About the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award – Nonfiction
The Anisfield-Wolf Book Award for Nonfiction recognises the most outstanding works of nonfiction that deepen understanding of racism and celebrate human diversity. Established in 1935 by the poet and philanthropist Edith Anisfield Wolf, and administered since 1963 by the Cleveland Foundation, the award has one of the most distinguished track records of any American literary prize. Among the most celebrated nonfiction recipients in the award's long history are works by Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, James Baldwin, Maya Angelou, and Alex Haley, and in more recent decades books by Margot Lee Shetterly, Kevin Young, Ta-Nehisi Coates, Tiya Miles, and Ned Blackhawk. The nonfiction prize recognises journalism, cultural history, memoir, biography, and scholarly work that illuminates the history and present reality of racism in America and the world, and that does so with intellectual rigour and literary distinction. A distinguished jury, which has included Nobel laureates and Pulitzer Prize winners, evaluates submissions each year; more than one title may be honoured. Each winner receives a $10,000 cash prize, and the awards are presented at an annual ceremony in Cleveland. The Anisfield-Wolf Nonfiction Award has a particular reputation for recognising works that reshape public understanding of American history—books that recover lost or suppressed histories and bring them to the attention of a broad readership.
