The PEN Open Book Award (known as the Beyond Margins Award through 2009) is an award intended to foster racial and ethnic diversity within the literary and publishing communities, and works to establish access for diverse literary groups to the publishing industry.
[1] Created in 1991 by the PEN American Center (today PEN America), the award ensures custodians of language and literature are representative of the American people.
The Committee discusses mutual concerns and strategies for advancing writing and professional activities, and coordinates Open Book events.
While multiple awards were presented in previous years, the PEN Open Book Award now presents one award every year to books published in the United States (but without citizenship or residency requirements) by "authors of color who have not received wide media coverage".
Prior to 2010, the PEN Open Book Award was referred to as the Beyond Margins Award, and several books were selected per year as joint winners.