By Porter Anderson, Editor-in-Chief | @Porter_Anderson
See also:
The UK’s Nosy Crow Opens a United States company, Nosy Crow Inc.
‘Maus’ Author Art Spiegelman Honored by US National Book Foundation
ALA’s Tracie Hall Receives the National Book Award’s Literarian Award
First of Five Categories’ Longlists
The United States’ National Book Foundation—with a prize ceremony set for November 16—has begun today (September 14) announcing its longlists for the 2022 National Book Awards. As this program likes to do, it’s parsing the announcements across five categories on three days.Finalists—the shortlisted entries—are to be named October 4.
The longlist provided today to members of the news media is for the National Book Award for young people’s literature.
This is the first of five categories. Coming up:
- The National Book Award longlist in translated literature
- The National Book Award longlist in poetry
- The National Book Award longlist in in nonfiction
- The National Book Award longlist in fiction
Two authors previously honored by the National Book Awards on this list are Traci Chee, who was a finalist for this category in 2020, and Anna-Marie McLemore, longlisted for this category twice, in 2016 and 2021.
Collectively, the authors and illustrators on this list have been honored by the Newbery Honor and Medal; the Walter Honor; the Printz Honor; the Coretta Scott King Book Award; the Ezra Jack Keats Award; the Kirkus Prize for Young Readers’ Literature; the Glyph Comics Awards; the Stonewall Book Award; and the Emmy Awards.
Publishers submitted a total of 296 books for the 2022 young people’s literature category.
The judges for this one are Becky Albertalli, Joseph Bruchac, Meghan Dietsche Goel, Jewell Parker Rhodes (Chair), and Lilliam Rivera.
Young People’s Literature 2022 Longlist
Author | Title | Publisher / Imprint |
Kelly Barnhill | The Ogress and the Orphans | Workman Publishing / Algonquin Young Readers |
Isaac Blum | The Life and Crimes of Hoodie Rosen | Penguin Random House / Philomel Books |
Traci Chee | A Thousand Steps into Night | HarperCollins / Clarion Books |
Johnnie Christmas | Swim Team | HarperCollins / Harper Alley |
Anna-Marie McLemore | Self-Made Boys: A Great Gatsby Remix | Macmillan / Feiwel & Friends |
Sonora Reyes | The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School | HarperCollins / Balzer + Bray |
Tommie Smith, Derrick Barnes, Dawud Anyabwile | Victory. Stand!: Raising My Fist for Justice | WW Norton |
Sabaa Tahir | All My Rage | Penguin Random House / Razorbill |
Sherri Winston | Lotus Bloom and the Afro Revolution | Bloomsbury / Bloomsbury Children’s Books |
Lisa Yee | Maizy Chen’s Last Chance | Penguin Random House / Random House for Young Readers |
As always, the jury’s decisions are made independently of the National Book Foundation staff and board of directors and deliberations are strictly confidential.
This is Publishing Perspectives’ 160th report on awards-related news published in the 170 days since our 2022 operations began on January 3.

National Book Awards trophies. Image: NBA
More from Publishing Perspectives on the National Book Awards in the United States is here and more on the huge field of international book awards and prizes is here. More from us on the United States’ market is here.
More from us on the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on international book publishing is here.