beyond
Alice Lovejoy Carnahan, Jonathan: Wolfsong’s Last Chapter: A Story of Love and Loss
Jimmy Carter, The Craftsmanship of Jimmy Carter
Edward Gadrix, Panther Pride: The Story of Sports at Georgia State University
Cynthia Graubart, Sunday Suppers
Josh Langston, The Naked Novelist!
Rona Simmons, Jack Smith, Images from World War II: The Art of Jack Smith
Buddy Sullivan, Benjamin Galland, Sapelo: People and Place on a Georgia Sea Island
Jason Thrasher, Athens Potluck
YOUNG ADULT
Tabbatha Bella, Misha the Brave
Caroline George, The Vestige
McCall Hoyle, The Thing with Feathers
Aaron Levy, Blood Don’t Lie
Sandra Page, Island of the Lost World
2017 Nominees
BIOGRAPHY
Patricia Bell-Scott, The Firebrand and the First Lady: Portrait of a Friendship: Pauli Murray, Eleanor Roosevelt, and the Struggle for Social Justice
Joseph P. Byrd IV, Confederate Sharpshooter Major William E. Simmons: Through the War with the 16th Georgia Infantry and the 3rd Battalion Georgia Sharpshooters
Duncan Dobie, Arthur Woody and the Legend of the Barefoot Ranger
Lee C. Dunn, Cracking the Solid South: The Life of John Fletcher Hanson, Father of Georgia Tech
Ted Geltner, Blood, Bone and Marrow: A Biography of Harry Crews
CHILDREN’S BOOK
Richard Allen Anderson, The Adventures of Diggerydoo and Taller Too, Illustrated by Amber D. Pickle Nicole Antoinette, Christmas Reindeer Food
Marcia Hawley Barnes, Tobijah, Illustrated by Doreyl Ammons Cain
Nelle Whelchel Brannen, If a Frog Had a Santa, Illustrated by Cathy Brownlee Wood
Robin Dixon, Always Love You, Illustrated by Debbie Byrd
Carol Bland Dolson, Dear Marguerite and Me, Illustrated by Elaine Hearn Rabon
Lisa Gammon, Chocolate Island: Sweet Island Dreams Series, Book One, Illustrated by Linda Cowen
Susie Gardner, 1, 2, 3 TEAM!, Illustrated by Tina Mullen
Vickie McEntire, Baby Birds, Illustrated by Alana Kipe
Cecelia Golightly Ramsey, Hopper and Amos: A Baby Bird’s First Adventure, Illustrated by Joanne Cheves Davis
Lisa Rothman-Levin, Auntie No-No, Illustrated by Andre Thomas
DETECTIVE/MYSTERY
Kris Allis, A Moving Screen
Trudy Nan Boyce, Out of the Blues
Valerie Joan Connors, A Better Truth
Marsha Cornelius, Up to No Good
Betty Jean Craige, Fairfield’s Auction: A Witherston Murder Mystery
Lee Gimenez, The Media Murders: A J.T. Ryan Thriller
Lynn Hesse, Well of Rage
Lois Lavrisa, Homocide by Hamlet
Julia McDermott, Daddy’s Girl
M.C. Quince, Angel O’Rourke
Rona Simmons, The Martyr’s Brother
Carole Townsend, Blood in the Soil
George Weinstein, Aftermath
ESSAY
Raymond L. Atkins, South of the Etowah: The View from the Wrong Side of the River
Kathy A. Bradley, Wondering Toward Center
Casey Cagle, Education Unleashed
Milam McGraw Propst and Jaclyn Weldon White, Sidetacked: Two Women, Two Cameras, and Lunches on Sherman’s Trail
Megan Volpert, 1976
FIRST NOVEL
Bonnie Adams-Little, The Aclla’s Legacy
Amber Brock, A Fine Imitation
Mary Anna Bryan, Cardinal Hill: A Novel
Leverett Butts, Guns of the Waste Land: Departure and Diversion: Volumes 1 & 2
Anne Corbitt, Rules for Lying
Sarah Domet, The Guineveres
Angie Gallion, Intoxic
Rose Chandler Johnson, My Father’s House
JD Jordan, Calamity: Being an Account of Calamity Jane and Her Gunslinging Green Man
Erika Jantzen, No Ordinary Fire
Liz Lazarus, Free of Malice
Bob Lipscomb, The Slave Daughter
Anne Lovett, Rubies from Burma
Mark Wallace Maguire, Alexandria Rising
Marcey Perry Morse, You Can’t Fly, Illustrated by Michelle Morse and Daniel Morse
Katelyne Parker, Hosanna
Ferris Robinson, Making Arrangements
Betty A. Smith, Abby’s Choice
Katie Hart Smith, Aspirations of the Heart
James Marshall Smith, Silent Source
Gray Stewart, Haylow: A Novel
Jane Suen, Children of the Future
David G. Tippens, Two Bent Trees
Paco Torch, Crippled Sunrise: Book I of The Torchini Family Chronicles
Dana Wildsmith, Jumping
Tom Woodward, Shortening Shadows
HISTORY
Dan A. Aldridge, Jr.,To Lasso the Clouds: The Beginning of Aviation in Georgia
John W. Brinsfield, Jr., Summon Only the Brave!: Commanders, Soldiers, and Chaplains at Gettysburg
Col. John M. House, US Army (Ret.), Wolfhounds and Polar Bears: The American Expeditionary Force in Siberia, 1918-1920
Linda S. McCardle, A Just and Holy Cause?: The Civil War Letters of Marcus Bethune Ely and Martha Frances Ely
Kaye Lanning Minchew, A President in Our Midst: Franklin Delano Roosevelt in Georgia
Dorothy Padgett, Jimmy Carter: Elected President with Pocket Change and Peanuts
William Rawlings, The Second Coming of the Invisible Empire: The Ku Klux Klan of the 1920s
Lisa Russell, Lost Towns of North Georgia
Andrew Young, Harvey Newman, and Andrea Young, Andrew Young and the Making of Modern Atlanta
INSPIRATIONAL—RELIGIOUS
Nicholas Cappas, Heaven Breaks In
R. Kirby Godsey, The God Particle: God-Talk in a “Big Bang” World
J. Steve Miller, Faith That’s Not Blind
Sarah Rowan, Unspeakable Joy: Devotions for the Slumbering Believer
Ulysses Tuff, Anchored in Him: Rock of Our Salvation
INSPIRATIONAL—SECULAR
Jane K. Ashley, Cancer: The Light at the End of the Tunnel
Lee Ellis, Engage with Honor: Building a Culture of Courageous Accountability
Julienne Levy Marks, Many Pebbles to Make a Difference: Inspiring Ways You Can Improve Children’s Lives by Making Connections: Multiculturalism and Peace
Barry Pencek, The Millennial’s Guide to Wealth: Learn About Saving, Investing, Spending, and Living While Drinking Beer
David Ryback, Transforming Communication in Leadership and Teamwork, Co-Author Renate Motschnig
LITERARY FICTION
Lucas Carpenter, Mind and Body: And Other Stories
Brandon Daily, The Valley
Julia Franks, Over the Plain Houses
Angie Gallion, Purgus
Kathi Harper Hill, Bensy and Me
George Hirthler, The Idealist: The Story of Baron Pierre de Coubertin
Ann Hite, Sleeping Above Chaos: A Black Mountain Novel
JR Ingrisano, Alicia in the Ruins: A Story of Survival
Terry Kay, The King Who Made Paper Flowers
June Hall McCash, Marguerite’s Landing
William Timothy Murray, A Distant Light: The Year of the Red Door, Volume 3
Doris Reidy, Every Last Stitch
MEMOIR
Mark Beaver, Suburban Gospel
Molly Brodak, Bandit
Charles E. Cox, A Place Called Gresston
Slater Davis, 349 Days
Betty Louise Saxon Hopkins, Roadsters and Roosters: A Depression Era Love Story
Brad Hulsey, 60 Cents: Secrets and Tales in a Small Town
John Lewis, co-author: Andrew Aydin, and illustrator: Nate Powell, March: Book Three
Susan Lindsley, Possum Cops, Poachers and the Counterfeit Game Warden
Charlotte Ashurst McDaniel, Girdled and Gloved: From Radio to YouTube
David Valdez, Hallelujah Dave
POETRY FULL-LENGTH BOOK
Richard Allen Anderson, Potholes in Memory Lane
R.Cary Bynum: Night Streetcars, City Poems and Beyond
James Davis May, Unquiet Things
Sandra Meek, An Ecology of Elsewhere
Sally Stewart Mohney, Low County, High Water
Lynn Pedersen, The Nomenclature of Small Things
Lindsay Tigue, System of Ghosts
ROMANCE
Marilyn Baron, Stumble Stones: A Novel
Susan Carlisle, Married for the Boss’s Baby
Susan Carlisle, White Wedding for a Southern Belle
Susan Carlisle, The Doctor’s Sleigh Bell Proposal
Dac Crossley, The Hand of Lou Diamond
J.G. Jakes, The River’s End
Sandra McGregor, Emma Rose
Susan Sands, Love, Alabama
SPECIALTY BOOK
Cynthia Graubart, Chicken: A Savor the South Cookbook
Josh Langston, The Naked Truth!
Judson Mitcham, Michael David Murphy, and Karen L. Paty, Inspired Georgia
Sonny Seals and George S. Hart, Historic Rural Churches of Georgia
Jill Stuckey, Evan Kutzler, Ossabaw Island: A Sense of Place
Kay Moore, Before the Bridge: A Memoir of Hilton Head Island
YOUNG ADULT
Michael Bishop, Joel-Brock the Brave and the Valorous Smalls
Gelia Dolcimascolo, Aurelia and the Library of the Soul
Marsha Mathews, Growing Up with Pigtails
Pamela Bauer Mueller, The Dancing Delilahs