Two Native authors among finalists for National Book Award

Friday, September 14, 2018

Two Native authors, including one who has won widespread praise for his debut work, are among the finalists for the National Book Award.

Brandon Hobson, a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, and Tommy Orange, a citizen of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes, landed on the National Book Foundation's longlist for fiction. A shortlist, which will narrow down the candidates, is coming out October 10, to be followed by an announcement of the winners on November 14.

Hobson, who was a 2016 recipient of a Pushcart Prize, was selected for Where the Dead Sit Talking, his fourth book. Set in rural Oklahoma, it focuses on two young Natives who bond while in foster care.

The other Native author up for the National Book Award is Orange. He was was selected for There There, his debut novel about urban Indians in Oakland, California, where he grew up.

The work, which has seen favorable reviews throughout the book media, also landed him on the shortlist for the First Novel Prize from The Center for Fiction, whose winner will be announced on December 11.