The NBCC awards the Nona Balakian Citation for Excellence in Reviewing each year to recognize outstanding work by a member of the NBCC. The citation is awarded in honor of Nona Balakian, a founding member of the National Book Critics Circle, where she served as the board’s first secretary. The eminent critic and longtime editor at the New York Times Book Review also served on the Pulitzer Prize committee, the Board of Directors of PEN, and the Authors Guild board, was the author of Critical Encounters: Essays (1978), and co-author (with Charles Simmons) of The Creative Present (1969).
Since 2012, the Balakian Citation carries with it a $1,000 cash prize, thanks to a generous donation by NBCC board member Gregg Barrios.
A complete list of past Balakian winners follows the list of committee members.
2014 Submission Guidelines
You must be a member of the NBCC to be considered. If you are not a member, you can join online anytime before December 14, 2014, in order to be eligible for the award. All submitted reviews must have been published in 2014.
2014 Submission Procedures
Submissions may be made by email. Emails must be time stamped no later than midnight Sunday, December 14, 2014. Submissions may also, as in the past, be submitted in hardcopy by mail.
What to submit via email: Send up to five book reviews (all published in 2014) of no more than 5,000 words collectively. The total word count for the submissions must not exceed 5,000, on pain of the entire submission being disqualified from consideration for the award. In your email, include a note listing the venue; title and word count of each piece submitted. Send links to your reviews as published online.
Due to the capricious nature of the online world, links may expire. If you can, attach PDFs or screenshots of your book reviews as they appeared online or in print. Please make a print backup of your submission. In other words, make sure you have one print copy of each book review, preferably the published version. If there is a problem with your electronic online submission, you may be asked to submit a print version.
What to submit via mail: Submissions must be postmarked no later than Sunday, December 14, 2014. Send up to five book reviews (all published in 2014) of no more than 5,000 words collectively, with a brief cover letter listing the title and word count of each piece submitted. The total word count for the submissions must not exceed 5,000, on pain of the entire submission being disqualified from consideration for the award.
For questions about the award and submission process, e-mail the Balakian Committee chair, Gregg Barrios. Email: greggbarr@outlook.com
Please put Balakian Award in the subject line of your email. List of Balakian committee members and of all past Balakian winners here.