(PRESS RELEASE)

Gold award winners will be revealed during a public ceremony on Wednesday, May 28, 2014 in New York City. All are welcome.

The Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA) today announced the 2014 Benjamin Franklin Award honorees. Contributors to this year’s list of honorees include the 39th U.S. president Jimmy Carter, actor Jim Carrey, musician Art Garfunkel, and author Garrison Keillor. Representative publishers include Tuttle Publishing, Berrertt-Koehler Publishers, The Independent Institute, Pinwheel Books, Little Pickle Press, GOFF Books, and Noyo Press.

“We have an extremely strong group of honorees this year,” said IBPA Executive Director, Angela Bole. “We received nearly 1,300 entries into the program. The 154 titles selected as honorees are truly the best of the best.”

IBPA’s 2014 Benjamin Franklin Award program includes fifty-two categories recognizing excellence in book editorial and design. The program is regarded as one of the highest national honors for independent publishers. Gold award winners will be revealed during a public ceremony on Wednesday, May 28, 2014 in New York City. All are welcome.

— REGISTER FOR THE 2014 AWARDS CEREMONY
— VIEW THE COMPLETE LIST OF 2014 HONOREES

Each entry into the 2014 Benjamin Franklin Award program was evaluated by three independent judges. Each judge took either a design or an editorial focus. Most entries were assigned two editorial judges and one design judge. Some entries, however, like those in the Interior Design category, were assigned only design judges and some entries, like those in the Best New Voice category, were assigned only editorial judges. All entrants will receive a completed score card from each judge as a benefit of participation.

Prestige as a publisher is one of the many benefits of being named a winner of this distinguished award. In addition, Gold winners receive an engraved crystal trophy.

“When we first began the awards, it was both to honor the publishers who produce quality titles and to teach publishers how they can compete in the world of book publishing. We recognize that when people purchase a product they do not purchase it because a specific named publisher publishes it, they purchase a book because it fulfills a need and is well designed and edited. Each and every day all houses compete for shelf space and consumer recognition. By providing feedback on entries into the awards, publishers hear what the buyers and reviewers think about the product and learn that they can compete.

As you can see by the wording of our awards, it is open to all. We decided to parallel the universe of book publishing that doesn’t discriminate between large and small.”

— Jan Nathan, Founder, Independent Book Publishers Association

For more information about the Benjamin Franklin Awards, contact IBPA’s Chief Operations Officer, Terry Nathan, at terry@ibpa-online.org or 310-546-1818.

About the Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA)
Founded in 1983, the Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA) is the largest not-for-profit trade organization for publishers in the United States. IBPA’s mission is to lead and serve the independent publishing community by providing advocacy, education, and tools for success.