By Jackie Wilson
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Nov. 14, 2023) — "A Is for Affrilachia" by artist, writer, poet and University of Kentucky professor Frank X Walker is the grand prize winner of the 2023 Black Authors Matter Children’s Book Awards. Illustrated by Ron Davis (upfromsumdirt), "A Is for Affrilachia" was chosen for best overall book and content and also selected as the best book in the educational category.
The Black Authors Matter Children’s Book Awards were established to honor excellence in African American literature. A panel of authors evaluated more than 150 entries. In addition to the grand prize, submissions were considered for the following categories: African diaspora; coloring books/workbooks/activity books; educational; motivational; religious/faith; social commentary/justice; and best illustrator. The winners were announced at the National Black Book Festival on Oct. 28 in Houston.
“Frank X Walker’s book received the highest score,” said Gwen Richardson, national coordinator of the National Black Book Festival. “In addition to winning the educational category, 'A Is for Affrilachia' received a perfect score overall from every judge.”
"A Is for Affrilachia" (University Press of Kentucky, February 2023) is a children’s alphabet book that fosters awareness of notable African Americans from the Appalachia region and celebrates the people, physical spaces and historical events that may not be as well known in mainstream education.
“Wow, what an honor,” said Walker. “I’m so pleased that somebody else appreciates this beautiful book and recognizes the good it is trying to do in the world as much as upfromsumdirt, and I do.”
Walker, the first African American writer to be named Kentucky Poet Laureate, is professor of English and African American and Africana studies in UK's College of Arts and Sciences, where he founded pluck! The Journal of Affrilachian Arts & Culture. He has published 11 collections of poetry, including "Buffalo Dance: The Journey of York, Expanded Edition"; "Masked Man, Black: Pandemic & Protest Poems"; "When Winter Come: The Ascension of York"; and "Turn Me Loose: The Unghosting of Medgar Evers," which was awarded an NAACP Image Award and the Black Caucus American Library Association Honor Award. The recipient of the 35th Lillian Smith Book Award and the Thomas D. Clark Award for Literary Excellence, he is a founding member of the Affrilachian Poets.
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