【Secret Confessions (2025) Week 7 Highlights 40】

Drum roll pleeeaassseee!

The Secret Confessions (2025) Week 7 Highlights 40winners of the 2017 National Book Awards are here.

On Wednesday night, the book world came together to celebrate the best new literature of the year in the National Book Foundation's annual National Book Awards ceremony.

SEE ALSO: Women dominate this year's National Book Foundation '5 Under 35' honoree list

Each year, the National Book Awards honor the best new literature in fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and young people's literature.

2017's entries shined a spotlight on some of the year's most exciting books including Jesmyn Ward's much acclaimed novel Sing, Unburied, Sing, which was nominated for the Fiction award. Past National Book Award nominee Jason Reynolds also praised Ward to the MashReads Podcast, saying, "I personally think [Jesmyn] is the greatest writer in the 21st century."

A few MashReads Podcastfavorites were also nominated this year, including Danez Smith's Don't Call Us Deadand Erika L. Sánchez's I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter.

Check out this year's winners below, along with a quick blurb of what each said when they accepted their award.

Fiction

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

Sing, Unburied, Sing

Jesmyn Ward

“You looked at my poor, my Black, my southern women, and you saw yourself. I am deeply honored to each and everyone of you who looks at my work and sees something in it. I hope to continue this conversation with you for all of our days.” 

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Nonfiction

The Future Is History: How Totalitarianism Reclaimed Russia

Masha Gessen

"I never thought a Russia book could actually be longlisted for the National Book Award but, of course, things have, um, changed.”

Poetry

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

HALF-LIGHT: Collected Poems

By Frank Bidart

“Writing the poems is how I survived. I hope the journey these poems go on will help others survive as well.”

Young People's Literature

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

Far From The Tree

By Robin Benway

“Creativity is about getting up, making the coffee, and finding the light that makes the room light up.”

In addition to honoring great new literature, the ceremony also awarded Richard Robinson the Literarian Award for outstanding service to the literary community and awarded Annie Proulx the medal for distinguished contribution to American letters.

You can watch a livestream of the National Book Awards below.

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