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Welcome Back to Abuja Once Again Wins Gold!
Welcome Back to Abuja Once Again: How I Became a Citizen of the World is the Foreword INDIES 2021 GOLD Winner for Travel!!
Foreword Reviews, a book review journal focusing on independently published books, announced the winners of its INDIES Book of the Year Awards on June 16, 2022. The INDIES recognize the best books published in 2021 from small, indie, and university presses, as well as self-published authors. You can view all of the winners here: https://www.forewordreviews.com/awards/winners/2021/
“This annual exercise in Indie excellence continues to surprise us both qualitatively and quantitatively—which makes the judging process for our editors that much more difficult because there’s so many books deserving recognition,” says Matt Sutherland, Foreword’s Executive Editor. “You can be certain that this year’s lineup of medal winners will thrill all readers.”
“The resilience and adaptability of independent publishing continue to inspire us in our mission here at Foreword,” says Danielle Ballantyne, Managing Editor of Foreword Reviews. “We are so grateful to the librarians and booksellers who volunteer their time to judge the INDIES entries so that we can give this special recognition to the independent authors and publishers going above and beyond.”
It is a great honor for Welcome Back to Abuja Once Again to win gold, especially considering the other wonderful books in the Travel category. With this recognition, I hope that more people will pick up my book to experience the wonders of travel and other cultures, even if from your own living room, to see how the interconnectedness of our world enriches our lives.
For this year’s competition, over 2,700 entries were submitted in 55 categories, with Foreword’s editors choosing the finalists. Those titles were then mailed to individual librarians and booksellers charged with picking the Gold, Silver, Bronze, and Honorable Mention winners.
Welcome Back to Abuja Once Again Foreword INDIES Finalist!
Welcome Back to Abuja Once Again: How I Became a Citizen of the World has been recognized as a Finalist in the 24th annual Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Awards in the Travel category!
As part of its mission to discover, review, and share the best books from university and independent publishers, Foreword Magazine, Inc. hosts an annual awards program each year. Finalists represent the best books published in 2021. After more than 2,500 individual titles spread across 55 genres were submitted for consideration, the Finalists were determined by Foreword’s editorial team. Winners will be decided by an expert team of booksellers and librarians—representing Foreword’s trade readership—from across the country.
The complete list of Finalists can be found at: https://lnkd.in/eNZVYnMx
Winners in each genre—along with Editor’s Choice Prize winners and Foreword’s Independent Publisher of the Year—will be announced June 16, 2022 at noon ET.
Where to Purchase Welcome Back to Abuja Once Again
Welcome Back to Abuja Once Again: How I Became a Citizen of the World is available as an eBook, paperback, and hardcover. You can find it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and at your local bookstore. Currently, it is available at One More Page Books (Arlington, VA), Politics & Prose (Washington, DC), Orinda Books (Orinda, CA), and Island Books and Crafts (Sault Ste. Marie, MI). Ask your independent bookstore to order it.
The audiobook is available through Audible, Amazon, and iTunes.
MWSA (Military Writers Society of America) awarded Welcome Back to Abuja Once Again: How I Became a Citizen of the World the Silver Medal in the Memoir/Biography category in September 2021.
What I'm Working On
I'm writing a middle grade book, Andy Wong: Cultural Whisperer (working title), featuring Andrea (Andy) Wong and her friends Bassem Taha and Carina Maki based on themes from Welcome Back to Abuja Once Again: This book encourages children to be open to other cultures and see past our external differences.
Endorsements for Welcome Back to Abuja Once Again
“Brilliant craftsmanship with captivating stories weaving history and human interactions to promote a love for travel and diversity of all peoples. A must-read for the ever-shrinking world. ” - K. David Boyer, Jr., Corporate Director, Truist Financial Corporation
“Carol Yee’s life is an inspiring story about her journey to become an informed citizen of the world. Practical, humorous, and affectionate in its treatment of this crazy blue/green orb we inhabit. ” - John Hillen, former US Assistant Secretary of State
“Carol has eloquently captured the fear and excitement that many travelers experience. Her pursuit reconfirms our need to celebrate our differences and commonalities, while taking a chance to find the magical encounters that travel can bring.” - Susi Mudge, Chair, Board of Directors, Chemonics International
“Carol Yee has created an opportunity for us to travel and understand the world from our own comfortable perch. Through her travels, she shares the “richness and magic of the … human condition” and builds our confidence and interest to became a part of our global community.” - Indira Kaur Ahluwalia, Founder, KAUR Strategies
“Carol Yee’s book provides a unique glimpse into the importance of overcoming the world’s differences to address the global challenges we all face. Carol’s career dedicated to fighting global poverty, and a life of lessons, is now available to us all.” - Kevin X. Murphy, President and Co-Founder, J.E. Austin Associates, Inc.
“Carol humanizes the traveling experience by reintroducing the “citizen of the world” construct. By offering her own examples of steps taken to prepare for her travels, she adds dimension to breaking down cultural barriers and expanding our personal boundaries.” - Rockfeler Herisse, Ph.D., Executive/Life Coach
“Carol Yee is a seasoned, wise traveler, and her memoir is a powerful meditation on how to become a true citizen of the world.” - Adam Brookes, author of the Night Heron trilogy