The 75th annual National Book Awards took place on November 20, gathering the biggest names in publishing for the “Oscars of books.”
The evening began with a piano performance from five-time Grammy Award winner Jon Batiste, a reimagined jazz riff of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. Following Batiste’s performance, host Kate McKinnon, actor and former Saturday Night Live cast member, took the stage. She shared her own process of writing her middle grade debut, The Millicent Quibb School of Etiquette for Young Ladies of Mad Science. “I just knew that I had a burning itch to communicate and connect that could only be scratched by telling a story and sharing it.”
She considered why in a world of TV and movies, of which she’s been in many, we still turn to books. “Ultimately, we tell stories because we want to help. A book is an offering, it’s a hand in the darkness.”
McKinnon closed her opening remarks stating, “Writing a book is nothing short of an act of kindness. So please give yourselves a round of applause for your kind impulse to reach out into the darkness.”
Brein Lopez, the chair of the Young People’s judging panel and the general manager of Children’s Book World in Los Angeles, made his way to the stage to introduce the winner. He thanked his fellow judges, Rose Brock, Huda Fahmy, Leah Johnson, and Mike Jung, “for their commitment, passion, and heart throughout this incredibly rewarding experience.”
And then he announced the winner of the 2024 National Book Award for Young People’s Literature: Kareem Between by Shifa Saltagi Safadi (Putnam). The middle grade novel follows titular tween Kareem, who fails to make it onto his school’s football team, but gets the offer of a lifetime from star quarterback Austin: Austin will get Kareem a second chance at tryouts, if Kareem is willing to do something he knows isn’t right.
Safadi took to the stage, first thanking Allah in Arabic and English “for blessing me with this dream come true.” She then shared her admiration for her fellow finalists, saying, “I pored over your books with great admiration.”
Safadi took time to thank many members of her family, firstly her sister, who was watching at home with Safadi’s four children, allowing her to attend the ceremony. Safadi reflected on the impact of her parents, who “came from Syria to give us a better life,” and how they modeled for her “what it looked to be strong proud Muslims. I wouldn’t be who I am without my parents. ”
She called her children “my biggest inspiration and motivation, and greatest gift from Allah,” and she fulfilled a promise she’d made to one of them by giving a shout-out to the Chicago Bears.
Other thank-yous went to her agent, Janine Le, who “champions all my work with compassion and care”; and her editor, Ruta Rimas, who “truly infuses magic in every edit and whose insight makes every word and my heart shine.” Safadi also mentioned assistant editor Simone Roberts-Payne, Penguin Young Readers president and publisher Jen Loja, VP and publisher Jennifer Klonsky, Dial associate publisher and editorial director Nancy Mercado, publicist Sierra Pregosin, and “every single person at Penguin Young Readers who helped Kareem Between debut in the world.”
Safadi acknowledged the impact that Muslim writers before her had on her. “I would not have had the bravery of writing my first words if I had not seen Muslim books on the shelf. I would never have believed I could do it if I had not read the words of people before me who showed me what it looked like.”
Kareem Between started as a historical fiction narrative about “justice, standing up against racism, about being proud of who you are, about something that happened eight years ago,” in reference to the Muslim ban in 2017. But noting that “it’s not historical anymore,” Safadi pointed to the Islamophobia and dehumanization of Arabs across the globe, particularly turning her attention to the ongoing crisis in Gaza.
“Justice and freedom is for all people,” Safadi said. “All of our liberations are tied together.” She urged people to “stand together, protest injustice no matter where it is, and continue to speak the truth, even when we’re afraid of the future.”
Safadi made her stance clear in her final statement: “Free Palestine!”
