Essie Chambers has won the Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence, given annually to an emerging African American fiction writer, for her debut novel, Swift River.
Chambers’ novel, published last year by Simon & Schuster, follows Diamond Newberry, a 16-year-old biracial girl who is the only person of color in her economically depressed New England mill town. After receiving a letter from a relative, she connects with the family of her father, who disappeared seven years prior. A critic for Kirkus praised the book’s “assured plotting and emotional resonance” and called it a “symphonic debut.” The novel was previously longlisted for the Center for Fiction’s First Novel Prize.
The judges for the award selected Chambers as the winner for “her exceptional storytelling and powerful voice.” They also named a finalist for the prize: Karen Outen, for her debut novel, Dixon, Descending.
The Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence, first awarded in 2007, is named after the late author of novels including The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman, A Lesson Before Dying, and The Tragedy of Brady Sims. It is presented by the Baton Rouge Area Foundation.
Previous winners include Victor LaValle for Big Machine, Attica Locke for The Cutting Season, Bryan Washington for Lot, and Aaliyah Bilal for Temple Folk.
Michael Schaub is a contributing writer.
