It’s always great to hear about Minnesota books! And we want to pass this on to you so you can enjoy these books, and consider adding them to your library’s collection.

From the MPR News page:

“The 34th annual awards are sponsored by The Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library.

Submitted works published in 2021 were whittled down to 36 finalists earlier this year, with winners announced Tuesday night at the Ordway Center for Performing Arts in St. Paul.

The 2022 winners are:

• Children’s Literature: “How to Apologize” by David LaRochelle, illustrated by Mike Wohnoutka (Candlewick Press)
• Middle Grade Literature: “Long Lost” by Jacqueline West (Greenwillow Books/HarperCollins)
• Young Adult Literature: “The Night When No One Had Sex” by Kalena Miller (AW Teen/Albert Whitman)
• Poetry: “Sho” by Douglas Kearney (Wave Books)
• Novel & Short Story: “The Seed Keeper” by Diane Wilson (Milkweed Editions)
• Genre Fiction: “Life’s Too Short” by Abby Jimenez (Forever/Hachette Book Group)
• Memoir & Creative Nonfiction: “Watershed: Attending to Body and Earth in Distress” by Ranae Lenor Hanson (University of Minnesota Press)
• General Nonfiction: “The Violence Project: How to Stop a Mass Shooting Epidemic” by Jillian Peterson and James Densley (Abrams Books)
• Emilie Buchwald Award for Minnesota Nonfiction: “Confluence: A History of Fort Snelling” by Hampton Smith (Minnesota Historical Society Press)

Three other awards were previously announced:

• Kay Sexton Award, recognizing “an individual or organization for longstanding dedication and outstanding work in fostering books, reading and literary activity in Minnesota”: Fiona McCrae, publisher and director of Graywolf Press
• Book Artist Award, recognizing “a Minnesota book artist or book artist collaborative group for outstanding new work in the book arts during the last year, a demonstrated proficiency in the book arts, and significant contributions to Minnesota’s book arts community”: Cathy Ryan, for “Chronicle”
• Hognander Minnesota History Award, recognizing “the author of the most outstanding scholarly work related to Minnesota history published during the preceding two years”: David Hugill for “Settler Colonial City: Racism and Inequity in Postwar Minneapolis”

Read more about all the winners on the Minnesota Book Awards website.”