The PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction is one of the most prestigious prizes in American letters. It has been known to launch careers and help books that would otherwise languish on the shelves. While there are a few interesting tidbits on the PEN/Faulkner website (News, for instance, provides interesting links to coverage of books, authors, and the awards), the real gem of the site is the...

The Coretta Scott King Book Award was founded in 1969 in honor of the late Mrs. Coretta Scott King, wife of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., for her passion and dedication to working for peace. The awards are given to “outstanding African American authors and illustrators of books for children and young adults that demonstrate an appreciation of African American culture and universal human values.”...