Native American Urban Fiction
There’s a lot of great work that falls into the broad category of “urban Native American literature." Depictions of Native Americans and the urban experience are crucial for understanding Indigenous peoples in the U.S. today. Some of these books deal with the transitions and dissonance that Native people experience between their lives at home and urban settings. There are also books that reflect the great number of Native peoples in the U.S. who do not live on reservations. Indianapolis Public Library
Urban fiction prides itself on keeping the story real, including both the good and the bad in life. The stories feature contemporary urban settings and realistic characters, usually African-Americans, with a fast-paced story intended to pull the reader in from page one. The language is straightforward and contemporary, meant to reflect how people truly think and speak. The genre is also known as Street Fiction, Gangsta Lit, Ghetto Lit, or Hip-Hop Fiction. - San Antonio Public Library
Resources
Street Lit Book Awards
The Street Lit Book Award Medal Committee is comprised of a group of volunteer librarians and library workers from across the U.S. who work with Street Lit and its readers in public and school libraries.
Awarded March 2016.
Street Lit Book Awards are currently on hiatus.
Previous Award Winners