Some of the most recognized names in modern Maine literature won Maine Literary Awards on Thursday night at SPACE Gallery in Portland.
The Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Richard Ford won for “Let Me Be Frank with You,” inaugural poet Richard Blanco won for his memoir “The Prince of los Cocuyos,” and Kate Flora become the first two-time winner in the crime fiction category for her book “And Grant You Peace.”
The late Stuart Gersen, co-founder of Longfellow Books in Portland, won an award for Distinguished Achievement. His grown children accepted the award on behalf of their father, who died in January from cancer.
Kathie Fiveash won the John N. Cole Award for Maine-theme nonfiction for “Island Naturalist.”
The awards are presented annually by the Maine Writers & Publishers Alliance.
Other winners were:
Nonfiction, Brian Kevin for “The Footloose American”
Poetry, Betsy Sholl for “Otherwise Unseeable”
Children’s, Mark Scott Ricketts for “Adventures in Vacationland”
Young People’s Literature, Megan Frazer Blakemore for “The Spy Catchers of Maple Hill”
Anthology, The Telling Room for “The Story I Want to Tell”
Drama, Hugh Aaron
Excellence in Publishing, “Before We Eat” by Pat Brisson, published by Tilbury House
Short Works Competition, fiction, CB Anderson; nonfiction, Lesley Heiser; poetry, Rachel Contreni Flynn
Youth Competition, fiction, Emily Noyes; nonfiction, Faris Baziga; poetry, Alicia Thurston
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