Finalists for the second Bisexual Book Awards were announced yesterday by the Bi Writers Association (BWA). From an unprecedented 60 submissions, finalists were narrowed down in categories of fiction, non-fiction, speculative fiction, teen/young adult fiction, biography/memoir, erotic fiction/erotica, book publisher of the year, and writer of the year.
Director of the BWA, Sheela Lambert, said in a statement, "It's our goal to increase awareness of bisexual books, to inspire authors to write more novels with bisexual characters, more non-fiction on bisexual topics, more bisexual memoirs, and to encourage more publishers to publish them. It's working!" She added that "no book awards has ever seen 60 bisexual book submissions."
The books will be read and assessed by a team of judges, unique for each category. On May 31st, winners will be announced at the Bisexual Book Awards Ceremony after a reading a multi-arts celebration known as Bi Lines VII. The events will take place in the West Village of New York City. Details can be found on the Bi Writers Association blog.
Check out the full list of finalists for the Bisexual Book Awards below:
Bisexual Fiction
- The City of Devi by Manil Suri, W. W. Norton & Company
- Corona by Bushra Rehman, Sibling Rivalry Press
- Hild by Nicola Griffith, Farrar, Straus and Giroux
- The Last Place She’d Look by Arlene Schindler, ExtravaGonzo
- My Education by Susan Choi, Viking Adult
- The Spirit of Detroit by Frank Anthony Polito, Woodward Avenue Books
- The Two Hotel Francforts by David Leavitt, Bloomsbury
Bisexual Non-fiction
- Anything That Loves: Comics Beyond Gay and Straight edited by Charles “Zan” Christensen, Northwest Press
- Barriers to Love: Embracing a Bisexual Identity by Marina Peralta with Penelope James, Barriers Press
- The B Word: Bisexuality in Contemporary Film and Television, Maria San Filippo, Indiana University Press
- Bi: Notes for a Bisexual Revolution, Shiri Eisner, Seal Press
- Kissing Oscar Wilde: A Love Story In The City Of Light by Jade Sylvan, Write Bloody Publishing
Bisexual Speculative Fiction [Sci-fi/Fantasy/Horror]
- Coda by Emma Trevayne, Running Press Kids
- The Elementals by Saundra Mitchell, Harcourt Children’s Books
- Inheritance by Malinda Lo, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
- Love in The Time of Global Warming by Francesca Lia Block, Henry Holt and Co.
- Pantomime by Laura Lam, Strange Chemistry
- The Stars Change by Mary Anne Mohanraj, Circlet Press
- The Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson, Arthur A. Levine Books
Bisexual Teen/Young Adult Fiction
- Bi-Normal by M.G. Higgins (Gravel Road Series), Saddleback Educational Publishing
- Inheritance by Malinda Lo, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
- Love in The Time of Global Warming by Francesca Lia Block, Henry Holt and Co.
- Openly Straight by Bill Konigsberg, Arthur A. Levine Books
- Pantomime by Laura Lam, Strange Chemistry
- The Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson, Arthur A. Levine Books
Bisexual Biography/Memoir
- Anything That Loves: Comics Beyond Gay and Straight edited by Charles “Zan” Christensen, Northwest Press
- Barriers to Love: Embracing a Bisexual Identity by Marina Peralta with Penelope James, Barriers Press
- The Blind Masseuse: A Traveler’s Memoir from Costa Rica to Cambodia, Alden Jones, Terrace Books/The University of Wisconsin Press
Bisexual Erotic Fiction/Erotica
- The Flight of the Black Swan: A Bawdy Novella by Jean Roberta, Lethe Press
- House of Sable Locks by Elizabeth Schechter, Circlet Press
- Memoirs of a Gigolo Omnibus, by Livia Ellis, Vol. 1-4, Riverdale Avenue Books/Desire
- The Reunion by Adriana Kraft: B&B Publishing
- Twice the Pleasure: Bisexual Women’s Erotica edited by Rachel Kramer Bussel, Cleis Press
Bisexual Book Publisher of the Year
- Circlet Press
- Riverdale Avenue Books
Bi Writer of the Year
- Barriers to Love: Embracing a Bisexual Identity by Marina Peralta with Penelope James, Barriers Press
- Bi: Notes for a Bisexual Revolution, Shiri Eisner, Seal Press
- The Flight of the Black Swan: A Bawdy Novella by Jean Roberta, Lethe Press
- Memoirs of a Gigolo Omnibus, by Livia Ellis, Vol. 1-4, Riverdale Avenue Books/Desire
- The Soundtrack of My Life by Clive Davis with Anthony DeCurtis, Simon & Schuster
- Twice the Pleasure: Bisexual Women’s Erotica edited by Rachel Kramer Bussel, Cleis Press
- A Wind of Knives by Ed Kurtz, Snubnose Press