The Lambda Literary Foundation has announced the winners of the 15th Annual Lambda Literary Awards, or "Lammies," which honor "the best and the brightest" in lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered publishing. The awards were presented at a gala banquet and awards ceremony at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles on May 29 in conjunction with BookExpo America.

Honors in Gay and Lesbian Fiction went to two historical novels, Irish author Jamie O'Neill's At Swim, Two Boys (Scribner) and English author Sarah Waters' Fingersmith (Riverhead Books). The recipients of this year's Bridge Builder Award, Betty DeGeneres and Judy Shepard, were recognized for their contributions to gay and lesbian literature as well as for their work on gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered issues.

"We were very pleased with this year's event," said Jim Marks, executive director of the Lambda Literary Foundation. "At nearly 400 people, it was the largest ever, and with such presenters as actress Judith Light and California State Senator Sheila Kuehl, along with Bridge Builder Award honorees Betty DeGeneres and Judy Shepard, it was also our highest profile event."

Supporters of the Lambda Literary Awards include the American Booksellers Association, Haworth Press, Genre Magazine, Arch and Bruce Brown Foundation, Bookazine, TLA Video, Spinsters Ink, Gay11.com, Random House, Routledge, and American Airlines.

Awards were presented in 20 categories, and the winners were selected by a panel of over 70 judges. Below is a list of the winners. For more on the Lammies, visit the Awards page of the Lambda Literary Foundation Web site at www.lambdalit.org/lammy.html [7].

Gay Men’s Fiction
At Swim Two Boys, Jamie O'Neill (Scribner)

Lesbian Fiction
Fingersmith, Sarah Waters (Riverhead Books)

Gay Men’s Poetry
Hazmat, J.D. McClatchy (Alfred A. Knopf)

Lesbian Poetry
Mules of Love, Ellen Bass (BOA Editions, Ltd.)

Gay Men's Mystery
The Snow Garden, Christopher Rice (Miramax)

Lesbian Mystery
Good Bad Woman, Elizabeth Woodcraft (Kensington Publishing)
and
Immaculate Midnight, Ellen Hart (St. Martin's Press)

Autobiography
Surviving Madness, Betty Berzon (University of Wisconsin Press)

Fiction Anthology
Black Like Us, Devon Carbado, Dwight McBride, and Don Weise, eds. (Cleis Press)

Nonfiction Anthology
The Man I Might Become, Bruce Shenitz, ed. (Marlowe & Company)

Biography
Ridiculous! David Kaufman (Applause Theatre & Cinema Books)

Children/YA
Letters in the Attic, Bonnie Shimko (Academy Chicago Press)

Erotica
Best Lesbian Erotica 2003, Tristan Taormino, ed. (Cleis Press)

Humor
Skipping Towards Gomorrah, Dan Savage (Dutton)

Visual Arts
A Hidden Love, Dominique Fernandez (Prestel)

Romance
The Winter of Our Discothèque, Andrew W.M. Beierle (Kensington)

SF/Fantasy/Horror
Queer Fear II, Michael Rowe, ed. (Arsenal Pulp Press)

Spirituality
Courage to Love, Geoffrey Duncan (The Pilgrim Press)

LGBT Studies
Sex-Crime Panic, Neil Miller (Alyson Publications)

Transgender
Dress Codes, Noelle Howey (Picador USA)

LGBT Independent Press
Kings Crossing Publishing, Robin G. White, Sha Mendon

Editor's Choice
The World Turned, John D'Emilio (Duke University Press)

Pioneer Award
Barbara Grier, Naiad Press

Bridge Builder Award
Betty DeGeneres, Love, Ellen; Just a Mom
Judy Shepard, The Matthew Shepard Foundation

--Karen Schechner [8]