The Black Caucus of the American Library Association, Inc. (BCALA) and BiblioBoard announce the winners of the 2020 Self-Publishing EBook Award. Following the model of the current BCALA Literary Awards, the award honors the best self-published EBooks in fiction and poetry by an African American author in the U.S.  This is the fifth time BCALA and Biblioboard have given this innovative award. The recipients will receive awards during the National Conference of African American Librarians in 2021.

FICTION

The fiction category winner is ChildBride by Jennifer Smith Turner (Sparkpress).  ChildBride is about a young girl named Nell who grows up in the segregated south. Nell is married away at a young age and has to quickly adjust to becoming a women and an adult. Turner deals with emotional turmoil in a coming of age story about love, life, and decisions. Jennifer Smith Turner is currently preparing her third poetry collection for publication.

POETRY

The poetry category winner is Soul Talks Heal: A Poem Before Sunrise (SerenelyStar Publishing) by Star Jackson. The poems from Soul Talks Heal: A Poem Before Sunrise speak about love, reflection, healing, and emotions. Jackson does an excellent job expressing love through a series of short poems that could act as a daily inspirational to many.   Star Jackson is currently working on her second poetry book and is an educator in Texas.

Members of the BCALA EBook Literary Awards Jury are: Tiffany A. Duck (Chair), Suffolk Public Library; Dana Evans, Hampton University; Annie Payton, Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical University; Stacy Williams, University of Southern California; Stacy Brooks, Detroit Public Library, Eddie Hughes, Southern University; Brenda Spencer Robertson.