The 2025 NYC Big Book Award recognised “When It All Falls Down” by Chinedu Achebe as the category winner of African American Fiction.
The competition is judged by experts from different aspects of the book industry, including publishers, writers, editors, designers, booksellers, librarians and professional copywriters. Winners and distinguished favourites are based on overall excellence, When It All Falls Down
In the stirring sequel to The Miseducation of Obi Ifeanyi, Obi and Nkechi Ifeanyi, along with their children, Ikechukwu and Chimamanda, navigate the turbulent waters of modern America in the backdrop of Houston, Texas. Amidst the global upheaval of COVID-19, the Ifeanyis strive to rekindle their marriage, seeking solace in each other as the world outside contends with racial strife and political storms. As the contentious 2020 US presidential election unfolds, their story is a testament to the enduring power of family, the complexities of identity, and the relentless pursuit of happiness against all odds. This is a story of love, resilience, and the unyielding bonds that hold us together when the world seems to be falling apart.
To view the list of NYC Big Book winners, please visit their website. The NYC Big Book Award received book submissions worldwide. Journalists, well-established authors, small and large presses, and first-time indie authors participated in record numbers. Entries this year were received from the United States as well as countries such as Australia, Canada, China, Dubai, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Scotland, Singapore, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Cities represented among the entries were Chicago, Hamburg, Los Angeles, Melbourne, New York, Quebec, Rome, San Francisco, Seattle, Singapore, and Victoria. Publishers included Berrett-Koehler, Brown Books Kids, Central Avenue Simon & Schuster, Forbes
Books: Muse Literary, New Harbinger Publications, New York University Press, Oxford University Press, Pegasus Books, She Writes Press, and University of Massachusetts Press, to name a few.
Winners included:
“What is My Legacy?” by Martin Luther King III, Arndrea Waters King, Marc Kielburger and Craig Kielburger
“Mikhail Gorbachev – How He Changed Our Lives” by Bettina Schaefer; Berrett-Koehler‘s
“From Founder to Future: A Business Roadmap to Impact, Longevity, and Employee Ownership” by John Abrams
The Cooking Lab’s “Modernist Bread at Home” by Nathan Myhrvold
“Wild Fox Ridge” by Xue Mo, to name some key titles on the awarded list.
“With so many quality publishers and authors from around the world participating this year, I’m eager to share these books with a global readership,” said awards sponsor Gabby Olczak.
About the author
An award-winning author, Chinedu Achebe is a Nigerian American who was born in Richmond, Virginia. Chinedu graduated from the University of Houston with his bachelor’s degree in economics. He published his first book, Blunted on Reality, in 2012. In 2017, Chinedu published his second book, The Miseducation of Obi Ifeanyi. He was awarded the 2023 Independent Press Award in the category of African American fiction for that book. Chinedu has also written articles in the Huffington Post, Medium, and Bella Naija. He currently lives in Houston, Texas, with his wife and kids.
You can find him on social media at Twitter/X-@chineduachebe and Instagram @chineduachebe.
“When It All Falls Down” is available on Amazon.
The NYC Big Book Award is announced every fall. The NYC Big Book Award is open to all authors, publishers, and illustrators, and includes submissions from the Big Five publishers:
Penguin Random House, HarperCollins, Hachette, Macmillan, and Simon & Schuster.
Join us for the Independent Press Award, which has deadlines every December and is announced every spring and is open to independent authors and publishers. Visit their website
Join the Awards Dinner on April 25th to celebrate the recipients of both programmes as they receive their awards on stage. The dinner is part of the BookCAMP event, a publishing industry conference held in the New York metro area, April 24-25, 2026.
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