“Voices from the Heartland” – a collection of personal essays written by 50 Oklahoma women and edited by four professors at Rogers State University – has been named a finalist in the non-fiction category of the Oklahoma Book Awards.
The book was edited by RSU professors Dr. Carolyn Taylor, Dr. Emily Dial-Driver, Carole Burrage (former RSU professor) and Dr. Sally Emmons, who also contributed their own essays. It records defining moments in women’s lives, whether surviving the Oklahoma City bombing or surviving abuse, and represents a wide range of professions, lifestyles and backgrounds.
The book also features essays by former Cherokee Principal Chief Wilma Mankiller, Oklahoma First Lady Kim Henry, novelist Billie Letts, Prima Ballerina Maria Tallchief and OU Basketball Coach Sherri Coale, among many others.
The 2008 Oklahoma Book Award recipients will be announced at the 19th Annual Oklahoma Book Awards on March 8 at the Oklahoma Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City.
The awards are sponsored by the Oklahoma Center for the Book, a non-profit organization located at the Oklahoma Department of Libraries. The Center was established in 1986 as an outreach program of the Library of Congress. Governed by a volunteer board of directors from across the state, the mission of the center is to promote the work of Oklahoma authors, promote the literary heritage of the state and encourage reading by Oklahomans of all ages.
The book is an official Oklahoma Centennial Project as designated by the Oklahoma Centennial Commission. All profits from the book have been directed to the Women’s Foundation of Oklahoma to fund an endowment which provides a permanent source of grants investing in the economic self-sufficiency of women and brighter futures for girls.
“Voices from the Heartland” is available at the RSU Bookstore on the RSU campus in Claremore, at bookstores across the state, all online book sellers and on the University of Oklahoma Press web site at www.oupress.com. For additional information, visit the book’s web site at: www.voicesfromtheheartland.com.