2026 Results

1. Cookbook (original category split)

• GOLD: Zariz: 100 Easy, Breezy, Tel Aviv-y Recipes by Adeena Sussman (Avery)

• SILVER: Village Life: Discover Tuscan Inspired Hospitality and Intentional Living by Angela Correll (Ten Peaks Press)

• BRONZE: A Cottage Flower by Autumn LeStage (FriesanPress)

Gift/Specialty (original category split)

• GOLD: The Table of Life: Nourishing the Soul with Food, Love, and Faith by Tommi Vincent (Amplify Publishing Group)

• SILVER: Coloring the White House by Kyle Dugdale (White House Historical Association)

• BRONZE:   MockTales: 50+ Literary Mocktails Inspired by Classic Works, Banned Books, and More by Delanie Fischer and Lindsey Smith (Mango Publishing Group)

2. Journal/Activity/Coloring Book

• GOLD: YOU. The Well-being Journal by Livvy Buys (Olive + Page)

• SILVER: My Enneagram: A Visual Guide to Find Your Personality Type, Stress Less, and Live Your Dreams by Abbey Howe (Sasquatch Books)

• BRONZE: Wisdom of Wholeness Shadow Work Journal by Jessica Ricchetti & Jenny Hahn (Intuitive Art and Alchemy) 

3. Animals/Pets

• GOLD: The Way of Life Method: How to Heal Your Relationship with Your Dog and Raise a Sound, Strong, and Spirited Companion (At Any Age) by Souha Ezzedeen, PHD (Way of Life Publications)

• SILVER: One With Horses: What They Teach Us About Being Human by Lisa Podosin (One With Horses) 

• BRONZE: Unleashing the Bond: Harnessing the Power of Human-Animal Interactions by Rustin M. Moore, DVM, PhD (Manuscripts Press)

4. Green Living – Alternative Energy, Conservation, Gardening

• GOLD (tie): The ABCs of California’s Native Bees by Krystle Hickman (Heyday Books)

• GOLD (tie): The Wild & Free Garden: Transform Your Outdoor Space with Found Materials, Community Sharing, and Creative Ingenuity by Stephanie Rose (Cool Springs Press)

• SILVER: Hot Beds: How to grow early crops using an age-old technique by Jack First (Green Books)

• BRONZE: Paddling With Porpoise: A 1,000-Mile Standup Paddle Journey Down Baja, Mexico’s Sea of Cortez by Sean Jansen (Bowker)

5. Family/Parenting

• GOLD: Kids These Days: Understanding and Supporting Youth Mental Health by Will Dobud; Nevin J. Harper (New Society Publishers)

• SILVER: Shine On, Raising Our Kids with Disabilities to Lead Bright Happy Lives by Cynthia Schulz (Page Two)

• BRONZE: Parenting with Self-Compassion: 12 Ways to Improve Your Parenting, While Being Kind to Yourself by Dr. Jen Ferris (Platypus Publishing)

6. Social Activism/Charity

• GOLD: Through the Gates of Hell: American Injustice at Guantanamo Bay by Joshua Colangelo – Bryan (Humanitas Media)

• SILVER: Breaking Bias: Where Stereotypes and Prejudices Come From–And the Science-Backed Method to Unravel Them by Anu Gupta (Hay House LLC)

• BRONZE: Eco-Social Contracts for Sustainable and Just Futures: Mobilising Collective Power to Deal with the 21st Century Polycrisis edited by Patrick Huntjens, Najma Mohamed, Katja Hujo, Manisha Desai (Springer)

7. Personal Development/Growth

• GOLD (tie): The Art of Pacing: A Guide to Balancing Short-Term Demands with Long-Term Thriving by Elizabeth Svoboda (Simon Acumen)

• GOLD (tie): The Power of Caring: Who Cares, Why It Matters, and How Conscious Caring Creates a Fulfilling and Connected Life by Dr. Tony Nader (Hay House LLC)

• SILVER: Cultivating Audacity: Dismantle Doubt and Let Yourself Win by Anne Marie Anderson (Ideapress Publishing)

• BRONZE: The Wild Way: Navigating the Space Between the Old Story and the New by Michael McRay (Istoria)

8. Motivation/Self-Improvement

• GOLD: REAL Confidence: A Simple Guide to Go from Unsure to Unshakeable by Simone Knego (Copper Books)

• SILVER (tie): One-Minute Reset by Heidi Horne (Wiley)

• SILVER (tie): Big Freakin’ Change: How to Gain Confidence by Stepping Out Before You Are Ready by Cara Moeller Poppitt (Page Two)

• BRONZE: EFT for Addiction by Adriana Popescu (Energy Psychology Press)

9. Sexuality/Femininity

• GOLD: When In Menopause by Jennifer Weiss-Wolf (Sheldon Press)

• SILVER: Kink Curious by Gigi Engle (Jessica Kingsley Publishers)

• BRONZE:  Unapologetic Aging: How to Mend and Nourish Your Relationship with Your Body by Deb Benfield (Sheldon Press)

10. Relationships/Marriage

• GOLD: Mend or Move On: A Guide to Healing or Leaving Toxic Relationships by Kate King (Johns Hopkins University Press)

• SILVER: The Balancing Act: Creating Healthy Dependency and Connection Without Losing Yourself by Nedra Glover Tawwab (Tarcher)

• BRONZE: Secure: The Revolutionary Guide to Creating a Secure Life by Amir Levine, MD (Tarcher)

11. Inspirational Memoir – Male

• GOLD: In Search of Rain, From Motel Qu to Pittsburgh: A Memoir for Everyone by Seyed Nourashrafeddin (Archway Publishing)

• SILVER: Darkhorse by Amatangelo “AJ” Pasciuti (HarperCollins Leadership)

• BRONZE: Life and How to Live it: Near Wild Heaven by Chaz Holesworth (Self-Published)

12. Inspirational Memoir – Female

• GOLD (tie): Dizzy by Rachel Weaver (West Virginia University Press) 

• GOLD (tie): SLIP by Mallary Tenore Tarpley (Simon Element)

• SILVER: Staying Married is the Hardest Part – a memoir of passion, secrets and sacrifice by Bonnie Comfort (She Writes Press)

• BRONZE: Antiphon: A Call and Response in a Year of Grief and Renewal by Jane Flynn and Christina Holbrook (Ikaros Books)

13. Enlightenment/Spirituality

• GOLD: When Thoughts Get Stuck by Will Van Der Hart and Thea Joshi (Hodder & Stoughton)

• SILVER: Good Digital Citizen: Everyday Ethics for an Intentional Digital Existence by Kori Kastell (Archway Publishing)

• BRONZE: Just Trust Life: A Journey with Teilhard de Chardin by Christine M Tracy (Iphis Press)

14. Metaphysical 

• GOLD: As Good as the Best: Power and Possibility Beyond C-PTSD by D. Novo (Only Golden Narratives)

• SILVER: Manifesting From The Soul : How to Raise Your Vibration and Unleash The Power Within by Malti Patel (Self-Published)

• BRONZE: Secrets of Your Majestic Heart, Your Sacred Journey to Healing by Catia Carrier (FriesenPress)

15. Exercise/Fitness/Yoga

• GOLD: Aligned: The Data-Driven Guide to Performance, Recovery, and Human Potential by Kristen Holmes, PhD (Avery)

• SILVER: The Heart of Yoga Nidra: Teaching Yoga Nidra Through Sequencing, Language, and Guided Meditation for Deep Relaxation and Sacred Rest by Sagel Urlacher, MEd

• BRONZE: Joe Friel’s High-Performance Cyclist by Joe Friel (Bloomsbury Sport)

16. Health/Wellness

• GOLD: Burning Up, Frozen Out by Joe Warner and Rob Kemp (Sheldon Press)

• SILVER: Because I Deserve It: What Chronic Illness Taught Me About Finding My Voice in the Healthcare System by Kenitra W. Dominguez (Avocet Books)

• BRONZE:  Intuitive Eating for Diabetes: The No Shame, No Blame, Non-Diet Approach to Managing Your Blood Sugar by Janice Dada, MPH, RDN (New Harbinger Publications, Inc)

17. Relaxation/Mindfulness

• GOLD: Space to Exhale: A Handbook for Curating a Soft, Centered, Serene Life by Lisa Hurley (Wiley)

• SILVER: Mindfulness Brings Clarity by Megan McKernan (Reaching & Rooted Publishing)

• BRONZE: Rise and Thrive: A mental health workbook for youth & for the young person inside all of us by Dr. Alfiee Breland-Noble (Refined Honey Media) 

18. Mature Living/Caregiving

• GOLD: Still Me by Dr Sabina Brennan (Green Tree)

• SILVER: Beyond Bedrails and Bingo: Myths, Truths, and the Future of America’s Nursing Homes by Dave Devereaux (Layton Road Press)

• BRONZE (tie): The Privilege of Aging: Savoring the Fullness of Life by Kamla K Kapur (Park Street Press)

• BRONZE (tie): Gut Punch: A Caregiver’s Life After Normal by Paul Wayne Pennington (Köehler Books)

19. Grieving/Death/Dying

• GOLD: No Loose Ends: The Smart & Slightly Morbid Guide to Estate Planning and End of Life Tasks by Adam Zuckerman (Wiley)

• SILVER (tie): Six Weeks: A Literary Memoir by William Ledbetter (Buswell Press)

• SILVER (tie): In Mourning by Paula Cheshire (Maverick)

• BRONZE: Bringing Light to Loss: Redefining grief to reclaim hope and meaning by Tania Chomyk (Deep Pacific Press)

20. How-To/DIY

• GOLD: Unconvention: A Small Business Strategy Guide by Sri Kaza (Ideapress Publishing)

• SILVER: The Law School Breakthrough: Graduate in the Top 10% Even if You’re Not a First Rate Student (2nd edition) by Christopher J Yianilos, JD (Paraskevi Publishing)

• BRONZE: Overcoming the Narcissist, Sociopath, Psychopath, and Other Domestic Abusers: Workbook for Support Groups and Bible Studies by Charlene D. Quint (Redemption Press)

21. Fiction

• GOLD: Not Quite Home by Temple Lentz (Sibylline Digital First)

• SILVER: Three Days Grace by Jeremy Bradley-Silverio Donato (Indigo River Publishing)

• BRONZE: The Kettle Pours a Universe by Johnny Scifo (Saddle River Press)

22. Children’s Inspirational Picture Book

• GOLD (tie): I Love Salmon and Lampreys by Brook Thompson, Illustrated by Anastasia Khmelevska (Heyday Books)

• GOLD (tie): The Story of Gray by Merril Seidl (More the Merrlier)

• SILVER: Maya Loves the Sun by Disha Mathur, Illustrated by Felishia Henditirto (Buddoo Books)

• BRONZE: Love Looks Like Lola by Cody Daigle-Orians, illustrated Siân Coules-Milne (Jessica Kingsley Publishers)

23. Digital Media (eBook, Audiobooks)

• GOLD: Catalyse by Anna Foley (Kadam Kinetics)

• SILVER: Mātrikā’s Muse: A Journey to Awakening Through the Senses by Lara Sanderson (Seva Press)

• BRONZE:  Digger: Dig or Die! by Deborah Cholette (One Elm Books)