The Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance has named the winners of the Southern Book Prize, honoring "the best Southern book of the year" as nominated by Southern indie booksellers and voted on by their customers. Winners receive a donation in their name to the charity or nonprofit of their choice. The 25th anniversary Southern Book Prize winners are:
Fiction
Tom Lake by Ann Patchett (Harper)
"Ann Patchett does it again! Tom Lake is so good it's like eating a favorite dessert. Do you gobble it up quickly, or slowly savor it so that it lasts longer? I would give a million stars to this one." --Monie Henderson, Square Books, Oxford, Miss.
Nonfiction
The Comfort of Crows by Margaret Renkl (Spiegel & Grau)
"You will want to plant something, feed something, preserve something, and protect something all at the same time. You don't have to be a nature lover to read this book, but you will be by the time you finish it." --Mary Patterson, The Little Bookshop, Midlothian, Va.
Children's & YA
When Sea Becomes Sky by Gillian McDunn (Bloomsbury Children's Books)
"I was devastated for myself and every character I had met along the way while reading this wonderfully crafted story. This book will rip your heart out and put it back together perfectly." --Rayna Nielsen, Blue Cypress Books, New Orleans, La.
Patchett, who asked for her award money to be donated to PEN America said, "Huge thanks to all the indie booksellers who've made this book a success. I'm so grateful to you for putting Tom Lake into readers' hands. This is the nicest Valentine ever."
Renkl, whose prize goes to prize will go to Homegrown National Park, said, "There is a special sweetness to the Southern Book Prize that makes it nearly impossible to find adequate words of thanks. To know that a book has been chosen by booksellers, who read everything, and by readers, who have so many claims on their time and attention--could there be any celebration more heart-lifting to an author? Oh, my dear friends in independent bookstores across the South: Thank you, thank you, thank you."
McDunn, whose prize will go to support the Emily K. Center in Durham, N.C., commented: "I've known for a while now that not much is better than having the warmth and support of Southern booksellers and readers, and so it feels like this award is the frosting on an already delicious cake. I am proud to be a part of the rich literary tradition of our region and honored to have When Sea Becomes Sky chosen from a list of so many wonderful books. My endless thanks, gratitude, and appreciation to those who have cheered along this book of my heart."
The awards celebration includes the Southern Book Prize Rafflet--the winner receives a collection of prize finalists and winning titles--as well as a Social Media Scavenger Hunt on Instagram, where participants can win a gift card to the participating bookstore of their choice. This year's raffle winner is Tonya Schur, a customer of Books to Be Red in Ocracoke, N.C. Susan Hansen, a customer of Parnassus Books in Nashville, Tenn., is the scavenger hunt winner and will receive a $100 gift card to the bookstore.