Natalie Louise Tombasco was the recipient of Southern Indiana Review’s (SIR) Michael Waters Poetry Prize in 2023 where she was awarded $6,000 and publication of her book Milk for Gall. Now, Tombasco is being recognized as a Midwest Book Awards Finalist in the Poetry and Graphic Novels – Debut category.
The Midwest Book Awards are presented by the Midwest Independent Publishers Association (MiPA), a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting independent publishers in the Midwest. The awards are open to all books published in the Midwest in the previous year.
“To have Milk for Gall honored as a Midwest Author’s Award finalist is a significant achievement that reflects the impact of the work we do at Southern Indiana Review Press to bring important new voices, like Natalie Tombasco’s, to readers here and nationally,” says Rosalie Moffett, Assistant Professor of English. “The Midwest Book Awards is a rich place for poetry—every year, scores of exciting books are published by authors in our region.”
“As part of USI’s literary editing and publishing minor, I had the exclusive opportunity to work alongside SIR editors on Natalie Louise Tombasco’s Milk for Gall.” says Denise McKenzie, USI English student.
Winners of the Midwest Book Awards will be announced at the 35th Annual Midwest Book Awards Gala on June 28. View all finalists at www.mipa.org. Learn more about SIR at USI.edu/sir.
