The Washington Center for the Book announced the finalists in seven categories for the 2024 Washington State Book Awards for outstanding books published by Washington authors in 2023. Congratulations to Peter Blecha (Stomp and Shout) and Tom Fucoloro (Biking Uphill in the Rain), who were both named finalists in the General Nonfiction/Biography category.
A winner in each category will be announced on September 24, 2024. Learn more about the UW Press finalists below.
Stomp and Shout: R&B and the Origins of Northwest Rock and Roll
Peter Blecha tells the story of music in the Pacific Northwest from the 1940s to the 1960s, a golden era that shaped generations of musicians to come. The local R&B scene evolved out of the area’s vibrant jazz scene, and Blecha illuminates the musical continuum between Ray Charles (who cut his first record in Seattle) and Quincy Jones to the rock ‘n’ rollers who forged the classic jazz-tinged “Northwest Sound.”
Highlighting key but overlooked figures and offering a fresh look at well-known musicians (such as an obscure young guitarist then known as Jimmy Hendrix), Blecha shows how an isolated region managed to launch influential new sounds upon an unsuspecting world.
“In a tour de force, Blecha offers all music fans the definitive book about the highly significant but much neglected story of Northwestern U.S. rock.”
Library Journal, starred review
Biking Uphill in the Rain: The Story of Seattle from behind the Handlebars
Tom Fucoloro, founder and editor of Seattle Bike Blog, chronicles the rise of an improbable bike culture in the Emerald City. From the arrival of the first bicycles in the late nineteenth century to the bike-share entrepreneurs of the present day, the result is a unique perspective on Seattle’s history and its future. Advocates, policy makers, city planners, and bike enthusiasts around the world can learn plenty from the successes and failures of this city’s past 130 years.
More than just a mode of transportation, the bicycle has been used by generations of Seattleites as a tool for social change. Biking Uphill in the Rain documents the people and projects that made a difference and reveals just how deeply intertwined transportation is with politics, public health, climate change, and racial justice.
“The most informative and definitive history of bicycles and the bike movement in Seattle.”
Cascade Bicycle Club
