Southern Book Prize facts for kids
The Pat Conroy Southern Book Prize is a special award given to amazing books from or about the Southern United States. It's like a big "thank you" from the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance (SIBA) to authors and their stories. This award started way back in 1999.
To win this prize, a book needs to be "southern" in some way. This means it could be written by an author from the South, or the story itself might take place there. The book also has to have been published in the year before the award is given. Bookstores that are part of SIBA, or even their customers, can suggest books for the award.
There are different groups of books that can win, like:
- Fiction (made-up stories)
- Non-fiction (true stories and facts)
- Poetry (poems)
- Cooking (recipes and food ideas)
- Children's literature (books for younger readers)
Contents
About the Pat Conroy Southern Book Prize
How Winners Are Chosen
When the award first started in 1999, people voted online to pick the winners. This popular vote continued until 2007. But starting in 2008, a group of booksellers from SIBA became the judges. They looked at a list of finalists and chose the winners themselves.
In 2016, the award got a new name! It was changed to the "Pat Conroy Southern Book Prize." This was done to honor Pat Conroy, a very famous writer from the South.
What Books Can Win?
For a book to be considered, it must have a strong connection to the American South. This could be because the author lives there, or the story is set in a southern state. The book also needs to have been published in the year before the awards. Bookstores that are members of SIBA, or even their customers, can suggest books they think deserve to win.
Different Award Categories
The prize celebrates many kinds of books. The main categories usually include fiction, which are made-up stories, and non-fiction, which are true stories or factual books. There are also awards for poetry, which are collections of poems. If you love to cook, there's a cooking category for cookbooks! And of course, there's a special category for children's books, and sometimes even for young adult books.
Past Winners of the Award
Many wonderful books have won this award over the years, celebrating the rich stories and voices of the South. Here are a few examples from different times:
Early Winners: The SIBA Book Award
When the award was known as the SIBA Book Award, many great authors were recognized.
1999
- Fiction: The Next Step in the Dance by Tim Gautreaux
- Nonfiction: Confederates in the Attic by Tony Horwitz
- Children: Out of the Ocean by Debra Frasier
2001
- Fiction: Jim the Boy by Tony Earley
- Nonfiction: Somebody Told Me by Rick Bragg
- Children: Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo
2003
- Fiction: The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
- Nonfiction: My Losing Season by Pat Conroy
- Children: Hoot by Carl Hiaasen
- Cookbook: The Foster’s Market Cookbook by Sara Foster
Recent Winners: The Pat Conroy Southern Book Prize
After being renamed in honor of Pat Conroy, the award continued to celebrate new and exciting books.
2019
- Fiction: The Line that Held Us by David Joy
- Children's: Smack Dab in the Middle of Maybe by Jo Hackl
- Non-fiction: The Best Cook in the World by Rick Bragg
2020
- Fiction: The Magnetic Girl by Jessica Handler
- Children's: The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi
- Non-fiction: Tell Me a Story: My Life With Pat Conroy by Cassandra King Conroy
