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Woodson, Moten, and Rankine Shine at 2014 National Book Awards

What's The 411TV on the Red Carpet at the 65th Annual National Book Awards

 

Do you think you'll ever stop writing? When I stop breathing. –Jacqueline Woodson, Winner, 2014 National Book Award, YA Literature [www.jacquelinewoodson.com]

The Red Carpet. Books. Awards. Prestige. These elements come together every year at the National Book Awards ceremony, the nation's most distinguished literary prizes -- with winners nabbing $10,000 and catapulting into a 250-watt brighter writing career. Here's where you will find all the beautiful people in the book industry gathered in one magnificent setting to mix and mingle, broker publishing deals, and honor the most acclaimed writers.

The stakes are high and anxiety-filled. It's a buildup of suspense as the finalists are announced about a month before the Awards event. They each win $1,000 and a medal. Then, it's edge-of-your-seat guessing who the winners are, because even the judges don't know until they meet for lunch on the afternoon of the National Book Awards ceremony!

But, now the suspense is over. We know that Jacqueline Woodson won this year's National Book Award in young people's literature, for Brown Girl Dreaming (Nancy Paulsen Books/Penguin). She is the author of 30 books, a two-time National Book Awards finalist, and winner of three Newberry Honor Medals. The other winners are Phil Klay (Fiction); Evan Osnos (Non-Fiction); and Louise Glück (Poetry).

Begun in 1950, the 65th National Book Awards ceremony is not only being called one of the most high-energy, glitzy events in its history, but also will long be remembered for generating some high-visibility buzz.

Overwhelmingly, the buzz surrounds a comment about Ms. Woodson made by Daniel Handler, this year's National Book Awards host. If you'd like more on that, read Ms. Woodson's response in The New York Times, where she has her say, in her own words. What's The 411TV's spotlight is focused on the books and their creators whom I spoke with on the red carpet at this year's National Book Awards.

Spotlight on 3 Writers and Their Winning Books: Jacqueline Woodson. Claudia Rankine. Fred Moten

I want to shine the light where it belongs – on three African-American writers who illuminate our world through their writing...Jacqueline Woodson and the two finalists in poetry, Claudia Rankine (Citizen: An American Lyric) and Fred Moten (The Feel Trio). I also talked with award-winning author Coe Booth, a judge for the 2009 National Book Awards in young people's literature, who offered insight on how winning books are chosen. One final tidbit: A New York City theme links these shining stars of writing: Woodson currently lives in Brooklyn and Booth in The Bronx, and Rankine grew up in the Big Apple.

Watch What's The 411TV's videos to get in on the star-studded evening where winning writers shimmered and glowed at the National Book Awards ceremony!

VIDEO: Scenes and interviews from the 2014 National Book Awards

...HAVING THEIR SAY: WRITTEN WORDS...
-Read Excerpts from Their Books-

Surrounded by the glamour and excitement, What's The 411TV went live, up close and personal with these outstanding writers, on the red carpet. If you want to learn more about them, off the red carpet, here's what these writing luminaries have to say in their written words...

Jacqueline Woodson. Winner, 2014 National Book Awards, Young People's Literature: Brown Girl Dreaming. Read an excerpt of Brown Girl Dreaming.

Claudia Rankine. Finalist, 2014 National Book Award, Poetry: Citizen: An American Lyric. Read an excerpt of Citizen: An American Lyric

Fred Moten. Finalist, 2014 National Book Award, Poetry: The Feel Trio. Read an excerpt of The Feel Trio.

Three Times Is A Charm for Award-winning Author, Jacqueline Woodson

Award-winning Author, Jacqueline Woodson Wins Prestigious Book Award

As What's The 411TV's book editor, I had the pleasure of interviewing award-winning author, Jacqueline Woodson, at the 65th Annual National Book Awards on November 19, 2014, at Cipriani Wall Street. At the time of the interview, Jacqueline Woodson was a three-time National Book Awards Finalist in the Young Adult Category. I predicted three times would be a charm and the judges agreed, three times was a charm. Jacqueline Woodson won the National Book Award for Young Adult Literature for her memoir, BROWN GIRL DREAMING.

Read an excerpt of BROWN GIRL DREAMING.

VIDEO: National Book Award Winner, Jacqueline Woodson

In addition to winning a National Book Award for her book, BROWN GIRL DREAMING, Jacqueline Woodson is the winner of the Margaret A. Edwards Award for lifetime achievement in writing for young adults, the recipient of three Newbery Honor Medals for After Tupac & D Foster, Feathers, and Show Way, and a two-time Finalist for the National Book Award for Locomotion and Hush. Other awards include the Coretta Scott King Award and Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Miracle's Boys. Her most recent books are her novel Beneath a Meth Moon and her picture books Each Kindness and This Is the Rope. She lives with her family in Brooklyn, New York. For more, visit: jacquelinewoodson.com.

Poet Fred Moten: 2014 National Book Award Finalist for THE FEEL TRIO

Poet and University of California at Riverside professor, Fred Moten, is a 2014 National Book Awards Finalist for Poetry for his book, THE FEEL TRIO.

As What's The 411TV's book editor, I had an opportunity to talk with Fred Moten at the 65th Annual National Book Awards on November 19, 2014, at Cipriani Wall Street.  THE FEEL TRIO is Cecil Taylor, Tony Oxley and William Parker and the book brings movement and music forward through poetry. Even James Brown comes to life within the pages of THE FEEL TRIO.

WATCH VIDEO: National Book Awards Finalist Fred Moten

Fred Moten is a professor of English at the University of California—Riverside and the author of In the Break: The Aesthetics of the Black Radical Tradition, Hughson's Tavern, B. Jenkins, and co-author, with Stefano Harney, of The Undercommons: Fugitive Planning and Black Study. In 2009, Moten was recognized as one of ten "New American Poets" by the Poetry Society of America. He is also co-founder and co-publisher (with Joseph Donahue) of a small literary press called Three Count Pour. 

Hear Fred Moten in his own words and read more information about the THE FEEL TRIO, here.

 

Claudia Rankine: 2014 National Book Award Finalist Uses Poetry to Combat Racism

Born in Kingston, Jamaica, Claudia Rankine is a poet, playwright, university professor, and a 2014 National Book Award Finalist for Poetry for her book, CITIZEN: AN AMERICAN LYRIC.

As What's The 411TV's book editor, I spoke with Claudia Rankine at the 65th Annual National Book Awards on November 19, 2014, at Cipriani Wall Street. CITIZEN: AN AMERICAN LYRIC, Ms. Rankine's nominated book, uses the power of poetry, prose, and images to shed light on the insidious behavior of micro-aggression.

Watch video interview with National Book Award Finalist for Poetry, Claudia Rankine

Claudia Rankine is the Henry G. Lee Professor of English at Pomona College and the author of four collections of poetry, including Don't Let Me Be Lonely: An American Lyric, PLOT, The End of the Alphabet, and Nothing in Nature is Private, which received the Cleveland State Poetry Prize. She is a winner of the Jackson Poetry Prize and a recipient of fellowships from the Academy of American Poetry, the National Endowments for the Arts, and the Lannan Foundation. In 2006, she served as a Judge for the National Book Award for Poetry.

To hear Claudia Rankine in her own words and to read an excerpt of CITIZEN: AN AMERICAN LYRIC, click here.

For more information about Claudia Rankine, visit: www.claudiarankine.com

Coe Booth: Writing Books is in her DNA

Award-winning young adult author, Coe Booth, is a fiction writer. She was also a judge for the 2009 National Book Awards.

At the 2014 National Book Awards, What's The 411TV book editor, Luvon Roberson, chatted with Coe Booth about her experience as a judge for the National Book Awards and her various books for young adults. Growing up in Bronx, New York, Coe Booth knew she wanted to be a writer in the second grade. Although she prepared to be a writer, her path to full time writer wasn't a direct one. After college, Coe Booth took other safe jobs, however, these jobs did not feed her soul. With four books in her repertoire, this award-winning writer is now a full time writer and she teaches part time at Bronx Community College.

As a judge for the National Book Awards, Coe Booth had to read 285 books within six months. Serious about her responsibilities as a judge for the National Book Awards, she even took a suitcase filled with books on a vacation cruise.

Check out the video: Award-winning writer, Coe Booth 

Coe Booth calls herself a "Bronx girl" who, even in the face of discouraging words, dreamed of becoming a writer. She is the author of KINDA LIKE BROTHERS and two novels for young adults: KENDRA, published in 2008, and TYRELL, published in 2006. She received the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Young Adult Fiction for TYRELL in 2006, which The New York Times Book Review called "gritty and gripping." Ms. Booth is a 2009 National Book Awards Young People's Literature Judge.

To learn more about Coe Booth, visit: www.coebooth.com

Brooklyn Nets Get Royal Beat Down by Cleveland Cavaliers

Nets Lose to Cavaliers 110-88

On a night when the Barclays Center hosted a king, a prince, and a basketball game, the Brooklyn Nets picked the worst day to not prevail. On an historic night, the Nets received a royal beat down in front overseas company, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

LeBron James aka "King James" and his royal court, the Cleveland Cavaliers, came to the Barclays Center to win a battle, and win they did, 110-88. One could argue that the short-handed Nets made it easy for the Cavs. The Nets missing troop members were: center Brook Lopez, out with a bad back, and shooting guard Joe Johnson; he has the flu.

The first two quarters, the Nets played competitively, but during the third quarter, the tide changed. The Nets were leading 61-60; Kevin Love attempted a pair of free throws made one and tied the game and turned around on the next possession to put the Cavs up 63-61. The Cavs ended the period with a 24-6 run.

At the start of the fourth quarter, the Cavs were up 85-67. And, in a flash, something happened that has never happened at any NBA basketball game. British royalty was introduced to American musical royalty. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Prince William and Kate Middleton, were ushered onto the court to meet Jay Z and Beyonce.

Jay-z-Beyonce Prince-William-Kate on-court-meeting.Still002 resized 700x394

From that point on, the chatter in the arena was less about the game and more about the meeting of two power couples.

Directly following the game, LeBron James gave Prince William and Kate Middleton a gift that included a box of cupcakes and a jersey for the baby on the way.

Prince-William Kate-Middleton Lebron-James.Still002 resized 700x394

There were no photo opps with Nets players, just LeBron.

Well, LeBron is the greatest NBA basketball player of our time, but can you imagine a party going on in your house and you're not invited.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today, is Thanksgiving; a national holiday celebrated by people in the United States to give thanks. It is a day that harkens back to when the first European settlers in Plymouth, Massachusetts survived their first harvest with the aid of Native Americans. Perhaps, this day should be a holiday in tribute to the Native Americans that helped the Pilgrims survive in a strange land.

Bucks Beat Nets 122-118 in Triple OT

Jason Kidd Comes Out on Top Despite Boos from Nets' Fans

Jason Kidd, former Brooklyn Nets head coach and now head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks, was booed during the start of the Nets game against Milwaukee Wednesday night at the Barclays Center, but he got the last laugh after stomping his former team in a triple OT 122-118 win. The Bucks had just beaten the other New York team a day before at home, and Kidd's intentions were to show off his young team to a possible new rival.

Kidd had Brandon Knight to thank, after the 22-year-old former Kentucky Wildcat missed a layup that forced his team to go into a second overtime. Knight clinched the tying 3-pointer in the second overtime and hit both free throws with 5.6 seconds to go in the third.

"My teammates trusted me to make the next shot to force a third overtime, so that's really what it's all about," Knight said, "and we stuck through it as a team."

In the arena where Kidd's retired jersey hangs high in the rafters, fans have yet to forgive him for leaving the Nets after only one season to take the coaching job for the Bucks. Kidd was booed and heckled as a traitor. One fan was even brave enough to shout out "you suck" during a pause in the singing of the national anthem. The heckler was heard throughout the arena, prompting other fans to laugh and cheer on.

Kidd, who went 44-38 in his only season as Nets coach was rumored to have left after a falling out with Nets management. Kidd left before the Nets could actually fire him, although Nets GM Billy King previously denied that he wanted to fire Kidd in December 2013—after losing 21 of their first 31 games last season. The Nets hired Kidd in June 2013--weeks after he retired as an NBA player.

While talking to the media on Wednesday after the game, Kidd poked fun at the fans, confident after his team's victory.

"It was a big character game for our young guys," Kidd said. "I have bad hearing anyways. So I thought whatever the greeting was, it's about the players. People don't pay to come see the coach, they come to see the guys play."

Bad hearing or not, the win was actually a "big character game" for Kidd.

Kidd seemed his normal self, sharing some laughs with Joe Johnson, and even made it clear that his last defensive play in the second OT was for Joe.

Joe-Johnson

Joe Johnson, Brooklyn Nets Shooting guard/Small forward

Moments before the third overtime, Kidd let the Nets' bench know that he knew the play would be called for Johnson. And it was—but Johnson was unable to clinch a 2-pointer to win the game.

Johnson, known for his calm demeanor kept the focus on his team, pointing out the struggles the Nets are facing.

"We've got to find some ways somehow to get a win," Johnson said after the game. "When you're in a rut like this, it's tough. You've got to do all the little things. When you do get that win, it won't be certainly easy."

Thought-Provoking Dialogue: Dr. Cornel West and Bob Avakian

What If Being Black No Longer Meant Living in a White Supremacist World?

That's one of many questions posed during what was billed as "A historic dialogue between the Revolutionary Christian Cornel West and the Revolutionary Communist Leader Bob Avakian."

Huge Turnout for a Talk Punctuated by Events in Ferguson

Apparently, the prospect of some answers to such questions led people to come out en masse -- creating lines that wrapped around the three corners of The Riverside Church, in Manhattan, on a clear and crisp Saturday, November 15, 2014. They came, filling the Church to capacity – an estimated 1,500 or so -- to hear and see the two men, who would spend over three hours talking about "Revolution and Religion: The Fight for Emancipation and the Role of Religion." Before the "dialogue" started, however, the audience discovered that each man would first speak individually.

Bob-Avakian Cornel-West Dialogue Riverside-Church-Exterior-Crowd-Around-The-Corner 11152014 Photo-Credit Revcom 767x400

Line wrapped around Riverside Church awaiting to get in to hear the dialogue between Dr. Cornel West and Bob Avakian. Photo Credit: RevCom

Avakian's First Framing Questions

Bob Avakian didn't waste any time before honing in, finding much to dispute in the Bible and with Jesus, Black Liberation Theology, and what he called "the negative example" of the fight for liberation, namely the Jews and their fight for the State of Israel.

He said, "Revenge may seem sweet, but we need to move to a world that's not like that."

Oppression by any group or individual against another is not the world of change.

According to this self-proclaimed Revolutionary Communist, "If people can't change, nothing can change. But, people can and do change." He then asks, "What if being black no longer meant living in a white supremacist world? What if we didn't have to live in a lop-sided world?"

Avakian notes that just as The Beatles' John Lennon sang, "You may say I'm a dreamer," he believes a just world can be a reality. "We need a scientific method and an approach to make this world a reality....To change the system."

Avakian's Other Questions

How to change the system? "We need a revolution." The good news according to Avakian: Our current system is "the basis for revolution." He reminds us that "nobody had heard of Michael Brown, Trayvon Martin..." Interrupting him, several people in the audience began to shout, calling out other names of black and brown men who were killed by police. Several of those sitting in the front pews came from Ferguson, MO, and they among many others stood up, with arms raised, fists clenched, chanting "Hands up. Don't Shoot."

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Audience members with clenched fists and hands in the air, reciting names of black men killed by police and reciting "Hands up, Don't shoot." Photo Credit: Revcom

A year ago, Avakian continued, we didn't know about the children coming from Central America. "This is a system that forces people to rise up against it."

What gives Life meaning? Of all the questions, this one may well be Avakian's core question. He urges us to recognize that we must not justify or accept, for example, that Thomas Jefferson owned and enslaved people because he was living in a society which at that time condoned slavery. Instead he reminds us that "plenty of people knew slavery was wrong and protested it. People see what's possible and take a stand." Avakian urges the same approach with the impending indictment of the Ferguson police officer. Saying he's aware that Ferguson churches are organizing prayer meetings, but that "If you're going to pray, pray that a lot of people are out on the street. Pray that we're not going to take it. Police are putting the lives of our youth on the line every day. They are murdering them every day."

Dr. Cornel West's Questions

More than two hours later, it is Cornel West's turn to speak. He talks for about 20 minutes. And, just as Avakian cut to the chase on how he stands against religion and for the scientific method, based on evidence, not faith; West swiftly voices his own stance on religion saying: "I think he's wrong about Jesus. I believe in the cross" borne against the Roman Empire. To acknowledge their fight against injustice in the American Empire, West calls out to actor and longtime activist Harry Belafonte, who is seated in the front pews, as well as Juanita Young, mother of Malcolm Ferguson – who was killed by NYPD in 2000 –and a champion against police brutality, and Carl Dix, among others. Ms. Young and Mr. Dix are members of the Dialogue's Host Committee,* along with 33 other members, including Emmy award-winning actor Ed Asner; Dr. Farah Jasmine Griffin, Columbia University professor, English and African American Studies; Dr. Obery Hendricks, Columbia University Visiting Scholar, Dept. of Religion & IRAAS; and Rev. Stephen Phelps, former Interim Minister The Riverside Church.

West then directs the filled-to-capacity gathering to consider the following four questions:

  • How does integrity face oppression?
  • What does honesty do in the face of deception?
  • What does decency do in the face of insult?
  • What does virtue do in the face of brute force?

His brief speech reveals that the answer to each of the four questions he posed is the same, a "profound commitment of radical love, for everyday people, for the wretched of the Earth." He notes that "historically, black rage has been the threat to this system"; and predicts that "when black people wake up, everybody will!"

The program then concluded with questions the audience wrote on index cards, which Annie Day, the moderator, directed to Bob Avakian and Cornel West. The program was presented by Revolution Books and The Bob Avakian Institute. For more information, visit www.revcom.us.

*Footnote: "The members of the Host Committee have diverse political and philosophical viewpoints, yet agree that Cornel West and Bob Avakian dialoguing on this topic at this moment will matter and the people throughout society need to know about it." From the Program Bulletin, A Dialogue Between CornelWest and Bob Avakian, Revolution and Religion, 11/15/14

James McBride Wins National Book Award for Fiction for a Book About John Brown

James McBride, a winner of the National Book Award for Fiction, took time to speak with What's The 411 correspondent Kizzy Cox just prior to receiving his award.

James McBride, whose first book, The Color of Water, was on the New York Times bestseller list for two years said he didn't feel any pressure as he moved from non-fiction to fiction.

I didn't feel that much pressure because the Color of Water was non-fiction and everything I've done since then has been fiction," said McBride. "So it was a different world, which makes today a little more satisfying for me in that this is a fiction, I'm being recognized as a fiction writer as opposed to a non-fiction writer."

McBride won the National Book Award for fiction for THE GOOD LORD BIRD, a book about the white abolitionist, John Brown. The book takes a comedic look at slavery and the abolitionist.

So why did McBride write a book about slavery in America from a comedic perspective?

Check out the video of James McBride in his own words

"I wanted people to understand some of the things about John Brown but not feel bad about it," answered McBride. "History is hard to read for a lot of people and it's kind of very difficult for African Americans to read about slavery so I wanted to present it in a way that was funny and interesting, and real, as well, because the web of relationships from slavery was very complicated."

What's next for James McBride?

He wouldn't say specifically, but it could include another collaboration with his friend, Spike Lee.

 

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