3 Berkshire authors on Mass Book Awards longlist | Books

NORTHAMPTON — Berkshire-based authors Eden Robins, Elizabeth Kolbert and Harriet Ziefert have all been longlisted for the 25th annual Massachusetts Book Awards.

Robins, of North Adams, was named to the fiction longlist for “Remember You Will Die”; Kolbert, of Williamstown, to the nonfiction longlist for “H is for Hope;” and Ziefert, of Great Barrington, to the picture book/early reader list for “Is A Book A Box For Words?”

These titles, according to a news release from the Massachusetts Center for the Book, represent achievements in fiction, nonfiction, poetry and young people’s literature by Massachusetts writers and illustrators published during 2024.

Winners and two honor titles in each category — fiction, nonfiction, poetry, young adult/middle grade, picture book/early reader, graphic novel and “Notable Contributions to Publishing” — will be recognized at an awards ceremony held at the Statehouse in October. Last year, Williamstown native Elizabeth Graver’s “Kantika” was named Fiction Book of the Year.

“When we launched the Massachusetts Book Awards 25 years ago, we had no idea that it would grow to become one of the strongest state book award programs in the country,” Executive Director Courtney Andree said in a news release. “We are excited to mark this milestone year with a stellar crop of books—notable for their creativity, verve, and intellectual rigor!”

During the coming months, the MCB will promote these longlisted books throughout Massachusetts and at National Book Festival in Washington, D.C.

A complete list of books longlisted for the 2025 awards can be found at: massbook.org/mass-book-awards.