Date: 20 Oct 95 10:49:38 EDT
From: John.C.DeSantis@Dartmouth.EDU (John C. DeSantis)
Subject: Final call for nominations


                               CALL FOR NOMINATIONS

      The first and most enduring award for lesbigay books, the Gay,
Lesbian, and Bisexual Book Award, sponsored by the American Library
Association's Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Task Force will celebrate its 25th
anniversary in 1996.  Since Isabel Miller's _Patience and Sarah_ received
the first award in 1971, a total of thirty-four books have been honored for
"exceptional merit relating to the gay/lesbian/bisexual experience."
      Originally a grassroots acknowledgement honoring hallmark works in
lesbigay publishing, the Gay Book Award (as it was originally called) became
an official American Library Association award in 1986.  The next year its
name was changed to the Gay and Lesbian Book Award.  Beginning in 1990, the
Book Award expanded into two categories:  nonfiction and literature.  And in
1994, the name changed once more to the Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Book
Award.
      The history of the book award mirrors the growth of the lesbigay
publishing industry.  While in the first years of the award, the committee
had only a handful of books from which to choose, this past year they had
to select the winners from a list of over 800 eligible titles.
      The committee that surveys these multitudes of lesbian, gay, and
bisexual publications is made up of equal numbers of women and men from
various types of libraries across the United States.  Ultimately, the
committee must review the nominees and select five finalists each in the
categories of nonfiction and literature.  The winners are chosen from
among these five finalists.
      The Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Book Award is presented to English-
language works published the year prior to the announcement date. All books
published in the first eleven months of 1995 are eligible.  The award, which
consists of a commemorative plaque and a cash stipend, is announced in February
and presented to the winning authors or editors at the American Library
Association Annual Conference in July.
      Nominations for the Book Award may be made by any individual not
affiliated with the publisher of the book being  nominated.  A short
statement describing why a book is being nominated must accompany the
nomination, which must be submitted to the Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Book
Award Committee Chair by November 30, 1995.  Mail must be postmarked by the
nomination deadline.  Nominations will be accepted by regular and electronic
mail as well as through facsimile transmission (fax).  Nominations may be
sent to:
 John DeSantis,
 Chair, Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Book Award Committee,
 Dartmouth College Library, HB 6025, Hanover, NH  03755-3525;
(603) 646-3605; FAX (603) 646-3702;
 Internet:
John.C.DeSantis@dartmouth.edu.
 
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    The Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Task Force is working on establishing
an endowment to fund the Book Award.  Anyone interested in contributing to
the Book Award Fund should contact:  Wayne Mullin, Chair, Fundraising
Committee,  McHenry Library,  University of California,  Santa Cruz, CA  95064; 
(408) 459-2171;  (408) 459-8206 (fax);  Internet:  wmullin@scilibx.ucsc.edu
      In 1996, the Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Book Award will celebrate its
25th anniversary at the American Library Association Annual Conference in
New York, N.Y.  If you served on the book awards committee sometime during
its 25 year history, or are interested in helping us plan for this celebration, 
we'd like to hear from you.  Contact Kathy Anderson at (609) 625-2776  x310; 
Internet:
anderson@library.atlantic.edu.