Ohioana Library has announced the 25 finalists for the 2010 Ohioana Book Awards. Ten of the authors are past Ohioana Book Award winners.

To qualify for thhe annual Ohioana Book Awards the author must have been born in Ohio or lived in Ohio for at least five years, the exception is in the category of books “About Ohio,” and the book must have a copyright during the previous two years and been received by Ohioana during 2009. No book
can be considered more that once for the Ohioana Book Awards.

“2009 was an outstanding year for books by Ohio writers and books about Ohio and Ohioans,” said Linda Hengst, executive director of the Ohioana Library. “We receive 800-1,000 books a year, which become eligible for the book awards, so the authors of the books selected as finalists
this year should feel truly honored.”

The book awards are given in five categories: fiction, nonfiction, poetry, juvenile literature, and “about Ohio/Ohioans.” Ohioana will announce the winners in each category near the end of August, and recipients will be honored at the annual Ohioana Day Awards Ceremony and Luncheon on Saturday, October 16, 2010.

The 2010 Ohioana Book Award finalists are:

Fiction
The Weight of Heaven, by Thrity Umrigar (Harper Collins – 2009)
Await Your Reply, by Dan Chaon (Ballantine Books – 2009)
All the Living, by C.E. Morgan (Farrar, Strauss, and Giroux – 2009)
Far Bright Star, by Robert Olmstead (Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill – 2009)
The Spire, by Richard North Patterson (Henry Holt – 2009)

Non -fiction
Last of His Mind, by John Thorndike (Swallow Press – 2009)
Sweet Thunder, by Will Haygood (Knopf – 2009)
Wilderness Warrior, by Douglas Brinkley (Harper Collins – 2009)
Conservationist Manifesto, by Scott Russell Sanders (Indiana University Press – 2009)
When Everything Changed, by Gail Collins (Little, Brown & Company – 2009)

About Ohio
Wild Ohio, by Jim McCormac (Kent State University Press – 2009)
The Harding Affair, by James Robenalt (Palgrave Macmillan – 2009)
Canal Fever, by Lynn Metzger and Peg Bobel (Kent State University Press – 2009)
Passion for the Land, by Daniel Nelson (Kent State University Press – 2009)

Juvenile
Sweethearts of Rhythm, by Marilyn Nelson (Dial – 2009)
Cuckoo’s Haiku, by Michael J. Rosen (Candlewick – 2009)
Unfinished Angel, by Sharon Creech (Harper Collins – 2009)
Imperfections, by Lynda Durrant (Clarion – 2008)
Little Mouse Gets Ready, by Jeff Smith (RAW Junior – 2009)
Say the Word, by Jeannine Garsee (Bloomsbury – 2009)

Poetry
Sonata Mulattica, by Rita Dove (WW Norton and Company – 2009)
Bright Felon, by Kazim Ali (Wesleyan – 2009)
Never-Ending Birds, by David Baker (WW Norton and Company – 2009)
Evidence, by Mary Oliver (Beacon Press – 2009)
Trust, by Liz Waldner (Cleveland State University Poetry Center – 2009)

The mission of the Ohioana Library, established in 1929 by First Lady Martha Kinney Cooper, isto recognize and encourage the creative accomplishments of Ohioans; preserve and expand a permanent collection of books, sheet music, manuscripts, and other materials by Ohioans and about Ohio; and disseminate information about the work of Ohio writers, musicians and other artists to researchers, schools and the general public. Individuals can visit the library at 274 E. First Ave., Columbus, OH, or online at www.ohioana.org.