Minneapolis writer Louise Erdrich has been named a finalist for a Minnesota Book Award for her novel "LaRose," which is also in the running for a National Book Critics Circle award. She last won a Minnesota Book Award — her fifth — in 2013 for "The Round House."
The finalists, announced Saturday also include two-time winner Kao Kalia Yang (also a finalist for an NBCC award), Caren Stelson (whose book, "Sachiko," was longlisted for a 2016 National Book Award), Benjamin Percy, Peter Geye and David Housewright.
For the first time, two self-published authors were among the finalists. Notably missing from the lineup were Kate DiCamillo's "Raymie Nightingale," also longlisted for a National Book Award, and Kelly Barnhill, whose middle-grade novel "The Girl Who Drank the Moon" just won the Newbery Award.
The titles were chosen by 27 judges from around the state who met Saturday in the Twin Cities. The finalists:
Children's Literature, sponsored by Books for Africa:
"Tell Me a Tattoo Story," by Alison McGhee, illustrated by Eliza Wheeler (Chronicle Books); "This Is NOT A Cat!" by David LaRochelle, illustrated by Mike Wohnoutka (Sterling Children's Books); "Worm Loves Worm," by J.J. Austrian, illustrated by Mike Curato (Balzer + Bray), and "Yellow Time," by Lauren Stringer (Beach Lane Books).
General Nonfiction:
"Canoes: A Natural History in North America," by Mark Neuzil and Norman Sims (University of Minnesota Press); "Designing Our Way to a Better World," by Thomas Fisher (University of Minnesota Press); "Thrill Me: Essays on Fiction," by Benjamin Percy (Graywolf Press), and "The War on Science," by Shawn Otto (Milkweed Editions).
Genre Fiction, sponsored by Macalester College:
"The Born and the Made," by Robert Spande (self-published); "The Heavens May Fall," by Allen Eskens (Seventh Street Books); "Rise of the Spring Tide," by James Stitt (self-published), and "Stealing the Countess," by David Housewright (Minotaur Books).
Memoir & Creative Nonfiction, sponsored by Faegre Baker Daniels:
"I Live Inside: Memoirs of a Babe in Toyland," by Michelle Leon (Minnesota Historical Society Press); "The Song Poet: A Memoir of My Father," by Kao Kalia Yang (Metropolitan Books); "This Is Where I Am: A Memoir," by Zeke Caligiuri (University of Minnesota Press), and "The Thunder Before the Storm: The Autobiography of Clyde Bellecourt," by Clyde Bellecourt, as told to Jon Lurie (Minnesota Historical Society Press).
