Largest Latino Book Awards Expanding in 2014
By Alina Gonzalez
The 16th International Latino Book Awards (ILBA), which is now accepting entries, will be expanding its programs in 2014 to better serve the millions of Latinos in the USA who collectively purchased $560 million in books last year. The ILBA makes it a goal to celebrate and honor worldwide achievements in Latino literature and features Spanish, English and Portuguese books and authors in “the largest Latino Cultural Awards in the USA.”
Download application package at link below:
https://app.box.com/s/r3kp6mrazugsfwfr6ztc
To better promote worthwhile Latino books, the ILBA has decided to launch a tour of the year’s winning books. 2014’s Finalist books will be a part of the International Award Winning Authors Tour that will go to at least 10 major book, media, Latino professional, and Latino consumer events in the USA and Mexico with a combined audience of 250,000+. Events under consideration for this landmark tour include L.A. Times Festival of Books, BookExpo, LULAC, National Council of La Raza Convention, Feria Internacional del Libro de Guadalajara, CABE, and the National Association of Hispanic Publications. Finalists’ books will also be presented in the 2014 International Award Winning Author Catalog, which will be distributed at the events.
Latino Literacy Now, the ILBA manager, is a nonprofit co-founded by Edward James Olmos that has also produced 52 Latino Book & Family Festivals around the USA and the Latino Books into Movies Awards. Awards partners include Las Comadres, whose mission is to create opportunities for Latinas through community, culture, technology, and education; and REFORMA is the National Association to Promote Library and Information Services to Latinos and is an affiliate of the American Library Association.
In the last 15 years the ILBA has honored 1,437 authors who have totaled nearly 200 million in book sales. Winners have include many of the best-known Latino authors including Belinda Acosta, Roldofo Acuña, Alma Flor Ada, Isabel Allende, Rudolfo Anaya, Mary J. Andrade, Ron Arias, José Antonio Buciaga, Denise Chavéz, Paulo Coelho, Dr. Camilo Cruz, Gabriel García Márquez, Reyna Grande, Oscar Hijuelos, Edna Iturralde, Mario Vargas Llosa, Josefina López, Pablo Neruda, Ana Nogales, Jose-Luis Orozco, Luis Rodriguez, Alisa Valdes, and Victor Villaseñor.
Winners have also included well-known figures from other professions including Entertainers like Celia Cruz, Gloria Estefan, and Cheech Marin; Sports notables Oscar de la Hoya and Jorge Posada; Media figures like Martín Llorens, Jorge Ramos, Teresa Rodriguez, and Ray Suarez; Public figure Henry Cisneros; and Chefs like Paulina Abascal, Jose Garces, and Daisy Martinez.
The application deadline for the 16th ILBA is Friday, January 20, 2014. Categories include: Fiction, Non-fiction, Children, Youth & Young Adult, eBooks/Audio books, Portuguese, Design, Best Translation, and Best First Book. Entries must be written by a Latino author, express a Latino theme or be in Spanish, and have been published in 2012 or 2013. Award forms and guidelines: http://www.LBFF.us
The Awards Ceremony for the 16th International Latino Book Awards will be at the American Library Association Conference in Las Vegas, June 27-30, 2014.
Enter now to be a part of one of the largest book awards in the world!
For additional information, contact Kirk Whisler, Awards Chair, at kirk@whisler.com or 760-434-1223.