The Minnesota Book Awards have become popular and highly competitive honors, and more than 750 people attended the announcements about who won, according to a
story in the
St. Paul Pioneer Press.
Nine categories were included, and some of the winners were: Laura Purdie Salas, for her children's book "Bookspeak! Poems About Books"; Richard A. Thompson, for his novel "Big Wheat"; and Ed Bok Lee, for his poetry book "Whorled."
Allan Kornblum, founder of Minneapolis-based
Coffee House Press, received an award for lifelong contributions to the state's literary community.
The award program is a project of the
Friends of the St. Paul Public Library, in consortium with the St. Paul Public Library and the city of St. Paul.