National Book Awards

"This year, instead of just celebrating the best American literature, we're celebrating the best literature in America," said Lisa Lucas, executive director of the National Book Foundation.

Fifty nominated books now remain in contention for prizes in fiction, nonfiction, poetry, young people's literature — and, in a fresh twist to the annual slate, translated literature.

For Ward, who won the fiction prize for Sing, Unburied, Sing, it was her second National Book Award. For Bidart, whose poetry collection spanned 51 years, it was akin to a lifetime achievement honor.

The National Book Foundation winnowed the list of contenders for its literary prize to just 20 — or five finalists each in four categories. Among them are Jesmyn Ward, Min Jin Lee and Frank Bidart.

Of the names announced by the National Book Foundation, four will take home the literary prize in November. Jesmyn Ward, Jennifer Egan and Frank Bidart number among the longlists' familiar faces.

Six writers emerged with the literary prize: Whitehead in fiction; Ibram X. Kendi in nonfiction; Daniel Borzutzky in poetry; and Lewis, Andrew Aydin and Nate Powell in young people's literature.

Colson Whitehead, Jacqueline Woodson and Rita Dove are just three of the authors on the shortlists for the National Book Awards. The 20 books still in contention for the prizes were unveiled Thursday.

And then there were 40: This week, the National Book Foundation revealed the writers who are still in contention for its literary prize. It capped the rollout Thursday with the fiction nominees.

Lucas is the third executive director in the history of the foundation, which runs the National Book Awards. Her priority? Inclusivity: "Everyone is either a reader or a potential reader," she says.