Earlier this month, the Massachusetts Center for the Book, the state branch of the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress, announced the winners of its 24th annual Massachusetts Book Awards — and six authors from the Pioneer Valley were on the list. 

Peter Gizzi of Holyoke won the Poetry Award for “Fierce Elegy.” Gizzi, who is currently a professor of English at the University of Massachusetts Amhers, told the Gazette in a statement:

“Any recognition that my work receives is merely the recognition of all the myriad poets and artists I love and to being a part of this inspired company — both here and gone. Poems don't live alone anymore than we do. I think of poetry like friendship, it's one poem at a time over a life. Any recognition that my work receives is also only because of my dear friend and editor of 25 years, Suzanna Tamminen, to whom this book is dedicated. Without her I wouldn't be here. I grew up in Pittsfield and so receiving a prize from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a double honor. It is after all my home.”

Crystal Maldonado of Springfield, who also works at UMass Amherst as the school’s director of marketing and communications, and made her young adult novel debut in 2021, won the Middle Grade/Young Adult Literature Award for “The Fall of Whit Rivera.” Maldonado told the Gazette in a statement: “As a lifelong lover of books, it’s surreal to see my own recognized by the Massachusetts Book Awards. It is an absolute honor, especially because ‘The Fall of Whit Rivera’ is a book that feels deeply personal. I write for readers who are rarely depicted in media, so it is my hope this book helps others feel seen and understood.”

Grace Lin of Florence, who co-wrote and illustrated “Once Upon A Book” with Kate Messner, won the Picture Book/Early Reader Award. Lin has also received a Caldecott Honor for her book “A Big Mooncake for Little Star” and a Newbery Honor for her book “Where the Mountain Meets the Moon.”

“I’m so honored and grateful to be recognized with a MA Book Award alongside so many other great authors,” Lin told the Gazette. “With all the disheartening rhetoric about book bans, it is nice to feel that MA supports authors and their books — I appreciate it.”

Other local winners include Melissa Dickey of Deerfield, who won Honors in Poetry for “Ordinary Entanglement,” and Victoria Offredi Poletto and Giovanni Bellesia Contuzzi of Northampton, who won the Translated Literature Award for translating Adrián N. Bravi’s “My Language is a Jealous Lover.”

Massachusetts Center for the Book Executive Director Courtney Andree said, “Every year, judges from the writing, academic, publishing, bookselling, and library communities come together to select the best of the best — books that haunt and inspire, books that motivate us to think, feel, and learn. This year’s awards recognize both established and debut authors from across Massachusetts, showcasing a depth of creativity and insight.”

Interested readers can also find a complete of honorees in each category on the Massachusetts Center for the Book’s website at www.massbook.org/mass-book-awards.

Carolyn Brown can be reached at cbrown@gazettenet.com.