HOLLYWOOD _ The story of a remarkably intelligent bird and his battles with the government and dangerous raptors is the grand prize winner of the 2022 Hollywood Book Festival, which honors books worthy of greater attention from the film, TV, and multimedia communities.

Author Lawrence Lieber’s Chirps is the first unpublished novel to win top honors in the festival’s 16-year history. The book takes the reader on an amazing journey from the Australian outback to the skies of New York City, as an unusually marked budgerigar comments on the story from his perspective and provides social commentary.

Lieber’s captivating work wins him a cash prize of $1,500. He will be honored later this year at a ceremony in Hollywood.

Other winners in the competition:

GENERAL NON-FICTION:

WINNER: Trust & Confidence – Jim Lichtman

RUNNERS-UP:

• Dawgs: A True Story of Lost Animals and the Kids Who Rescued Them – Meredith Wargo
• The Five Elements of Relationships – Dr. Vicki Matthews

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

• A Fish Ate My Homework – Rick Robinson and Wade DeHate
• Artist: Awakening the Spirit Within – Jocelyn Jones
• Binge and Sprint – Naomi Joseph
• Mindful Framing – Oscar Segurado
• The Future of Policing – Scott A. Cunningham
• Midnight Flight to Nuremberg – Marcus A. Nannini
• Better to Cry Now – Geoffrey Newman
• Mount Up with Wings – Gerald Williams
• Wellness, Wellplayed – Jennifer Lena Buchanan
• Have-a-Seat Yoga – Wislar & Marg
• Nate Branch: Playing My Way Through Life – Nate Branch with Barry Kienzle
• The World is Your Studio – Deborah McMahon Osterholtz
• The Pursuit of Black Excellence – Linnita Hosten
• From the Inside Out – Eric Stuyvesant
• Therapy Isn’t Just For White People – Kiara Imani
• Letters to Martin – Randal Maurice Jelks
• Salt & Light – Jonathan Geoffrey Dean

YOUNG ADULT:

WINNER: Life Beyond the Cobblestones – Luisa Livorno Ramondo

RUNNERS-UP:

• Golden Dreg Boy – D.K. Dailey
• Cheese Puffs – Ruby Matenko
• General Jack and the Battle of the Five Kingdoms – David Bush

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

• The Misfits of Lima – Benjamin S. Rosenberg
• Danger Peak – Michael Thomas Perone
• The Psi-Chotic Adventures of Drew Darby – Richard W. Kellt
• The Blackest Blue – Luna Wright
• Life is Inevitable – Carlos Santos

GENERAL FICTION:

WINNER: Chirps – Lawrence Lieber

RUNNERS-UP:

• The Changing of the Gods – Anthony J. Miano
• Beyond the Cobblestones – Luisa Livorno Ramondo Ethereal’s Call – Leslie Cook

HONORABLE MENTONS:

• Retreat at St. Jerome’s – Elaine Ruggieri
• The Conquest of Eden – Nicola De Matteo
• The XEan Girl – Vanessa Jeune and Layla Jeune
• The Prisoner of Paradise – Rob Samborn
• Delphic Oracle, U.S.A. – Steven Mayfield
• The Candyman’s Tale – Joe Vitulli
• A Disturbing Nature – Brian Lebeau
• Needleneck – E.M. Schorb
• The Lockhart Women – Mary Camarillo
• The Dogs of Brownsville – Stan Weisleder
• Field Control: An NYPD Story – Harry Nyles
• The Silence in the Sound – Dianne C. Braley
• Ten-Five – Darrell Bartell
• Circus Acts – David Zini
• Spellbound – Shannon Simpson
• Betrayal of Faith – Mark. M. Bello
• The Black Cell – Wendy Shaia
• The Hoarder’s Wife – Deborah S. Greenhut
• A Portable Chaos – E.M. Schorb
• Twins – Don Helin
• The Chase – Mario Busacca and Hoyt A. Byrum
• Just One Spark – Brandy Bruce
• Wounds of Time – Stevie D. Parker
• Blood Thinners – Heather Novak
• Orchid Blooming – Carol Van Den Hende
• Strange Fire – Joel Burcat
• Drunk Talk – Mike Davis
• A World Without Emotions – Evolution – Emiliano Forino Procacci
• Friends, Foes and Lovers – Bob Ford
• The Condom and Other Stories – Peter Chika
• To Kingdom Come – Claudia Riess
• Not That Rich – Belinda Lei
• Into the Storm – D.J. Adamson
• The Green Light – Karl Stewart
• The Placeholder – Lynda Wolters
• The Prophecy – Kathryn Cain
• Curse of the Eagle – Michael Nathanson
• The Secrets of the Kings – Nora Delzelle
• Victim or the Crime: The Day Before Jerry Died… - Paul Sanders
• Truth and Other Lies – Maggie Smith
• With Your Friends – William Grant
• Cut & Run – Phil Sills
• Voice of Tears – Christian Branch
• Custodial Battle – Sheetal Ohri

GENRE-BASED:

WINNER: The Night Man – Robert Chazz Chute

RUNNERS-UP:

• Shadow of the Gypsy Shelly Frome
• Eyes of Morpheus – Kevin D. Miller

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

• When Lions Roar – Karen Leigh Gruber
• Barry and the Vampire in the Rosedale Encounter - Darrell Bartell
• Whisper in the Wind – Barry Kienzle
• The Wand: The Madigan Chronicles #3 – Marieke Lexmond
• Osaka Games – Yurie Kiri
• Real-Time Earthquake Tracking and Localisation – George R. Daglish and Iurii P. Sizov

SEQUELS:

WINNER: Blood Before Dawn – Daniel V. Meier, Jr.

CHILDREN’S BOOKS:

WINNER: The First Birthday Party Ever! – Keith Johnson

RUNNERS-UP:

• Stand-In Santa – Stephen W. Roth
• Five Mile Charlie – Kimberly Adams

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

• Zen and Now – Dreama Denver
• Welcome to Chuckle Giggle Nu – Keith Johnson
• Hop & Trot – Diana Pishner Walker
• The Wildly Whimsical Tales of Gracie & Sniggles – Teressa Hill
• Adams Cape: The Missing Crew – Kaitlyn Dorroh
• Corrine’s Team – Dayle Dabney
• Orange and Ginger Soapy Shampoo – Pamela James
• A Splendor Adventure – Zachlewis B. Maravilla
• Isabella Castaspella – Parvati Markus & Radha Baum
• What Will You Do? – Tammi Landry-Gilder
• Big Love – Louie Flores
• Niko Discovers The 5 Senses Game – Karen Correll
• The Butterfly Nebulae – Paisley Summer
• Sandy The Service Dog – Michelle M. Deyarmin
• The Adventures of Clive & Sydney – Mallory J. Stevens
• Bigfoot and the Gold Star Kid – Shelley Anne Richter
• The Little Blue Rocket Ship – Jessica Wendi Abel
• Kisaan – Dr. Simarjeet Kaur Sandhu

SCIENCE FICTION:

WINNER: Endemic – Robert Chazz Chute

RUNNERS-UP:

• Infernium – Jayson Adams
• This Plague of Days, Omnibus Edition – Robert Chazz Chute The Devil Pulls the Strings – J.W. Zarek

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

• Amid Mortal Wounds – Robert Chazz Chute
• Project Tau – Jude Austin
• Dylan McLeod–Vexor City – J.B. Christensen
• Republic Falling: Advent of a New Dawn – Michael J. Brooks
• The Lambda Factor – Dimple Desai
• Hierarchy of Blood – Jennifer Haskin
• Einstein it the Attic – Dana Dargos and Said Al Bizri
• The Blackest Blue – Luna Wright
• And So Began The War – Ian Anthony Hollis
• Grasp of Erebus – Sebastian Dax
• Intergalactic Exterminators, Inc. – Ash Bishop
• Captain ChickenFish and the Wonky Wormholes – Lindsay T. Hocking
• Spore People – Kidd Rogers

SCREENPLAYS

WINNER: Enough – C.D. “Tony” Hylton, III

RUNNER-UP: An Irish Lullaby – Louis Manzo Jr.

BIOGRAPHY/AUTOBIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR:

WINNER: 1 Henry Fonda: He Did It His Way – Darwin Porter and Danforth Prince

RUNNERS-UP:

• One Student at a Time – Ken Rand
• Mia’s Odyssey: Taking Back My Soul – Mia Odeh
• The Matador and the Mustang – J.C. Burkesmith

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

• We All Wore Blue – Emerson Robbins
• Black, White & Grey All Over – Frederick Douglass Reynolds
• Burn This City to the Ground – N. Daniel
• Rue’s Butterfly – Donna McCart Welser
• Hold, Please: Stage Managing a Pandemic – Richard Hester
• Crow and a Red Feather – Chellie Kew
• Bright Lights, Big Empty – Ron Baker
• The Male Nurse Survival Guide – Chris Lengle
• My Gay Church Days – George Azar
• Straight Enough – Lorinda Boyer
• Chasing Tarzan – Catherine Forster
• Splat! – Adele Irving
• “Drop the Baby, Put a Veil on the Broad!” – Margaux Soumoy
• Parlor Whales – Chris Cauhape
• Truth is Indestructible – Stuart Nagero
• The Twins – Dedication & Inspiration - Dr. Khaled Elbehiery and Dr. Hussam Elbehiery
• A Notebook of Love – Luis Trivino
• A Schizophrenic, Tapped & Skipped – J. Mark Stacy

HOW-TO:

WINNER: A Fish Ate My Homework – Rick Robinson and Wade DeHate

RUNNER-UP: Seniors Sign, Too! Book #1 – D’yann Elaine

WILD CARD:

WINNER: WarholCapote – Rob Roth

RUNNERS-UP:

• Grady Gilbert Googles God – Dale Slongwhite
• A Few Short Plays to Save the World – Steve Harper
• The Bones of Amoret – Arthur Herbert

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

• The Corona Monologues – Darrell Bartell
• The Baseball Miracle of the Splendid 6… - Patrick Montgomery
• Life Has Other Plans – A. Gavazzoni
• Giant Banana Over Texas – Mark Nutter
• The Secrets of the Kings – Nora Delzelle
• Voice of Tears – Christian Branch
• Mindblown – Winsome Bentley
• Semper Fi Brothers – A.C. Turner
• Big Love – Louie Flores
• Curves and Angles – Charles Rawlings
• Victim or the Crime: The Day Before Jerry Died… - Paul Sanders
• A Brighter TOMORROW – Lori Schneider, MD
• White Sails – Ann Yu Huang
• Leonardo Kento – The BraveHeart – Danilo Takaesu
• Unsent Postcards: things I never told you – Maxi Witrak

SPIRITUAL/RELIGIOUS:

WINNER:

Artist: Awakening the Spirit Within – Jocelyn Jones

RUNNERS-UP:

• Genesis Awakens – Akorede Adekoya & Howard Haugom
• God Came to My Garage Sale – Dr. Marni Hill Foderaro  
• Coming Alive – Anne Ierardi

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

• Walking on the Water – Aimy Ellen
• The Nightingale Sings – Amin Karim
• Something We Never Imagined – Douglas Wemple
• Saint Francis: Religion of Love – Lisa Monde
• Satan, Hell With You – Rea Unique

BUSINESS:

WINNER: Be a Lion – Terry Blackburn

RUNNER-UP: Breaking the Stigma – Charlena Berry

HISTORY:

WINNER: Lies That Blind – E.S. Alexander

RUNNER-UP: The Rise and Fall of Wapato Lake – Ken Bilderback and Kris Bilderback

UNPUBLISHED:

WINNER: The Bullet Train – R. David Fulcher

RUNNER-UP: Destiny Lives on Fairhaven Street – C.J. Hudson

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

• Victim or the Crime: The Day Before Jerry Died… - Paul Sanders
• Aether – Embla Rhodes