The 68th National Book Awards were held Wednesday at Cipriani New York; the parade of glitterati included actress Anne Hathaway and former President Bill Clinton—now one of a family of three bestselling authors.

Andrew AlbaneseThis week on Wednesday evening at the gala National Book Awards, editors and authors broke out the tuxedos and the gowns to celebrate the best books of the year and to honor those with distinguished careers.

“The 68th National Book Awards were held at Cipriani New York in Lower Manhattan—and this will not surprise anyone: politics were once again front and center in the publishing world,” reports Andrew AlbanesePublishers Weekly senior writer.

The parade of glitterati included actress Anne Hathaway and former President Bill Clinton—now one of a family of three bestselling authors—who introduced Scholastic president and CEO Dick Robinson, recipient of the 2017 Literarian Award for Outstanding Service to the Literary Community.

“I thought Dick Robinson hit the perfect note when he said that we have a huge stake in publishing in establishing a level playing field where everyone reads,” Albanese tells CCC’s Chris Kenneally.

Every Friday, CCC’s “Beyond the Book” speaks with the editors and reporters of “Publishers Weekly” for an early look at the news that publishers, editors, authors, agents and librarians will be talking about when they return to work on Monday.

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