The Book Publishers Association of Alberta has announced the shortlists for its annual literary awards, honouring the best books from the province’s presses.

The finalists in 11 categories are:

Book of the Year Award – Trade Fiction

• Stonehouse Publishing for Kalyna by Pam Clark
• NeWest Press for Paper Teeth by Lauralyn Chow
• University of Alberta Press for Rising Abruptly by Gisèle Villeneuve
• Freehand Books for White Elephant by Catherine Cooper

Book of the Year Award – Trade Non-fiction

• University of Calgary Press for Baffin Island: Field Research and High Arctic Adventure, 1961-67 by Jack D. Ives
• Historical Society of Alberta for Edmonton House Journals: Reports from the Saskatchewan District, Including the Bow River District by Ted Binnema and Gerhard J. Ens
• University of Calgary Press for The Frontier of Patriotism: Alberta and the First World War Alberta and First World War by Adriana Davies and Jeff Keshen
• Brush Education for Native Plants for the Short Season Yard: Best Picks for the Chinook and Canadian Prairie Zones by Lyndon Penner

Robert Kroetsch Award for Poetry

• University of Alberta Press for 100 Days by Juliane Okot Bitek
• Frontenac House for Silent Sister: The Mastectomy Poems by Beth Everest
• University of Alberta Press for Sleeping in Tall Grass by Richard Therrien

Book of the Year Award – Children and YA

Winner will be announced at the Alberta Book Awards Gala.

Book of the Year Award – Speculative Fiction

• Hades Publications for The Salarian Desert Game (The Unintentional Adventures of of Kia and Agatha, Book 2) by J. A. McLachlan
• Tyche Books for Stalking the Dead (A Marie Jenner Mystery) by E.C. Bell
• Laska Media Group for Strangers Among Us: Tales of the Underdogs and Outcasts by Susan Forest and Lucas K. Law, eds.

Book of the Year Award – Scholarly and Academic

• University of Alberta Press for One Child Reading: My Auto-Bibliography by Margaret Macke
• University of Calgary Press for Polaris: The Chief Scientist’s Recollections of the American North Pole Expedition, 1871-73 by Emil Bessels; William Barr, ed. and trans.
• University of Alberta Press for Farm Workers in Western Canada: Injustices and Activism Shirley A. McDonald and Bob Barnetson
• University of Calgary Press for Vulnerability and Adaptation to Drought: The Canadian Prairies and South America by Harry Diaz, Margot Hurlbert, Jim Warren, eds.

Book of the Year Award – Learning

• Brush Education for The Complete Canadian Book Editor by Leslie Vermeer
• Brush Education for Cultural Competency Skills for Psychologists, Psychotherapists, and Counselling Professionals: A Workbook for Caring Across Cultures by Earle Waugh, Olga Szafran, Dr. Jean A. C. Triscott, Roger Parent
• Brush Education for The Primary Care Toolkit for Anxiety and Related Disorders: Quick, Practical Solutions for Assessment and Management by Dr. Bianca Lauria-Horner
• Durvile Publications for Stop Making Art and Die: Survival Activities for Artists by Rich Théroux

Emerging Publisher of the Year

Winner will be announced at the Alberta Book Awards Gala.

Publisher of the Year

• Athabasca University Press
• NeWest Press
• University of Calgary Press

Book Design

• University of Calgary Press and designer Garet Markvoort for The Frontier of Patriotism: Alberta and the First World War by Adriana Davies and Jeff Keshen, eds.
• Freehand Books and designer Natalie Olsen for Perfect World by Ian Colford
• Athabasca University Press and designer Marvin Harder for Visiting with the Ancestors: Blackfoot Shirts in Museum Spaces by Laura Peers and Alison K. Brown

Cover Design

• NeWest Press and designer Kate Hargreaves for Border Markers by Jenny Ferguson
• Frontenac House Press and designer Tim Nikes for The Bone Weir by D. S. Stymeist
• NeWest Press and designer Kate Hargreaves for Lost Animal Club by Kevin Couture

Winners will be announced at a gala in Edmonton on Sept. 15. A lifetime achievement award will also be presented, and an additional new award will be dedicated to the life of a renowned Canadian publisher.