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Crook's Corner Book Prize
The Crook’s Corner Book Prize is given each year to a debut novel set in the American South. Founded in 2013, the Prize is intended to encourage emerging writers, whether published by established publishing houses, by small independent publishers, or self-published. Crook’s Corner is an iconic restaurant in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, long a keystone in the pantheon of contemporary Southern Cuisine, with a rich history of supporting the arts. It was named an American Classic restaurant by the James Beard Foundation in 2011.

Inspired by the prestigious writers' prizes awarded for many years by such famous Parisian literary cafés as Les Deux Magots, the Flore, and Brasserie Lipp, the Crook's Corner Book Prize seeks to draw attention to new novelists enriching the literary tradition of the American South. The connection between the literary life and café culture is a close one, as the French know well. “It seems a natural evolution for Crook’s, which is so interwoven with the arts and the literary community, to honor emerging writers,” says Crook’s chef Bill Smith, himself an author. The restaurant, whose walls are lined with the work of local artists, has long been a favorite dining spot for local and visiting writers, artists, and musicians.

The winner of the Crook’s Corner Book Prize will receive $1,000 and a free glass of wine at Crook’s Corner every day for a year.

=Winners=
 * 2014—Kim Church, Byrd
 * 2013—Wiley Cash, A Land More Kind Than Home

=External Links= Crook's Corner Book Prize, official website