LOS ANGELES BOOK FESTIVAL TAPS ‘LAST DAYS ON THE ZAMBESI’ FOR TOP HONORS


LOS ANGELES_ The story of a journey down Africa’s wildest river is the top book in the 2024 Los Angeles Book Festival, which honors the best of world publishing.

Author Steve Chapple’s Last Days on the Zambesi: A Remarkable Journey Down Africa’s Wildest River (Berkeley/Hot Globe) takes readers on a journey into the heart of the untamed jungle. Whitewater, hippos, the roar of a pride of lions are a part of the journey in a survivor's adventure of the highest order, and at bottom it makes a compelling plea for saving one of the last watery treasures on earth.

The dangers and triumphs of the Zambesi expedition through Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique is a page turner, as told by an environmentalist and adventurer Steve Chapple.

Other winners in the competition:

POETRY:

WINNER: My AfroRican State of Soul - Lucas Rivera

RUNNER-UP: The Road to Continental Heart: - Steve Davison

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

  • The Gold Tooth in the Crooked Smile of God - Douglas Cole
  • From the Book of Dreams - Joe Giampaolo
  • Ireland's Unparalleled Essence: Volume 1 - Norbert G. Gomes
  • Worth of Diamonds - Ebenezer O. Makinde
  • Aerospace Softball 47 - J.D. Calvert


CHILDREN’S BOOKS:

WINNER: Howling with Huskies - Linda Chamberlain

RUNNER-UPS:

  • Saving Noah - Andrea Hellman
  • The Dad Bag - Michael Ramos and Steven Manchester
  • Playing Together in the Sandbox - Scott Pansky


HONORABLE MENTIONS:

  • My Mom Has Superpowers - Vera Richard Harris
  • Where Do We Go? - Meg O'Keefe
  • The Giraffe Who Found Its Spots - Adisan Books
  • Exploring All I Can Do - Fencing - Nia Obotette
  • Alex Axolotl's First Day of School - Angelrae Thompson
  • Joe's Icy Adventure - Joseph Drapluk
  • Ava's Talking Tree - Eva Hornyak
  • Raw Power - Anthony Owens and Diezel Ramos
  • Exploring All I Can Do - Triathlon - Nia Obotette
  • Fish in the Desert - Adalgisa and David Nico
  • Mahalo Does Not Mean Trash - Paki Perkins
  • The Dinosaur Who Discovered Hamburgers - Adisan Books
  • Hugo's Adventure - Jeremy Ireland
  • The Bee Who Hated Honey - Adisan Books
  • Naptime with Imani and the Fox - Lena Bee
  • She Who Walks Above The Trees - Jennifer Conklin
  • Dressing for Dreamtime - J.E. Rogers
  • Little Bird Explores - Charlene Schaefer
  • Horses on B Ranch - Pamela Brown
  • The Game of Life - Andrea 'Chocolate Butterfly' Williams



BIOGRAPHY/AUTOBIOGRAPHY:

WINNER: Worm: A Cuban American Odyssey - Edel Rodriguez

RUNNERS-UP:

  • Benjamin Banneker and Us - Rachel Jamison Webster
  • Near the Danube Bridge - Catherine Allen-Walters
  • Silencing The Enemy Within - Marsha Rene


HONORABLE MENTIONS:

  • CCNY Made: Profiles in Grit - Ronnyjane Goldsmith
  • Presidential Spirit: - Gina S. Scheff
  • The Reader's Companion to the World… - Joe Giampaolo
  • Cuba, your children cry! - Otto H. Iglesias
  • Syrup Sandwiches Choose Not to Give Up! - Anthony Owens


GENERAL NON-FICTION:

WINNER: No Cure for Being Human - Kate Bowler

RUNNERS-UP:

  • A Day in the Life of Abed Salama - Nathan Thrall
  • Killing Shore - K.A. Nelson
  • ER Doctor - Paul Weinberg
  • Outside Voices: A Memoir of the Berkeley Revolution - Joan Gelfand
  • Me Power - LaNysha T. Adams


HONORABLE MENTIONS:

  • Heaven In My Eyes: - Kymm Civetta
  • I Am Worthy - Elisha Rose
  • (In) Sane - Memoir of a Manic Millennial - Michael J. Schiuma
  • The Prevention and Therapy of Crohn's Disease: The Story of Crohn's Disease - Gilles R. G. Monif, M.D.
  • The 5 Pitfalls Of A Relationship: - Dr. LaGrande Mason Jr PhD
  • Catharsis - Dr. Rachelle Stevens
  • Stepping Up - Joseph S Groh  
  • Abortion and the Senseless Assault on Reproduction Rights - Dr. Dorris S. Woods
  • To Jerusalem - Natia Khaduri


REGIONAL LIT:

WINNER: Why Hearts Keep Secrets - Mara Purl

RUNNER-UP: Broken Pencils - J.R. Rice


SPIRITUAL/RELIGIOUS:

WINNER: The Soul of Happiness: - Robert P. Rugel

RUNNERS-UP:

  • Letters to My Sheep - Teya Brooks Pribac
  • The Ultimate Career Coach - George Goodwyn Jr.
  • Reign of Freedom - Ebenezer O. Makinde


HONORABLE MENTIONS:

  • Creating An Atmosphere For The Promises Of God - Melba K Wiggins
  • The Storm of Doubt - Guillermo Trujillo Corona
  • The Magnificence of the 3 - Timeout A Taumua
  • Light of Darkness - Ebenezer O. Makinde
  • Becoming Sunflower Brazil - Sunflower Brazil



MEMOIR:

WINNER: Last Days on the Zambezi - Steve Chapple

RUNNERS-UP:

  • Belonging - Michelle Miller
  • Jungle Wild - Joseph M. Coe
  • Time Served - TL Cromwell
  • Once Upon a Time on Sunday Morning - E.S. "Bud" Lamoreaux III


HONORABLE MENTIONS:

  • Memoir Moments - Mary Kuykendall
  • Welcome to California - Sandra LA Boszko
  • Black Officer, White Army: - Cynthia René Doss
  • Always Make Time for Play - Ronald N Stone/Kelly G Alblinger
  • American Airman: A memoir of a wounded veteran - Jonathon C Benjamin
  • Becoming Sunflower Brazil - Sunflower
  • Rotten Fruit is Falling Down: Because I Shake the Tree - Erin Arvizu
  • Airman:American A Memoir of a Wounded Veteran - Jonathon C. Benjamin


GENERAL FICTION:

WINNER: Cinnamon Beach - Suzanne Kamata

RUNNER-UPS:

  • Alejandro's Lie - Bob Van Laerhoven
  • Frank's Shadow - Doug McIntyre
  • Rebuild the Moon - Trip Mackintosh
  • The Islander - David W. Berner
  • The Long Swim - Terese Svoboda


HONORABLE MENTIONS:

  • Heir Heart: Revenge of the Lost Inheritance - Lana Torizi
  • Second Life - James Sniechowski
  • The Falcon and The Shaikhs - Luigi Falconi and John Dragonetti
  • The Calamity of Desire and Other Stories - Judith Dancoff
  • Kantika: A Novel - Elizabeth Graver
  • The Throne of Osiris - Peter Meissner
  • The Dead Chip Syndicate - Andrew W. Pearson
  • The Racehorse - Vicki Rees Kendall
  • Careful What You Wish For - Roger C. Douglas
  • Frankie - Michel Tyree
  • U-boat 931 Attack on America - Ian T. Gwilliams
  • Dear Entitled Hotel Guests - Deenie Luckie
  • Rebuke the Wind - Trip Mackintosh
  • 180 Days - Alfredo Botello
  • The Rep: Max Passberger - Mark Leysen
  • The White Field - Douglas Cole
  • Toxic Sphere Volume 3 - C N Sky
  • Light of Darkness - Ebenezer O. Makinde
  • The Stories We Cannot Tell - Leslie A. Rasmussen
  • Nightingale - D.K. Golden
  • A Portable Chaos - E.M. Schorb
  • Captured by Their Past - Miguel Arrufat Millán
  • Hopeland - Ebenezer O. Makinde
  • Reign of Freedom - Ebenezer O. Makinde
  • Together - Jere Silber
  • The Kidnapping of Crystal Covington - Tighe Taylor

COMPILATIONS/ANTHOLOGIES:

WINNER: 1968: A Primer for Understanding Baby Boomers - Rick Robinson

RUNNER-UP: How Healers Heal - Shilpi Pradhan

HONORABLE MENTION:

  • A Fire for Christmas - William R. Hincy



HOW-TO

WINNER: Rise of the Warrior Leader - Claudio Chiste

RUNNERS-UP:


HONORABLE MENTIONS:

  • What, Who, Why, Where.... - Yvonne Sandomir
  • Seniors! Act Your Age and Get Paid! - Ina Romeo



WILD CARD:

WINNER: Chasing Giants: - Zeb Hogan and Stefan Lovgren

RUNNERS-UP:

  • Take Out the Jocks - Michael Nest
  • The First 100 Years of the ACLU - Steven C. Markoff
  • Vizard - Shari Marshall
  • The Mind of Dan MacAvoy - Dallas Clark
  • Abuelita's Magical Molcajete - Molé Mama


HONORABLE MENTIONS:

  • Youth Group - Lance Aksamit
  • Tooth Tales and Enchanted Smiles - Angelina and Cameron Huang
  • Hidden Parable Theory - Matthew Diefenbach
  • Be A Pussy! - Miriam Adams
  • Toxic Sphere Volume 3 - C N Sky
  • When Your Hand is in the Lion's Mouth: - Nita Whitaker
  • Insignia: Scars of Lumierna - Kelsea Koops
  • Delusional - Ralph Hughes



BUSINESS:

WINNER: Index Funds - Mark Hebner

RUNNER-UP: Rite of Passage - V. Michael Santoro

HONORABLE MENTION:

  • Cassius King - Ebenezer O. Makinde


PHOTOGRAPHY/ART

WINNER: Delaware Before the Railroads - Dave Tabler


YOUNG ADULT:

WINNER: Pretend - Jennifer Conklin

RUNNER-UPS:


HONORABLE MENTIONS:

  • The Last U-Boat - Jack O'Brien
  • Belt of Chaos: - Shan Shan Nie
  • Gritos invisibles - Guillermo Trujillo Corona
  • Cassius King - Ebenezer O. Makinde
  • The Game of Life - Andrea 'Chocolate Butterfly' Williams
  • Angelina's Choices: - Angelina Wang


SCIENCE FICTION:

WINNER: Being Human. Human Being - Paul Black

RUNNER-UPS:

  • Meddling Mages - S.G. Blaise
  • The Tunguska Deception - Rick Shaw
  • Toxic Sphere Volume 3 - C N Sky
  • Welcome To Opine - Matthew Marullo
  • Kogi Legends Never Die - Brian Dalton
  • Not Quite Dead Geniuses at Large on an Angry Planet - R. Gary Raham
  • Kijo Games - Yurie Kiri



GENRE-BASED:

WINNER: Guidance to Death - Daniel V. Meier Jr.

RUNNERS-UP:

  • Against All Enemies - Thomas M. Wing
  • Dawn of Legends: A Tale for Christmas Vol 2 - Matt Dragovits


HONORABLE MENTIONS:

  • By Rook or By Crook - Nancy A. Hughes
  • Needleneck - E.M. Schorb
  • Hollis and Gray - J.P. Zeigler
  • Toxic Sphere Volume 3 - C N Sky



ROMANCE:

WINNER: A Perfect Miracle: Jacobs Landing Series Book One - Katrina Alexander

RUNNERS-UP:


HONORABLE MENTIONS:



SEQUELS:

WINNER: The Pilgrim - Part I - A. Keith Carreiro

RUNNER-UP: Comes Around - C.D. “Tony” Hylton

HONORABLE MENTIONS:


FOREIGN LANGUAGE:

WINNER: Papa Soltero - Guillermo Trujillo Corona