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The National Book Foundation has announced finalists in five categories. Excerpts from each of the contenders can be downloaded as a free e-book at nationalbook.org.
The winner in each category will be revealed at the Nov. 20 award ceremony in New York City.
Here are the finalists:
Fiction:
"The Flamethrowers" by Rachel Kushner: This is a riveting, intense love story set against the grit of mid-seventies New York City and Rome.
"The Lowland" by Jhumpa Lahiri: The latest from the Pulitzer-prize winning author is a complex family drama about two brothers torn apart by revolution in 1960s India.
"The Good Lord Bird" by James McBride: This historical novel is an imaginative retelling of John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry in 1859.
"Bleeding Edge" by Thomas Pynchon: The notoriously secretive author brings us a complicated, romantic portrait of New York City just before 9/11.
"Tenth of December" by George Saunders: In this collection, Saunders writes short stories about love, work, and war that raise big questions about humanity and morality.
Nonfiction:
"Book of Ages: The Life and Opinions of Jane Franklin" by Jill Lepore: Letters, documents, and portraits tell the fascinating story of Jane Franklin, sister of Benjamin and mother of twelve.
"Hitler's Furies: German Women in the Nazi Killing Fields" by Wendy Lower: This is the shocking untold story of the thousands of women who participated in German brutality during the Holocaust.
"The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America" by George Packer: Packer weaves together true stories of individual Americans to create a modern portrait of a country falling apart at the seams.
"The Internal Enemy: Slavery and War in Virginia, 1772-1832" by Alan Taylor: This book examines the role the British empire had in bringing America to the Civil War.
"Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, & the Prison of Belief" by Lawrence Wright: This is an in-depth look into the world of Scientology, based on interviews with members both famous and less well-known.
Poetry:
"Metaphysical Dog" by Frank Bidart: This collection is a shocking, psychological reflection on the meaning of poetry itself.
"Stay, Illusion" by Lucie Brock-Broido: The poems in Brock-Broido's collection have an air of magic and mourning.
"The Big Smoke" by Adrian Matejka: These poems center on the complicated history of Jack Johnson, the first African-American heavyweight boxing champion.
"Black Aperture" by Matt Rasmussen: Rasmussen blurs the lines between grief and humor in this collection centered on his brother's suicide.
"Incarnadine: Poems" by Mary Szybist: The poems in this collection use formal innovations - diagrammed sentences, poems arranged like a sunburst - to address issues of love and faith.
Young people's literature:
"The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp" by Kathi Appelt: Two raccoons try to save their swamp home from destruction.
"The Thing About Luck" by Cynthia Kadohata: 12-year-old Summer must take over the work on her family's farm when her parents leave for Japan.
"Far Far Away" by Tom McNeal: The Brothers Grimm make an appearance in this modern fairy tale.
"Picture Me Gone" by Meg Rosoff: A 12-year-old "mentalist" solves the mystery behind the disappearance of her father's friend.
"Boxers & Saints" by Gene Luen Yang: This two-volume graphic novel tells stories from opposing sides of the Boxer Rebellion.