The National Endowment for the Arts has announced its latest round of Big Read grants, issuing more than $1 million, in the form of 79 grants. Recipients receive the money to host book-related projects from September 2018-June 2019. The grants were issued to organizations in 34 states, and Puerto Rico.
The NEA Big Read is a national initiative, and its grants program is produced in partnership with Arts Midwest. Since the program began in 2006, the NEA has provided more than $19 million to organizations nationwide.
“The National Endowment for the Arts is proud to support opportunities for communities across the nation, both small and large, to take part in the NEA Big Read,” NEA acting chairman Mary Anne Carter said in a statement. “This program encourages people to not only discuss a book together, but be introduced to new perspectives, discuss the issues at the forefront of our own lives, and connect with one another at events.”
This year’s NEA Big Read projects will focus on 25 works of literature, the endowment said, "ranging from Roz Chast’s graphic memoir Can’t We Talk About Something More Pleasant? to Dinaw Mengestu’s novel The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears to Joy Harjo’s collection of poetry How We Became Human." Grants range from $5,000 to $15,000, and are awarded to organizations ranging from school districts and universities to libraries and arts organizations. 27 of the organizations awarded this year are first-time grantees.
For more information on each grant, click here.
