Science Meets Literature: Diverse Works Win Prestigious $10,000 Awards

The National Book Foundation and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation have announced the winners of this year's Science + Literature awards, celebrating works that merge the realms of science and literature. The $10,000 prizes have been awarded to a diverse trio of books: Arthur Sze’s poetry collection "The Glass Constellation," Novuyo Rosa Tshuma's novel "Digging Stars," and Brad Fox’s nonfiction work "The Bathysphere Book: Effects of the Luminous Ocean Depths."

These awards, aimed at deepening readers’ understanding of science and technology, recognize the unique contributions of each work in integrating scientific themes into literary forms. While "The Bathysphere Book" directly falls under the category of science, both "Digging Stars" and "The Glass Constellation" weave scientific elements into their narratives. Tshuma's novel features an astronomer protagonist from Zimbabwe, and Sze, a National Book Award-winning poet, frequently explores nature and the cosmos in his poetry.

The winners will be honored at a ceremony in downtown Manhattan on March 27. Ruth Dickey, the executive director of the National Book Foundation, highlighted the importance of science and technology in the arts and daily life, praising the selections for their depth and inventiveness.

Doron Weber of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation commended the authors for illuminating the complex inner lives of their characters while exploring external mysteries from the ocean to the cosmos. The Sloan Foundation, known for supporting numerous science-related books and films like “Hidden Figures,” funded the Science + Literature awards through a three-year, $525,000 grant, now in its final year.

The selection panel comprised authors and scientists, including evolutionary biologist Shane Campbell-Staton, poet Brian Teare, and committee chair Ricardo Nuila, author of “The People’s Hospital: Hope and Peril in American Medicine.” This award celebrates the intersection of science and literature, showcasing the power of storytelling in bringing scientific concepts to a broader audience and highlighting the diverse voices contributing to this field.